Minesweeper

Boxing Day - and time to open the Box! Inside was the complete Thorny Back Axle with the diff in it. We then had to take the wheels off so that the axle and the two wheels could be stored safely and separately. First job was to get the two half shafts out - straight forward and both half shafts are in excellent condition.

These three pictures reveal the excellent condition of the half shafts

Then to get the wheels off. A series of jacking bolts and a specially home made spanner to remover the big retaining nut did the trick. This primitive spanner was just an old bit of steel bar with two prongs bolted to it, to fit across two opposite flats of the big nut. Everything was nice and oily and really none of the fastenings gave us any great deal of trouble to undo.

More to come in a moment

Google it - and it will all be clear!

Did a short - two weeks only - Army Driving Course in one in 1959 - 13RE80 - that was in Sussex. Happy memories of driving it! The Driving Test was driving from Maresfield to Bognor Regis.

When did they finally go out of service with the Army?

Tony

Do you think that there is even more dishonesty around at this present time - compared with just a few years ago? You hear so often that years ago, people would not even think of locking the doors of their houses when they were not there - knowing only too well that they would be quite safe. Things change - as some of you might know, I had two heavy anvils stolen from my premises - I live in a remote area - and my lane is almost a cul-de-sac so the thieves were also in danger of being trapped at my place if I had come home during their thieving "operation". I guess they knew that they were taking a chance in "lifting" the anvils so that they knew that they would have to be quick.

My parents never locked their doors - during the war when my father was away, my mother continued with that practice initially of leaving everything unlocked and was very startled one night when the door opened and two American Servicemen came in as they had been given an address where they could find "certain facilities" - but got the wrong house in the blackout! I think that it was right after that, my mother locked the front door! I must add that the two Yanks were full of profuse apologies when they realised that they had gone to the wrong place!

And nowadays with so much going on with computers, it becomes yet another opportunity for thieves and rogues to have a go at the ordinary honest person.

I've had this call as well - "You are having a computer problem?" And coincidentally, yes I was at the time so it would have been so easy to fall into the trap.

I ended the call after a minute or two when I guessed it was a scam - but the guy immediately rang me back to learn why I did not wish to proceed with his help and to find out what was bothering me..........

I am guessing that a lot of us have a computer problem of some kind or other which is probably ongoing so it would be so easy to fall into this trap.

And we all think that we are going to have more time when we retire - not true!

Luckily I don't keep track of the hours!

 

I really don't know how long it took but at least 20 hours and I was in trouble with Sarah over the dust in the kitchen.

 

Ben

Tony

Yes, that is a fine piece of work, Ben! How many hours on those patterns - it certainly does not look as if it was a quick job!

Tony

Tim has mentioned how grateful we are to Mike for his kindness and generosity - and for all the trouble that he has taken for us with this. I hope that one day that he and his family will be able to visit us here - and drive the Thorny!

We have been fascinated, too, in following the journey that the crate took to reach us. It was placed in a container in Tauranga, NZ and as far as we knew, it was to sail directly to Tilbury. But it seems that Container Ships don't work quite like that. After leaving NZ, it crossed the Pacific, went through the Panama Canal and then headed for Kingston Jamaica. The ship stopped off there for just a few hours - presumably to offload and load other containers and then it sailed for Savannah, Georgia in the USA - again stopping off for just a few hours there. From there it sailed to Philadelphia - just a few hours there and then on to Tilbury. So, thinking of its first journey to NZ all those years ago, would the axle - presumably as part of a complete lorry then, have gone through the Suez Canal - and if it did, the axle will have travelled right around he world in its life time.

Since it left the axle at Tilbury, we have just for interest continued to track the ship - it has in the last two weeks called in at Rotterdam, Dunkirk, Le Havre, New York, Savannah again and is now once more heading for Kingston Jamaica! The crew don't get much time ashore.

Mike had a good look at the "diff" before it was despatched - Tim has some photos of it which no doubt he will post in due course and from those you will be able to see that it really is in superb condition! What a tremendous shot in the arm all of this is!

Tony

It should be marginally easier to find the 'impossible' parts with the power of the 'net and HMVF at your elbow

 

Might be worth listing, in order of impossible-ness, the primary bits that you need - do I remember you need a rear diff from an earlier page?

 

List of bits, and the exact model of the truck please, so all us far-flung types can put the word out, though since the engine is from NZ it has travelled far already.

 

Gordon

Remember saying this last July, Gordon?

Well, wait and see the results - all very shortly, now! We make many great friends on the HMVF - all very wonderful and we are grateful for that and to them!

Tony

Yes, a lovely clear picture of a Peerless! Notice the "Peerless" Makers plate on the front cross member!

This was my maternal grandmother's family - but the family name was changed over a period from "Tripe" to "Tripp"! My grandmother's maiden name was Mabel Clara Tripp - she married my grandfather in 1900 and lived until about 1965.

So she must have known Alfred King Tripe - but I knew nothing of him until another cousin started to dig into family history very recently. Would I have thought of asking my grandmother about Alfred, I wonder, if I had known about him all those years ago when she was still alive?

I think that every one of say - or has said at some time or other - "I wish I had asked whilst he/she was still here".

Tony

Well, that's an interesting one - would never have thought of that one.............

Tony

Tony,

 

I think that I may have a brand new one boxed, no idea of what it fitted, something military, but too short for a Dingo petrol tank. Problem is the shaft length and amount of twist is calculated to the needle sweep on the dial, but you could probably use the original shaft.

 

Might even be able to find a good float, check the centre to centre measurement of the two rods.

Thanks, Richard - will come back to you!

Tony

Thanks for the suggestions, Gordon and Richard! However, silver soldering is not an option - it has already been soft-soldered in its original construction - so the heat required for silver soldering would make the whole thing fall to bits! I guess Steve will have something to say about that when he picks this up later. But it will have to be drilled to let the oil out - and we can assess it again then. The brass is only paper thin so we must proceed with care!

With regard to your suggestion, Richard, then we picked up one of those at the Beaulieu Auto Jumble just a few years ago and paid £25 for it - brand new and described as "surplus". Should have bought more than one as there were several on offer but we had no purpose for it in mind when we got it - rather just thinking that "it might come in handy". And come in handy it did. The Dennis was never fitted with a fuel gauge on the tank but it rather looks as if the tank may have been of a standard design and construction for perhaps fitting to any make of vehicle - and there was provision in it for a fuel gauge just like this - although blanked off. With just a tiny bit of surgery - it had to be shortened, the gauge fitted like a glove and we have a fully operative Petrol Gauge on the petrol tank!

Tony

Yes, we are all really looking forward to getting going with it! As you may have previously read, we started this one some 22 years ago with very few bits, but over the period we have continued to collect things as they have come up. We had no engine and another collector always kept his eyes open for anything commercial and old, not only for himself but for any like-minded enthusiasts - and it was he who found the engine for us in NZ. He got hold of it - and asked us afterwards if we wanted it! It was still in transit at that time from NZ - so it was immediately diverted to us instead of going to him at his place and I remember the Shipping Agent in Tilbury telephoning me to ensure that I had a Forklift here to unload it! Something that I had not given a thought to as I assumed that the lorry bringing it here from Tilbury would have a HiHab or a powered tailboard - but I was told that it was my responsibility to unload it. A telephone call to a friend in town who did have a Forklift - so that the lorry carrying the engine was diverted yet again to there! It was taken off the lorry there - put right on to my car trailer and we got it home that way.

We are still tidying up one or two things on the Dennis and want to get that totally out of the way before we start properly on the Thorny. Quite unexpectedly, Steve is coming down to Devon again this weekend on another errand when we did not expect to see him here until Christmas and we plan to do what we hope will be the final Dennis Jobs. I bolted the Silencer on to the exhaust pipe when I made it where really it should have been riveted - we have lost a couple of nuts from that so that must come off and be put together properly. There is also a super Engine Oil Level Gauge on the Dennis - but it appears that the float on that has sunk so that it is showing "zero" - so that assembly must come off. Unfortunately, one of the manifolds is in the way so that must come off too! There is no such thing as an "easy job" when you get into this lark!

Tony

Yes, very moving - and well done the Canadians!

Give me one more year, and I'll join the convoy as well!

 

Marcel

Steve and Tim - what have you started!

It appears that a lot of HMVF Members participate in other forums in other countries with similar interests to ours. I know of Maple Leaf UP and the Dodge Forum but what other ones are there? I guess that there must be at least one "down under" covering vehicles of the same makes as ours with lots of things in common with us.

Tony

A great intoduction and a lovely story! Good luck with it!

Tony

Amongst my collection of tools acquired over the years, I had a small Blacksmiths Anvil weighing about 1 cwt which I bought about 40 years ago from a Boatbuilder at St.Ives in Cornwall who was retiring. I think that I paid about £20 for it. With Steve's aspirations to do more Blacksmithing, that anvil was not going to be big enough and we were given a larger one weighing in at about 2 cwts which was just the job.

Because of our lack of space, the two anvils were kept outside the workshop - in two different places with the big one covered over and out of sight. Just a week or so ago, I noticed that both anvils were gone - and they could only have been stolen! Taken, perhaps by an opportune thief as most of the time, there is always someone around the house.

Really infuriating as we are pretty-well tucked away - and a 2 cwts anvil is not the easiest thing to move.

The Police have been very helpful, but I do not expect to see the anvils again. I reported the theft to the Police by telephone and the young lady who took my call asked for a description - I said that one weighed about 1 cwt and the other about 2 cwts - and was then questioned - "How many kilos in a hundredweight?" How times change!

Tony

Morning all, am off to North Devon for the week as an end of year holiday :drive:, hoping to visit the Cobbaton Collection one day too. What I would like to know is what other places of interest are around that area? Anything for a family day out, cider farms :beer:, places of interest. Any ideas greatly appreciated.

 

Simon

Family day out - look up the "The Big Sheep" near Bideford!

The Thorny J Charabanc converted from a Lorry some years ago and which normally lives at Sandy Bay, Exmouth - the World of Country Life - is making occasional appearances on the Downton Abbey TV programme on Sunday nights!

Yes - that would be acceptable to me!

 

You can buy all of these easily and cheaply in the USA on USA EBay - but the killer is the postage - then VAT and Import Duty when they arrive in this country. The best way to do it is to find someone going to the States on holiday - or on business and get them to pop into a hardware store - buy them there and bring them back in their ordinary luggage. Put them in a suitcase with just ordinary stuff. Any big store - equivalent of B and Q or Wickes will have them on the shelf there!

 

Omitted to say - they are always known as "Carriage Bolts" in the USA ! If you should get any, then file the writing off the heads of the bolts before you use them for total authenticity! Only takes a second or two for each bolt.

 

Tony

Yes - that would be acceptable to me!

You can buy all of these easily and cheaply in the USA on USA EBay - but the killer is the postage - then VAT and Import Duty when they arrive in this country. The best way to do it is to find someone going to the States on holiday - or on business and get them to pop into a hardware store - buy them there and bring them back in their ordinary luggage. Put them in a suitcase with just ordinary stuff. Any big store - equivalent of B and Q or Wickes will have them on the shelf there!

Tony