teletech

I took the turret off the ring and pulled the ring after, I don't know that you can really do it any other way. The ring is pretty easy to manage for one guy with a little leverage and care or an easy lift for two. My basket was already pretty well disconnected from the turret so it was a simple matter to finish up so I could lift the turret. I don't know how I could have pulled the basket with the turret, the bearings and brackets were a mix of rotted and seized. I also removed the rest of the basket in sections, no lifting tackle needed and the commutator assembly was one of the last bits to come out. I would suggest removing the elevation gearbox early as it hangs down a fair bit. I just removed the bottom of it and that worked OK.

I don't have good answers for you but I'll share what I do know in case it helps: It's heavier than one might expect, Most of two tonne I'd say. I used a pallet rack and a set of four large ratchet straps to lift it off and suspend it in the shop. I expect to lift the vehicle up under the turret to reinstall. Of course I separated the basket and such so I only had to lift several inches. My commutator assembly was pretty frozen up so I just yanked the whole mess off the floor pan.

If you get a Spartan with the Milan turret it looks pretty cool but I can understand wanting, as a friend calls it, the spinny bit. :-) I know of a Falklands Sabre in the USA that needs total restoration for ~$40000USD. When I was looking a year or two ago, all the nice Scorpion/Sabre/Scimitar types I saw started around £21500 with total wrecks for a bit less than half that. If it makes you feel any better, in the USA people are asking a lot more so you can think of 22K as a real bargain: http://www.armyjeeps.net/armor1.htm

If you have to stretch that much to make the initial purchase, it's not time. No mater how nice it is, there is likely something that will break or not go as it should and it's gonna cost you a couple extra grand. So wait until you've got a cushion so you don't wind up broken down and unable to afford a recovery and spares, you'll sleep better at night.

An engine that fell from the sky is a Meteor, makes perfect sense. I know for trials the CVR(T) was fitted with a big V-8 aft where the turret basket had been. The turret was removed and a big rollbar fitted. It was done to see how fast you could push tracked armour. I gather the track pads started coming apart ~88mph. The diesel programs variously implemented for the CVR(T) all constitute a power increase The Styer motor is basically the same as a high-end BMW and was used in Repaircraft "world's fastest tank" . The Cummins 6BT conversion done for the MOD uses a uprated gearbox as well and the 6BT used is set very mild, one could coax over 1000 HP from a modded engine. Cooling and gearbox become the limiting factors quickly but if one sacrificed some armour to improve air flow and get the weight down one could easily get something that would be willing to snap tracks. Of course there are track alternatives that might hold up better now as well. How badly do you want it and how deep are you pockets is what it comes down to. People have had fun with M114s though: http://www.trucktrend.com/cool-trucks/1103dp-1000hp-cummins-shootout-high-tech-vs-old-school/

Well, I'm in the states so my experience will differ in some respects. For a military truck they are durable and reliable. That first bit is a critical caveat, I can not stress how much more maintenance- heavy and unreliable they are compared to almost anything civilian made. Although that assumes US and Japanese vehicles... of course you lads have to contend with Lucas electric systems so that might help even the odds. Just remember the M35 was first built during the early 1950s so a lot of the metallurgy and technology dates from that era. I did own a 1952 M35 (gas engine) and used it as a daily-driver for almost 2 years with no real trouble (apart from the 4MPG). Lots of these trucks are in private hands so many of the trouble spots have fixes and there are some nice upgrades (spin-on oil fliters come to mind, oh, and the transmission overdrive) Parts are readily available. The multifuel engine is pretty good and will run on about anything burnable including waste oil if you don't mind the increased wear on the injectors (see point 1) The A2 gearbox is a good one and the electrical system is solid, the turbo is trouble free. I don't remember about the transfer case, the early deuce used a sprag clutch which WILL grenade if you reverse with it engaged but they might have ditched that by the A2. Oh, right, power steering is available as a kit but otherwise it's all you. I think its something like 14 turns lock-to-lock and it's a lousy turning ratio at that so eat your Wheatabix in the morning. The scary part is the brake system, these trucks use an air over hydraulic system and it's a single circuit system so a loss of fluid or airpack failure will result in TOTAL BRAKE FAILURE. Oh, you can use the parking brake (driveline drum) but it's not much help. Expect a few honest hours a month of basic service and you should be OK. I'd suggest going to "steelsoldiers.com" for the full scoop.

Good point, the burn rate of powder can increase or decrease significantly based on just how it deteriorated. I wouldn't recommend anyone not familiar with reloading and pressure signs try something like this. Fear not, I won't be subjecting a Webley to such abuse. I'd either use an action massively overbuilt for the round in question (ie P-14 Enfield, 1911 in 9mm,.38spl in a .357, .44sppl in a 44magnum...) or hand-load and go with minimum loads.

Ah, ammunition of uncertain production, you have to love it! Worst I ever met was some extremely unreliable and corrosive 9mm from Egypt, made in the mid-90s Second worst was much of the Pakistani .303 I met. Date codes in the mid to late '60s. It almost all worked and produced something like acceptable velocity but the hang-fires were random and impressive: bang, click...bang, click-bang. You pulled the trigger and knew it was going to go off, just not WHEN! Longest I had to wait was 3-seconds, you sure wouldn't want to use that stuff for a mad minute. On the other hand, I had some Winchester .303 from WWI that was absolutely a joy. Reliable and more accurate than any of the British issue fodder I tried (sorry). The Greek stuff has always been very nice in both .303 and .30-06. So, I wonder if it's more about the temperature of storage or the initial producer? I should throw 100rnds of something in a black metal box in the yard for a year and compare that to a box stored on a shelf and another in a freezer. I wonder what sort of ammunition would be most interesting for such a test?

Seems like the buttering of the surrounding area is a big help but it does seem a bit of a chancy proposition, I think I'll be just bolting in the new motor mount! I'm almost tempted to just bolt on a new rear sponson, it's mostly pretty hidden after all but I'll have a go at the remainder of what I cut off and a spare hatch I have sitting in the pile and see how it actually is to do in practice. Based on the rot I saw where repairs were done it looks like alloy matters, of course I don't know if that was ten or fourty years ago so it might be that if you keep it painted so it can't get at the atmosphere it's a good long-term solution. Finding the 701x seems to be the real sticking point so far. I had a welding shop for years but I mostly ran steel or the common 6061 type aluminum. I got pretty handy welding up broken castings and such but there is a big difference between any of that and this stuff. I ran just enough MIG Al to know I wanted a nice TIG welder. Actually it wasn't bad but I was trying to do it without a spool-gun. Speaking of, there exists a whole class of welder (usually a spool gun but stick works too) around the idea of using car batteries. I'm thinking the CVR(T) is a great candidate with the slave start port and the big 24V system so if I could find some wire I'd be inclined to give that a try. http://readywelder.com/ they even have military kits all set up but I might fabricate my own using a very heavy ESAB wire feeder I've got lying around. I don't need the full 400A for tig since I'm just sticking the thin stuff on and not welding thick plate to thick plate, I'm hoping my ~300A is plenty.

The plot thickens, I just found this article dealing more with aluminum-lithium armor than the AL-Zn-Mn that I'm dealing with but the interesting bit is they used two different alloy filler rods twisted together to get a more chemically useful mix and that might have some applicability to my project. http://www.asminternational.org/documents/10192/1898681/amp16310p027.pdf/2dc284ad-7321-4343-8877-094f643e3911

I've got a miller Dynasty so I'm pretty set for a TIG welder. Apparently, armour is a bit unusual in that preheat is normally contraindicated due to the particulars of the alloy and the softening effect, they recommend buttering as a solution to face cracking. I would love to get the right filler but since I can't even seem to find material for the patch... I can tell you whatever they used before didn't work out. I found a somewhat useful guide for MIG welding but still nothing useful for TIG using these alloys. http://www.scorpiontank.co.uk/PDFs/Repair%20Overhaul%20etc/Aluminium%20Armour%20Welding%20Repair%20Guide%20%288%20November%202011%29.pdf Aluminium Armour Welding(8 Nov2011).pdf Normally for heavy Al repair Helium or He/Ar does a better job of energy transfer and one can use DC TIG with proper cleaning to dump double the heat as balanced AC but I just don't know in this case.

Any good experiences welding Al armour here? The rear sponson on my CVR(T) was quite badly damaged plus somebody patched it with some 6061 or something and the patch just rotted out in a most impressive manner. I wound up cutting it off entirely. Now I need to find some compatible material for a replacement as well as some filler. It's about 7'1"x6"x.25" but larger would be fine (up to a point of course). It's 7017 so I believe I can use any of 7017, 7018, 7020, 7039, 5059, 5083. The documents I can find give instructions for MIG so I'd have to find some wire as well. I was actually wondering if folks had tried TIG on this stuff? If so I could just cut some thin strips off the good material I cut off and use that as filler. thanks,

It's interesting, I just removed a Dowty seal from my gearbox/clutch and it was marked for direction. It wasn't in hopeless condition either but getting pretty firm. The replacement was one from Argus, it was a silicone-colored brick and quite supple. Bought from TheXmod: https://www.thexmod.com/item_detail.asp?id=2836&t=Seal_Plain_FV658647 I've not seen any good deals on the output shaft seals though.

Green Machine Surplus has some pretty fair sized panels of perhaps slightly newer material for sale of late: http://www.greenmachinesurplus.com/armoured-vehicleinterior-padding-3193-p.asp Sadly they don't ship them so it's all for you lads nearby.

I agree that it would be interesting to get a look in the engine compartment. Supposedly Jordan used the Alvis diesel conversion but that doesn't look right for this vehicle: Based on the lack of the new air inlet the cummins 5.9 seems unlikely, It hasn't got the RepairCraft S-200 upgrade louvres, With the lack of damper upgrades, storage bins, and off-aimed old-style headlamps one might wonder if it might be just a proof of concept vehicle and might even still be a petrol chassis?

Oh, that's sort of amusing. Looking at the side view I notice they still have the armstrong dampers fitted, upgraded indeed!

If someone has a copy, I'd love the IPC page for the steering calipers. Should be in AESP 2350-T_220-711 chap 47 or 48. Are there digital copies of these documents around? I have a half-dozen of the 2350-T-221-mumble manuals I got on a CD... thanks, P_

With a remote weapons pod fitted you could just add a few hydraulic servos in the driver's area and you have a fun little remote control vehicle.

I'd love to see inside the turret, I'm guessing it must be a one-man job but I wonder how the interior is arranged? Bonus points for the optics being right above the gun.

Seems like I saw this upgrade last year but I guess it's official now. http://worlddefencenews.blogspot.com/2016/05/new-cvrt-reconnaissance-vehicle.html I wonder if Latvia will go for the upgrade but what I really want to know is what happened to the old traverse gearboxes!?!

I'd really love to get a copy of the parts-breakdown page for the calipers so I can add the part #s to the list of common parts I'm working on to go with the list of tools I've come up with. I know I should just spend the 75GBP+postage for the tome at some point but I'm trying to wait until I get a consolidated parts order coming as my last XMOD order was over 150GBP just in postage and it wasn't a large order... Thanks, P_

Part of the NBC system of a CVR(T), I'm restoring a Scorpion. Don't feel bad, a couple of the guys knew since I keep pestering them with CVR questions.:laugh:

That makes perfect sense, the big end clips over the filter inlet and the small end goes to a supply hose. Thanks much.

While digging through some CES for my CVR I found this item bagged up inside and I was wondering what it might be? PR 1017 - Coupling Unit Issue 2 4240991369243 Made by Camberley Rubber Mouldings LTD.

I thought if I was going to loose my mind, may as well go the whole way. :nut: Actually, I couldn't decide which one I really wanted and I was told (incorrectly as it happens, in my case) that shipping two wouldn't be that much more than shipping one.