Starfire

I don't know how you would work with the red tell-tale, as you're supposed to pull the extinguisher out fairly regularly to check the indicator button on the bottom. Cheers, Terry

I'm guessing that they were loading and then unloading as a training exercise. For some reason, I really want to buy an Antar now... Is there any more of that Saracen footage? I thought that was pretty cool too. Cheers, Terry

The most important thing for a museum location, is the location! Most people won't go too far out of their way for a museum, but if the museum is near something that gets lots of foot traffic, plenty of people will drop in. If you plan on having your museum a little like ours, with running vehicles, then the next important thing is to have an area big enough to run them around, with a good viewing area and some considerations towards safety. Something that we don't have a lot of, but really need to work on, is interactive displays. Those are always very popular and get people coming back. Also consider running special event days at regular intervals and possibly have free entry for children accompanied by an adult; as long as your gift shop is also the exit point and you make sure that you have stuff that appeals to kids, you'll make your money anyway. We haven't found much benefit in spending much on advertising; maintaining an active Facebook page and a good website seems to be a very cost effective way of getting word out about the place, as well as turning up with a vehicle or two at other events (with permission) and handing out fliers. Cheers, Terry

Yes...ish. They were universal fitments, but there are different types depending on what type of extinguisher was fitted, in what location and varied depending on era. Cheers, Terry

I disagree. WW2 certainly has a lot of appeal, but that is also a market that is well catered for and one that is expensive to get a decent collection in (something that I find silly is that a WW2 dated item is substantially more expensive/valuable than an identical one manufactured after the war). For a reasonable, but growing, investment, you can establish an impressive collection of cold war era equipment which will fill a niche in the museum market and provide a valuable historic resource. For the cost of a decent WW2 tank, you should be able to buy half a dozen or more good cold war examples, if you shop around. Cheers, Terry

Yes, museums all seem to be struggling; ours certainly is. The structure of our museum is a little different to most others. Basically, our vehicle club members (the Military Vehicle Preservation Society of South Australia) had far too many vehicles and nowhere to store them, so they got together and decided to start a museum about 30 years ago. As it stands now, our members have about 250 vehicles between them (according to the official register, but it is probably a lot more) and there are about 80 at the museum. About half are owned by the museum and the rest by the members, and of all the vehicles, about 90% are running (or would do with some minor maintenance). It's a format that seems to work for us, but we do differ from most other museums in that we like to play with our toys and at certain times of the year, especially on Anzac Day and the Bay to Birdwood Run, there aren't too many vehicles left on site. Cheers, Terry

As far as I know, all of the CMPs at the museum have an in-line electric fuel pump fitted too. Most of them just run constantly when the ignition is on. You can't beat the simplicity of a mechanical pump, but electric just works so much better Cheers, Terry

Is it marked CS1837?

As I understand it, the silver paint used by the British is actually based on an aluminium powder held in suspension. From Clive's PAINTINGpart1.pdf: Aluminium Specification CS1837 for the interior metalwork and woodwork of armoured vehicles, (except armoured command vehicles). No further finishing coat required. From what I have read, it starts out very shiny and fades to a dull grey as it oxidises over the course of a couple of years. I believe its primary use is as a flame retardant coating, more than for any anti-spalling effects. As has been noted, it is very good at staining things, silver-ish to start with going to grey/black as it gets older. Most modern restorations make use of a silver coloured paint, which neither tarnishes, nor stains - although it doesn't have the same fire resistant properties. Cheers, Terry

Have you shipped it yet? That'll be the tricky part.

Can you find CMPs in the US? I thought that they were pretty rare in Canada and almost impossible to find in the States. They're very common here in Australia though, where they are almost universally known as "Blitz" trucks. No-one seems to know why that is the case though. If you're entertaining the idea of importing one, I know of some very good restored ones and some in need of restoration that are for sale and I can put you in touch with owners. Cheers, Terry

It could be some sort of blockage in the fuel system; something big-ish that is being sucked into the collection point when running. Have you tried running it from an external fuel tank (jerrycan)? I don't know the specifics, but I do know that a lot of CVR(T) owners have trouble with the standard fuel tanks and often replace them with others. Cheers, Terry

No, not 80 MPH, that would have been a sight - 80 kph was fast enough! Cheers, Terry

I don't know about other states, but in South Australia, you only have to fill in the logbook once a day stating what you are doing/where you are going. It doesn't have to be a club event or anything. The main reason for this is that you're only allowed to use it 90 days per year, and a logbook entry confirms that. I guess if you got done by a speed camera or something, you'd also have to be able to show a corresponding entry in the book. Given that I got the Saracen up to 80 the other day, there is a potential for a speeding ticket in it Cheers, Terry

Here in Australia, there basically are no exemptions, although historic vehicles get some concessions in the form of reduced registration, insurance and inspection requirements (for heavy vehicles). For the Saracen, I needed a HR (Heavy Rigid) license, which allows me to drive any non-articulated vehicle (other than a "bendy bus), of any weight with a trailer up to 9,000 kg. Basically, we have: R - Motorcycle - Don't ask me why they picked "R". C - Car - anything up to 4,500 kg. LR - Light Rigid - Anything up to 8,000 kg (no-one actually offers training for this and everyone that needs it gets the MR instead). MR - Medium Rigid - any vehicle with 2 axles up to 25,000 kg. HR - Heavy Rigid - any non-articulated vehicle. HC - Heavy Combination - Any semi trailer. MC - Multi Combination - Road trains and B Doubles. Each class allows you to drive all of the previous classes, with the exception of R, which requires its own test. You don't have to get all of the previous classes either - I went from a C to an MR. MR and above can have gearbox restrictions, depending on what you passed your test with - Auto, Synchromesh or Unrestricted (crash box). The Saracen is a bit of a grey area there, the pre-selector would have probably been ok with an auto license, but I got the unrestricted, so I can drive anything else in the museum. Cheers, Terry

Wow, your UK licensing requirements are confusing, especially with all the exemptions. Cheers, Terry

Not an ambulance... Cheers, Terry

The Saracen isn't too fast either, but I did manage to get it up to 80 km/h on an expressway recently. It only took half an hour or so to accelerate to that speed though The next time I have to move house, I do intend on using the Saracen as a moving van - mostly as a laugh. Cheers, Terry

Nope, water falls under consumables, much like all the oil that leaks out of the thing Cheers, Terry

Edited for correctness Cheers, Terry

This is my Saracen repair kit: Cheers, Terry

It looks like they forgot their fishing rods.

I forgot to add, the army guys dropped in after delivering an Abrams tank to the next door RAAF Edinburgh for a look around the museum. We weren't actually open, but I let them in anyway and I had to ask them for a comparison photo Cheers, Terry

Here is a comparison of the Diamond T M20 in the museum yard and the current Australian Army road going tank transport; a leased Kenworth. Cheers, Terry

When you're looking for something specific, there are 2 ways to go about it: 1) Go hunting with a wad of cash and be prepared to spend whatever it takes, or 2) Sit back, relax and wait for one to come to you. Given that you don't have a huge budget, just keep saving and keep an eye out. You'll find the right vehicle. I have to agree that the RL is a good looking truck. I really should take the RAF one at the museum out for a drive some time... Cheers, Terry