BEDFORD 1954 Green Goddess Restoration Video

[RAFBedfords]

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[RAFBedfords]

Episode 1 of the restoration; changing the coolant. Pft what a simple 5 minute job I hear you say. Unfortunately not...

[Richard Farrant]

1 hour ago, RAFBedfords said:

Episode 1 of the restoration; changing the coolant. Pft what a simple 5 minute job I hear you say. Unfortunately not...

Not sure if you are aware, but that pink antifreeze you are using is not suitable on older vehicles with copper radiators and copper head gaskets. You need the older type glycol antifreeze which is coloured blue or green.

[RAFBedfords]

Just now, Richard Farrant said:

Not sure if you are aware, but that pink antifreeze you are using is not suitable on older vehicles with copper radiators and copper head gaskets. You need the older type glycol antifreeze which is coloured blue or green.

Hi there, thanks for the comment. The coolant I used is made from ethylene glycol although it is of course red. I find that the colouring system is rarely adhered to by content and more by the climate it’s designed for. Thanks thought, that could of been a messy error.

[RAFBedfords]

While I wait for some parts to be delivered I did a quick walk through of what's inside this particular 1956 green goddess. It came with some strange items which were not definitely not standard issue.

[Richard Farrant]

Just to answer some of your points on this video, the long wooden pole with the metal end stowed on the roof, is a lever which you use like a crowbar for lifting something. a standard military item. Spare wheel, no issues on changing wheels on a RL, all the army versions carried spare wheels and a jack. The windscreen washer was not fitted from new, it was fitted around the 1970's when a new regulation came out for all vehicles to be fitted with washer. I remember carrying this out in army workshops at that time on Bedford RL and AEC Militants.

[RAFBedfords]

Hi Richard, thanks for the answers it’s great to be able to have someone put these questions to bed so quickly. Have you got any links to what the jack looked like? I’m imaging it must of been pretty beefy as the chassis is so high off the ground. What’s your take on putting the washer bottle in the glove box?

[Richard Farrant]

Here is a photo of the jack issued on military Bedford RL trucks, it is best to carry a wood block to put under it as well.

The washer bottle needs to be upright which I am not sure can be done in the glovebox. As it is now would be the same as when it was used by the Armed Forces in latter years.

[Mk3iain]

Hi, I never had anything to do with green goddesses but I was a firefighter a few years ago and still remember some stuff.

The pole on the roof is a ceiling hook used to pull down burning or suspect ceilings. The portable pump is usually called a "featherweight pump", later versions took 4 to carry comfortably !

The  chimney rod would normally be with a stirrup pump and nozzle with a roller for putting out chimney fires, also bucket, canvas bag and salvage sheets.

The large hard hoses are suction hoses used to supply the vehicle pump or portable pump.

I don't know if the GG has a single or two stage pump. It would have a centrifugal pump, normally the first low pressure stage would supply the larger soft hoses with around 5 bar at the branch and then the second stage would supply the hose reels with I think around 15 bar, The hose reels  are known as high pressure jets, normally.

It would be good to see the pump tested, there will be a standard test in the operation manual.

The Jack is for lifting the axels near a wheel not to lift the chassis.

Hope that is some help.

Iain

[RAFBedfords]

On 5/10/2020 at 12:18 PM, Richard Farrant said:

Here is a photo of the jack issued on military Bedford RL trucks, it is best to carry a wood block to put under it as well.

The washer bottle needs to be upright which I am not sure can be done in the glovebox. As it is now would be the same as when it was used by the Armed Forces in latter years.

Cheers Richard, I will get on Ebay and see if I can track an original down to stick in the restoration project.

[RAFBedfords]

 

Here is the latest video for anyone that is interested.

[OzH]

Isn't that a battery clamp?

 

[Richard Farrant]

Did you compare the length of the old filter to the new one? From the video, it looks like the new filter is shorter, if so not good as it will not seal against the top cover.

[RAFBedfords]

This was one of the very first messages someone sent to me on Facebook. I did feel slightly embarrassed, but everyday is a learning day 😂

[RAFBedfords]

On 5/15/2020 at 5:47 PM, Richard Farrant said:

Did you compare the length of the old filter to the new one? From the video, it looks like the new filter is shorter, if so not good as it will not seal against the top cover.

It is in fact the same size and I’ve replaced the seal. I’ll keep an eye out bug so far no issues and I’ve given her a few drives. Cheers.

[RAFBedfords]

Bit of a departure from the restoration vlog while I wait for new parts. I’m sure this will cause some controversy but it’s my interpretation.

[2ndArmourMad]

On 5/10/2020 at 12:18 PM, Richard Farrant said:

Here is a photo of the jack issued on military Bedford RL trucks.

I believe it’s called a tower jack rather then a bottle jack and it needs to be 4ton or more. 

[Richard Farrant]

27 minutes ago, 2ndArmourMad said:

I believe it’s called a tower jack rather then a bottle jack and it needs to be 4ton or more. 

It is 4 ton, was issued right through to the Bedford MJ, may even have been in the kit for the Leyland DAF 4x4, can't remember.

[utt61]

Hmm, good luck with your interpretation of the law surrounding "blues and twos". The only pitfall I can see is that you have concluded that a vehicle specifically built for the purpose of firefighting is the same thing as a vehicle used for "fire brigade purposes", when it is of course nothing of the kind.

You will, I think, find that the term "fire brigades" is now considered to have been redefined to "fire and rescue authorities" (ref. the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004), although this makes little difference in this case, it merely acknowledges that there is no longer such a thing as a "fire brigade".

The key point is that to comply with the requirement of being used for fire brigade (or fire and rescue authority) purposes, the vehicle must be under the direction and engaged upon business of a fire brigade (or fire and rescue authority). It is, I suppose, possible that if you were a retained firefighter and you happened to be using you GG in connection with the fighting of a fire, you might have a leg upon which to stand. If however you are a member of the general public, driving a fine restored GG for an afternoon jolly or to or from a rally field, then I can see no conceivable way that you can make this claim.

If this interpretation is correct, then sadly, since your entire argument is predicated upon your definition, the rest of your justification rather collapses.

For the record I am no more a lawyer than you, and this is merely a counter-view to yours, It may be wrong, but it is, however, a widely held view. I did also several decades ago work with a cave rescue organisation which operated an ambulance, and do have experience of the use of blues and twos from that time and in that arena (in that case the vehicle was registered as an ambulance and could be run with lights and sirens, but could not exceed any speed limits nor ignore any traffic regulations since the drivers were not appropriately trained).

Please do let us know how you get on when (or if) you first get "pulled" for having something that resembles a blue light whether illuminated or not.

Great restoration, by the way, and it should be a beauty when you've finished.

[RAFBedfords]

1 minute ago, utt61 said:

Hmm, good luck with your interpretation of the law surrounding "blues and twos". The only pitfall I can see is that you have concluded that a vehicle specifically built for the purpose of firefighting is the same thing as a vehicle used for "fire brigade purposes", when it is of course nothing of the kind.

You will, I think, find that the term "fire brigades" is now considered to have been redefined to "fire and rescue authorities" (ref. the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004), although this makes little difference in this case, it merely acknowledges that there is no longer such a thing as a "fire brigade".

The key point is that to comply with the requirement of being used for fire brigade (or fire and rescue authority) purposes, the vehicle must be under the direction and engaged upon business of a fire brigade (or fire and rescue authority). It is, I suppose, possible that if you were a retained firefighter and you happened to be using you GG in connection with the fighting of a fire, you might have a leg upon which to stand. If however you are a member of the general public, driving a fine restored GG for an afternoon jolly or to or from a rally field, then I can see no conceivable way that you can make this claim.

If this interpretation is correct, then sadly, since your entire argument is predicated upon your definition, the rest of your justification rather collapses.

For the record I am no more a lawyer than you, and this is merely a counter-view to yours, It may be wrong, but it is, however, a widely held view. I did also several decades ago work with a cave rescue organisation which operated an ambulance, and do have experience of the use of blues and twos from that time and in that arena (in that case the vehicle was registered as an ambulance and could be run with lights and sirens, but could not exceed any speed limits nor ignore any traffic regulations since the drivers were not appropriately trained).

Please do let us know how you get on when (or if) you first get "pulled" for having something that resembles a blue light whether illuminated or not.

Great restoration, by the way, and it should be a beauty when you've finished.

Hi mate, thanks for watching the video and taking the time to leave me a comment. You present a valid argument and I was not aware of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004, however the legislation covering blue lights and sirens still make use of the term Fire brigade purposes.

Interesting to hear about your experience and I appreciate the debate. My GG is still registered as a Fire Engine so potentially I can delve into registration with the forestry commission and see if that could provide some top cover.

I will be sure to let you know how I get on although hopefully I will never have cause to post about any experiences of being pulled over.

Cheers mate, hope to see you pop up here again on some other videos. Best of luck.

[utt61]

You can always put a sock over the blues when on the road, that way you avoid any possible problem (it isn't an offence to have them, just to let them be seen as things that resemble blue lights lit or not).

Realistically are you ever going to have a legitimate use to use them on the road? I think not.

Do you ever actually anticipate being called upon to fight a fire with your GG? I doubt it, but if you are, just leave the sock off.

[2ndArmourMad]

On 5/25/2020 at 11:03 PM, Richard Farrant said:

It is 4 ton, was issued right through to the Bedford MJ, may even have been in the kit for the Leyland DAF 4x4, can't remember.

yes I think they were, I just managed to get this off a friend who removed it from a DAF 

 

 

[RAFBedfords]

Thanks for the info regarding the Jack, I’ll keep a look out and hopefully can get one for a reasonable price to reunite with the GG.

[RAFBedfords]

 

 

[RAFBedfords]