matchlesswdg3

Sounds like you want something that can be used regularly without any great dramas and has a bit of off-road capability, which, I agree points you in the direction of a Military Landie. And if you want a camper, then the ideal is an ambulance-bodied version........unless you go for the Forward Control variety......... At this stage you then need to consider price as both of these tend not to be cheap, for a good one, although I have seen what look like some decent bargains lately. And spares for Landies are crazily cheap and available compared to most anything else. And if you look after it, you should always get your money back (if you bought a good one). With the latter in mind, I would strongly recommend also investing in membership of the Ex-Military Land Rover Association which is a great source of advice AND potential good buys. I bought a Lightweight L/R just to tow my trailer, and I was hooked. So be warned! Ferg

Oh yes, I should also have added the comment that others made - the marshals were indeed excellent - efficient, helpful and friendly despite all the hassles and problems thrown at them.

Yes , agree with this; some big improvements on across- site access but this still needs improvement for those on foot and sterling effort on toilets and showers. But exhibitor access and registration area was a shambles and needs more / wider hard standing. Also the perimeter track which was a life saver in often slippery conditions was crumbling by the hour after a week of heavy traffic. There will be little left of it unless repaired. But overall a great show and credit where credit is due.

If it was quite a mature gentleman, then yes, he was with NOBS and he was eventually rescued although it took some time due to the state of the roads, etc, so he had a long day! Ferg

Richard Farrant and I had to tear into the Bedford MW's engine - it has a misfire and one cylinder was showing zero compression. Well in the offending cylinder, the exhaust pushrod was jammed under the rocker, with the lip of the pushrod cup jammed under rocker. We optimistically thought if we freed that, we would get compression. No luck, so off with the head and that exhaust valve looked not to be properly seated. However, pulling out all the pushrods, there was a variety of patterns in terms of the cup moulding with the cup form slightly different and seemed to be two types. But they all looked OK except for the one that had jammed which has a noticeably shallower cup. However, the overall length seemed to be exactly the same as the other rods so I am assuming that it is either a poor pattern part or ???. Anyhow, I am going to order up a new rod to replace this one and whether that has anything to do with the bad valve seat, maybe Richard will be able to tell me when he gets the head stripped down. Anyone else had such issues? Cheers, Ferg

My MW's 28hp engine has developed what sounds like a horrible misfire during its last run out. There is no blue smoke but it is very lumpy running and vibratory.......I hope I have ruled out big end problems as at the tailpipe, you can hear the stutter in the firing. I have not had the MW long having bought it restored but not used since restoration so was expecting commissioning issues. I have found some minor bodges around the engine that need fixing (one being a bodged distributor cap clip - though that does not seem to be the misfire source - but who would replace spring steel with feeble ally???) - and rocker box gasket seems to comprise gasket goo only. I have just bought a compression tester and having read an article about similar symptoms on a Dodge, I am hoping it is a duff cylinder head gasket allowing gases to escape via adjacent pistons. Or it is an exhaust valve problem - not unknown on these engines, I understand. Hopefully the compression results will throw some light on this. Anyhow, if anyone lives near Ashford, Kent, I would be grateful if they could lend an ear and cast an expert eye over the lump (if it ever stops raining - the MW lives outside under tarps, alas) before I start hurling spanners. Any other words of wisdom and encouragement (?) welcomed!! Ferg

I have been rediscovering the joys of military vehicle/plane kitbuilding and with the level of detail now available via the likes of Hasigawa and Tamiya, etc, I feel my end result is now getting let down by painting using a brush and spray cans. I have seen youtube demos of airbrushing and this appeals, but the kit is not cheap (at least for something the experts regard as fit for purpose) and I do not want to fork out for something overly high-spec for military modelling. Any recommendations most gratefully received! Ferg :undecided:

Expect to pay upwards of £8,000 for a restored runner; there were a couple up for sale at the War & Peace Revival - cannot exactly recall the price, but between £8,500 and £10,000.

Thanks very much for both replies!

Again, agree with most of the comments. The really big potential problem was the lack of a decent cover of turf over large areas of the site - areas that had just been left fallow I suspect after crops. If there had been rain, the show would have been a real mess and places like Kitchener's Field would have been a nightmare to camp on. Hope these areas are properly levelled and seeded for next year so it is able to withstand normal weather! They did try hard to keep toilets and showers clean - an uphill struggle in the conditions - why the heck they cannot re-design these portable ablutions so they can be readily sluiced out I do not know. Jeez - things have moved on since the 50s - why can't they figure out more hygienic blocks? Another gripe most folk had was the maze-like layout of many areas with fences and ditches creating dead ends and back-tracking. Also I thought the vehicle displays could still be improved with more effort to create cohesive areas in a single theme - too much mixing of American and British - although that is something the exhibitors could take onboard and our group of WW2 motorcyclists intends combining with a British armoured display to create a bigger single-theme area that is more then just a collection of green vehicles. I also noted lots of support cars still in evidence - having an Espace parked up next to a WW2 display is annoying in the extreme! But those are the gripes and notes for improving what is already a cracking show! Well done to the organisers.

Anyone know who stocks these at present? No joy at WandP. Cheers!

Just a final reminder that Normandy Old Bike Society will be getting together a display of British WW2 motorcycles in the Living History area at the War & Peace Revival (nr Folkestone, 17-21 July). Please come and say hello if you are going or better still, bring a bike and show it off! Even if you are camping and want to keep your Pride and Joy with you, you are most welcome to have it on display with us during the day - that way, more people get to see what REAL motorcycles look like. If you want more details, just ask! Ferg

Fred, having bought, done up, and eventually sold my v original 12v Lightweight, for 3,500 last year, it appears to me that with all the work you apparently had to do to yours, your buying price was pretty steep! So you are now selling at pretty much top dollar for this vehicle and as others have said, it's a buyers market at this end. But let's face it, you will never make money on restoration - you just have to accept that you have done your bit to preserve a bit of history. I actually bought mine for 1,200 about five years ago which meant I did not lose too much money - more than compensated by the satisfaction of making a landie on the edge of extinction into a nice vehicle that was picked out in the Bletring arena as the type GS. If you really want to sell, IMHO you will need to lower your price by at least 500...........or maybe wait for Summer and the Recovery?!

I have a rag-top MW that is stuffed with bits of kit for shows - nothing that valuable, but with the way prices are going for "collectables" I get worried about keeping the scrotes at bay - its not always possible to keep an eye on stuff. Any suggestions for an alarm system that would deter people - I was thinking along the lines of a sensor you could set up to detect say the tilt being undone or a box shifted - something that detects something inside being moved. I have an alarm that detects movements of people - but it also detects flapping canvas so that is not much use on a windy day! Ferg

I know distance is an issue, but may I suggest at this stage that if you are interested in being part of a display, forget the usual W&P charge and let me know and I can put you on the mailing list. I have yet to talk about costs with Rex - let me see what I can work out. But think - this is the biggest historic mv show and the motorcycles are badly represented in terms of a coherent display and the public just love them! Make up your mind later, but let me know if you want me to put you on my email list so I can date you on developments. Cheers! Ferg

Many of you will know that Rex Cadman's War and Peace Show is being held at the Folkestone Racecourse this year, in July as usual. The new site is just off the M20 and is styled as a "Revival" as Rex wants to have a bit of freedom to revitalise the concept. Anyhow, I have long suggested that its about time there was a decent coherent WW2 allied motorcycle display of the type the NOBS puts on at Goodwood each year (ask Ron). I live close to the venue so am quite keen to see if I can get this organised this year. Rex also seems keen and is talking about a prominent position. OK - I know a lot of you attend the show and some of you bring bikes. Interested in getting together a display? If you are, email me and I can supply more details and start compiling a list of possible attendees and then from there, get organising. I am aiming for a good quality display with appropriate dressing and am working on the basis you can drive on and off the display so your bike is safe with you overnight. If interested, email me on fergusanckorn@icloud.com. Cheers! Ferg

Nice to see photos of a vehicle I actually drove as part of the job in my youth! It was used widely by the British Antarctic Survey from several bases, notably Halley Bay. Great memories!

When re-painting my Lightweight, I was advised to use eggshell finish to provide a reasonably waterproof finish; this was straight over a primed surface. This looks a little naff at first - too shiny - but as others have said, it dulls down nicely after a season. After 5 years, finish was still good, although this was mostly on birmabrite alloy of course, in the case of the Landie. But it seems a reasonable compromise to avoid the fag of putting an extra waterproofing coat under a matt finish. Once the paint is on, IMHO the only way to make it look good is get it dirty ! Personal taste I know, but people who ride around in pristine historic MVs look like they are on the way to park up in a museum and need to get out more. The muddier they get, the better they look. Paint is just an undercoat for grime.

My Bedford MW has had to be stored pro tem on the driveway; it now has a nice big tailored camper van cover over it, which breathes but has a "waterproof" top panel. That works fairly well, but I found that pooled water eventually seeps through. Anyhow, it still suffers from damp, especially inside the cab - mainly just condensation when its cold and no wind, so I have just installed a 60w electric "greenhouse" heater which is just a foot-long plastic tube I have mounted on block (about £17). That should not break the bank running it when the weather conditions require, and so far it seems to work - it certainly does not heat the cab up, but the dampness has gone. I am keeping a close eye on it, but hopefully its a cheap fit and forget solution to prevent P&J from dissolving internally! Its possibly also enough heat to keep frost off the engine block, although it does have anti-freeze in. I may experiment when we get some sub-zero conditions.

My G3L has also always run rich; like you, I suspect a worn body, but its not a problem really as I just keep a spare spark plug ready if it won't start - its fine on long runs. I use NGKs. Try adjusting the clutch springs (in the manual); mine has replacement clutch plates - maybe yours is still on cork plates? I don't get clutch slip, but it can drag at times - improved by using a lighter grade oil in the chaincase - engine oil tends to make the plates stick together. Anyway, sounds like you have sorted out the engine properly and you are now on to the more minor stuff. Good luck with it.

Mike - any chance you could email me this photo to send on to my cousin? Many thanks. Ferg

Is this scene set in Singapore by any chance? I ask, because my 2nd cousin and namesake, Fergus Anckorn, drove a Guy tractor for the RA in Singapore although his war consisted of a week of being blasted by the Japs then years of prison camp and Burma Railway after being one of a handful of patients who survived the Alexandra Hospital massacre (his rivetting exploits recently published in "Surviving by Magic"). A truly amazing gent and still full of life today in his nineties! Anyhow, he was always insistent that he drove a Guy and not the Morris that I took him to see at War & Peace! So it is great to see this photo. Many thanks. Ferg

Having just gone through the process of searching for, and buying an MV, the price is what someone is prepared to pay for it! At the moment, the market seems pretty weak for anything that is not rare or very desirable. Lots of stuff out up at "market rates" on eBay, etc, but it does not seem to sell! I suspect, that as indicated above, you need to find a buyer, then negotiate. Lets face it, in pure money terms, a large truck like this is quite likely going to cost more money to restore than it will be worth, even if got for free! But thats not what it is all about (is it?).

Yes (picture) - thats the one! I just got the V5 back and it does have an MWR chassis. I had a close look at a nice MWR at War and Peace and clearly, mine has a fair bit of missing hardware - which I will NOT be bothering finding! At least for the present...........[CONFESSION: I bought a Lightweight L/R several years ago, "just to haul my bike trailer"........then a bloke sidled up to me "Psst, you wanna buy some Nato paint?" I only bought a half litre and did not inhale (much), but I was hooked. By the year's end I was on Clansman radios and split tailgates. After a few years on this soft stuff, I was approached by a Geezer asking if I would like to try something a bit more interesting.....a Dodge or a Bedford, maybe. I told him, no, but he gave me this piece of old tilt to sniff and that was it, I was in it up to my miserable neck. I tried to stop a couple of times, but so called mates would slip me a copy of "Classic Military Vehicles" and I was back "at it" again. I lost my missus and kids - I think they are somewhere at the back of the garage, behind a collapsed pile of bar grip tyres. The only people I know are Green F:nut:iends.................]

MWR stamped in the chassis? Whereabouts? Must have a look. It does not have a genny mounting in the offside footstep and although I have not looked, previous owner said it did not have a PTO. Does not have arials of course, but the back has been stripped out and made into living space - neatly done and very practical. Regards your tip on first gear - yes, that's what PO also said! Thanks for feedback! Ferg