WW1 Dennis truck find

[Great War truck]

Just to keep this going, here is another update.

 

We took another delivery of timber all cut for size. We intend to have a body building Christmas with the whole team. Luckily Tony realised today that some of the timber we ordered had not arrived which would scupper the whole Christmas holiday for us (getting priorities right) so he has gone off to get what we need:

 

 

 

 

The replacement power file has not arrived so Tony has been keeping himself busy (and no doubt bored) with cleaning up the wheel by hand:

 

 

 

 

He is doing a very nice job on it too!

[Asciidv]

Tony,

 

Can you explain the 3 ply construction of your main body planks?

 

I know how much work has gone into your wheel, but what has crossed my mind is whether a super fine finish is really required on the areas which are to be coated. Quite possibly the 'plastic' coating will hide a lot of minor imperfections. Incidentally all Dennis fire engine steering wheels also had the spokes coated too.

 

Barry.

[Minesweeper]

The picture of the plywood is a bit of an optical illusion, Barry! It is a large picture of tiny bits!

 

Those are not the planks wrapped up in the polyphene but the "tongues" cut out of 1/2" thick ply to go into grooves machined in the edges of the floor planks and also in the edges of the side planks! Instead of the planks being machined with tongues on one edge and grooves on the other to inter-lock, they have been machined with grooves on both edges with the ply-wood tongues designed to slip into the grooves in the adjacent planks. The end or outside planks are only grooved on one edge.

 

Our woodworker friend Mark arranged for these plywood strips to be cut for us with a special fine saw that would not splinter the plywood as it was cut - which could easily happen if it was cut with an ordinary saw. Ply with a splintered edge would be difficult to use for that purpose.

 

The Steering Wheel has come on further since these last pictures were taken and I will see if I can get another picture to show you the further progress. It is not easy to get a polished finish around the roots of the spokes of the wheel as you will well know!

 

Tony

Edited December 14, 2010 by Minesweeper

[Asciidv]

Tony,

 

Thank you for the explanation of the wood. I am afraid that the photographs had me completely fooled.

 

With regard to polishing the trickier parts of the wheel, have you tried abrasive grit coated polishing mops in an electric drill. Abrasive grit compound is what the professional casting polishers use. You can buy it from the Frost people.

 

www.frost.co.uk

 

 

This is what they say in their catalogue;

 

 

 

Using our combination kit, you can start with a rough casting and end with a mirror finish. Everything needed is included, except you and the drill. Kit contains 24 pieces and instructions.

 

Pre-polish and finish Aluminum Alloys, Brass, Copper, Steel, Iron and Stainless Steel!

 

Grades Available

 

There are several grades of abrasive compound available. The lower the grit number, the coarser the abrasive and the faster metal removal (giving a poorer finish). The higher the grit number, the finer the abrasive and the slower the metal removal but it provides a better finish. To take a metal from a poor condition to a finish ready to be polished, will take several greaseless compound processes: for example you can start at a wheel coated with 120 grit greaseless, next 180 grit and finally the wheel coated with 240 grit.

 

 

It works really well just like the Power File.....

 

 

Barry.

Edited December 15, 2010 by Asciidv

[Minesweeper]

Thanks Barry - the last sentence made me chuckle!

 

Tony

[Sidewinder]

I've only just found this thread and have spent several hours reading (and still only at page 33!) through with utter amazement at the work, dedication and skills that you have and are putting to use to save this vehicle.

 

I don't think I can say anything more than other people have already said, so quite simply absolutely amazing! Well done.

 

Out of interest, I notice Steve(?) is wearing a Terex-Pegson shirt in one of the photos. I work for a quarrying company (Bullimores). I wonder if we've met at some point.

 

James

[Old Bill]

Out of interest, I notice Steve(?) is wearing a Terex-Pegson shirt in one of the photos. I work for a quarrying company (Bullimores). I wonder if we've met at some point.

 

James

 

Yes, I did work for Pegson for seven years of which the first six and a half were great. With the collapse of the rock-crusher market they closed the factory and I now build dust carts for a living. We may well have met in some hole in the ground somewhere!

 

Steve :-)

 

(PS Glad you are enjoying it!)

[Asciidv]

I now build dust carts for a living. Steve :-)

 

 

 

Steve, own up! You build DENNIS dust carts for a living!

[Old Bill]

Well, yes and I am rapidly turning into a dust-cart spotter!

 

I was pleased to find an original general arrangement drawing for our lorry on the wall in the production office. My photo album was good for the job interview too!

 

Steve :-D

[Gordon_M]

If you had finished the truck first, you would have pretty much cracked the interview just by turning up in it ....:-D

[Great War truck]

In between doing Christmassy things, Steve has been doing a bit of the throttle linkage. First, he rescued some drop-arms which had been used elsewhere on another lorry.

 

 

Then he turned up a spacer and silver soldered it between the two arms.

 

 

 

Finally, he filled it and rubbed it down and it is now ready to fit.

 

 

We didn't have one of these but only an assortment of Dennis bits from other vehicles so, although it is a new part, it has been made from Dennis bits.

 

 

There are two other levers in the throttle linkage, both mounted on the dash. Fortunately, we have one, albeit very corroded and Steve set about dismantling it, again using heat.

 

 

 

He then cut and bent a new mounting plate as the original is beyond salvage.

 

 

Finally, he turned up a new pivot screw for the second lever which will have to be made as a copy of the first.

 

 

 

That will be his next job.

[Minesweeper]

Steve hasn't been able to go into work today so he has put the time to good use by making up the second lever needed for the throttle linkage. We are fortunate to have an original which Steve has been able to copy (See photo above). First, he cut a piece of flat strip and turned some bosses. These were silver soldered on

 

 

 

Then he filed it to profile

 

 

Finally, he filed the section to more closely represent the original forging.

 

 

Back to work tomorrow.

[Gordon_M]

I do notice that you seem to make extensive use of silver soldering, even in a lot of jobs where I would have thought a MIG would be the tool for the job, particularly in stuff like the throttle linkage transfer above.

 

I imagine it will be fine, but I think I'd have welded it, even if the end result was marginally less neat?

 

I've found that the MIG is just a case of the more you practice the better you get, though I wouldn't clain to be that good at it.

 

Gordon

[Old Bill]

I am very fond of silver soldering because it is so easy to get a good neat job. It is as strong as mild steel and runs right through the joint although it won't fill gaps of more than a couple of thou and it is expensive. Of course, I am also better at it than welding!

 

Steve :-D

[robin craig]

I am a big fan of both silver solder and brazing, both under used these days as the skill sets are being lost. They are both fantastically strong if done properly as shown in this thread and a perfect use of the process.

 

Those around me often make fun of me using such methods but then gawp in awe at the end result, as I am doing at your work gents, magnificent.

 

R

[Gordon_M]

Ah well, whatever suits.

 

The lever above would be fine, regardless of the strength of the joint, but the spacer between the two arms is being torque loaded, which is where I would have used a weld.

 

Anyway, moving on ...

[Minesweeper]

Our progress has been a bit interrupted by the Christmas festivities. However, Steve did get outside on Christmas Day and start to cut the angles which hold the body sides up. He drilled them and then bent them hot using snow to quench them as the outside tap was frozen up.

 

 

 

He welded in the corners using his new auto-darkening mask and dressed them off to a nice radius.

 

We have also done some of the woodwork in that we have cut the floor hatch and screwed the boards down. These are all grooved with the tongues knocked in and proved to be more time consuming than expected.

 

 

However, we have completed them today (with assistance!)

 

 

and have also fitted the kerb rails along the edges. These, rather unusually, sit on top of the floor planks and are bolted through the crossmembers at a slight angle.The side planks, in turn, sit on top of them and are supported by steel angles and the headboard. We hope to mount them tomorrow.

 

 

 

[Great War truck]

Construction of the Dennis Bodywork has continued since Christmas - it is starting to take shape but still quite a way to go! Back to it tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

[Great War truck]

The outside surfaces of the headboard planks were painted before the headboard was constructed as it was perceived that it might be just a little awkward to get at them to paint in situ.

 

 

 

 

[Great War truck]

This is where we left off this evening. There are still steel angle braces to make up which run outside the front corners of the bodywork and underneath, there are six wood vertical braces to go down the outside of the sides - three each side, between the steel ones and there are wooden horizontal members to go along the top of the sides - you can see one held in temporarily with "G" clamps.

 

Does anybody know of a source of "Imperial" Coach (Carriage) Bolts - our existing stock is running low!

 

 

[griff66]

looks great dont do decking as well do you?

[robin craig]

Even though I am a self confessed modern vehicle person, this is one thread I adore reading.

 

Grand job of involving the "little people" into working on it, your making lasting memories and bonds there.

 

Congratulations

 

 

R

[Great War truck]

Thanks for your support guys. Every time we look at the number of new hits on this thread we get motivated to do a bit more to the Dennis so as to share it with you. So, everyone who looks at this helps us move onwards. We are getting close to the end now. After that, well it will be a toss up between the Thornycroft and starting a decking business.

 

Anyway, further progress with the body building today. The six vertical braces on the sides have gone in - all drilled and waiting for coach bolts to be fitted and the top horizontal rails also fitted but awaiting final fixings. The two front braces - one to go on each front corner still have to fabricated.

 

The access hatch has been cut and fitted in the floor.

 

I have had to return home (luckily the pipes had not frozen) and Steve goes tomorrow. Plenty left for Tony to do - the four fitted steel braces have to be removed, de-rusted, cleaned and painted - and further painting work can start in between the other jobs which he has to do!

 

The deadline for the Brighton Run is getting ever closer!

 

 

 

 

 

[gritineye]

The deadline for the Brighton Run is getting ever closer!

 

Can't wait for this Tim, and I don't think there will be a shortage of camcorders this time!

[Enigma]

I've been following this thread for ages now and look forward to the endresult.

Keep up the good work.