question Understanding a RN key card and a mystery contract No.

[sickpup]

Clearly something was done (re-work) at Solihull , it may have been taken from longer , very long term storage for de-preservation & service. Changes could have been made , that probably included a hard-top fit , may have been only a hard-top fit (done proper).

 

You were right (as you tend to be ), it has had a hard top fitted at some point while in service. I found the bolt holes with bolts in earlier this morning for the lower door hinge so its had a rear door fitted.

I've also found the split tailgate and although it is bronze green underneath it has been over painted in Nato green with a blue grey displaced pattern over the top so although there when sold to the first owner it quite likely isn't the vehicles original.

[ruxy]

I tend to "Time-Line" the rear oblong red reflectors after 1974 , certainly by 1976 (just now - uncertain of exact change-point , I would guestimate the round rubber type into 1975).

 

It would be worth looking at VRM's & photographs of rear ends in such as the MJC book - probably possible to date the lower tub if no holes ever for round reflector.

 

Split tail-gates - there are a few differences , abt. 4 qty. variations - but they can get swopped about.

[sickpup]

A friend on mine who works in chassis development at Land Rover has managed to get a little bit of information from a chap who works on military coontacts on the odd vin plate.

 

The vin plate is of a type that was always and only supplied with a new replacement chassis in the 1970's. It is different from the type fitted to a new MOD vehicle as at time of production it was unknown who the final user would be. These plates would only have been used if the original was destroyed or so defaced as to have been unusable and a standard type MOD plate was unavailable.

Thge military contracts chap considers it was unlikely that the vehicle was returned to Solihull for the re-chassis and Traceability have no record of it returning, along with the lack of SP badge this suggests it was rebuilt by an MOD workshop.

 

This now suggests along with the parts that we know were changed that it was involved in an incdent of some kind where the Bulkhead and chassis as well as other possible parts were heavily damaged, dropped off a crane maybe?

 

A question has occured. Would a ship list all the vehicles on board when it departs under some kind of list like a bill of lading, if so what would this list be called?

[ruxy]

A friend on mine who works in chassis development at Land Rover has managed to get a little bit of information from a chap who works on military coontacts on the odd vin plate.

 

The vin plate is of a type that was always and only supplied with a new replacement chassis in the 1970's. It is different from the type fitted to a new MOD vehicle as at time of production it was unknown who the final user would be. These plates would only have been used if the original was destroyed or so defaced as to have been unusable and a standard type MOD plate was unavailable.

Thge military contracts chap considers it was unlikely that the vehicle was returned to Solihull for the re-chassis and Traceability have no record of it returning, along with the lack of SP badge this suggests it was rebuilt by an MOD workshop.

 

This now suggests along with the parts that we know were changed that it was involved in an incdent of some kind where the Bulkhead and chassis as well as other possible parts were heavily damaged, dropped off a crane maybe?

 

A question has occured. Would a ship list all the vehicles on board when it departs under some kind of list like a bill of lading, if so what would this list be called?

 

================

 

RN may have their own word , I was MN so don't know for certain - probably "manifest" , there would be documentation esp. if ship owned (listed on ship "inventory" ? ) as opposed to transported. Important docs - filed away in a Admiralty basement for ever , try a FOI , probably hit the ££ free limit

 

http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/bill-of-lading-vs-shipping-manifest.2198185/

Edited August 19, 2015 by ruxy
spelin

[sickpup]

I have entered an FOI request here so may hopefully get some more answers.

[sickpup]

Thought I should post an update to this.

 

The contract/Warrant no. is a very specific Royal Navy type. 006741 should be read as 006-74-1 meaning the 6th contract issued in 1974 and would have become WV11378 as the order progressed through the MOD.

 

The UIN. N5040G appears to be for the Garage at Portsmouth naval base.

 

I have found two other examples of the odd chassis plate both are on Royal Navy Lightweights built in the 1970's and both appear to be original so it may be that the Royal Navy specified their own type rather than the usual type.

 

It was built as part of a contract for 7 vehicles but only 6 ended up with the Royal Navy. The 7th and last of the chassis No.s in the contract ended up with the Army.

The contract was supposedly for GS vehicles only but mine is an FFR. 4 of the vehicles were depatched on the same date with the other two sent on odd dates which suggests to me that the contract was in fact for 4 GS and 2 FFR vehicles.

The 7th vehicle that ended up with the army was built out of date with the others so again almost definately wasn't part of the contract.

 

Chassis no.s were allocated to a contract. What this means in practice was that vehicles weren't built or despatched in chassis no. order. There were dates where parts of the contract had to be built by and various contracts were being built at the same time therefore the vehicles would be completed out of chassis order but within contract order.

In the case of my vehicles contract the numbers ran from 488-494. 489,490,492 and 493 were all dispatched to Hilton on the 21st nov. 488 was dispatched on the 11th nov, 491 (mine) went on the 10th dec and 494 went on the 27th Sep which as I have said suggests 494 the 7th was in fact not part of the contract.

 

I will be requesting the B card for 494 from the RLC as they have it.

 

I now have an invitation to check throught the 6 boxloads of vehicle B cars held at Portsmouth as well so hopefully I can confirm the above.