Rick W Posted December 17, 2007 Share Posted December 17, 2007 Has anyone on here got a Dingo, if so what are spares like to come by, and what are the pitfalls of ownership, common problems etc? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Farrant Posted December 17, 2007 Share Posted December 17, 2007 Has anyone on here got a Dingo, if so what are spares like to come by, and what are the pitfalls of ownership, common problems etc? Now you are talking my kind of vehicle :tup: In the last few years there has been a resurgence of interest in Dingos, with a number of sad cases being restored. I have rebuilt and restored quite a few, but each one gets more difficult as parts are dwindling. As is usual with surplus parts, there are rarely the parts most wanted, hence why they were surplus. There are sources of sheet metal parts, ie floor panels, stowage bins and mudguard. Canvas parts and seat covers can be made, but the big problem is tyres. The only vehicle in the British army that had 7.00-18 tyres and Dunlop made the last ones around 1957. There are few ways around this, I fitted some new truck tyres to one, tread not authentic, but you can put miles on it without fear of wearing an irreplaceble tyre. Common problems............none really if it is checked out well, ie electrics, ignition, fuel. Keeping oil in the final drives is the main problem. Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morris c8 fat Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 :cry: I want one cant afford one :cry: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Farrant Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 In the last few years there has been a resurgence of interest in Dingos, with a number of sad cases being restored. On reading my post again, I think that I should explain that by "sad cases", I was refering to a number of Dingos that have surfaced and have never been in preservation before. I think the reason is that they may have required a lot of work to put in to shape in the past, but with the current interest in these vehicles, they have now been taken into preservation. There is no doubt, they were an exceptional vehicle for their time and set the design for the Daimler Armoured Car, Ferret, Fox, Saracen, Saladin, Stalwart, etc., with their transmission layout. Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick W Posted December 20, 2007 Author Share Posted December 20, 2007 I missed out on one very well priced one recently, the thing is they are not much bigger than your average family car. But youve answered a couple of questions Richard, especially the availability of tyres etc. Are they not available from vintage tyres, allbeit at an extortionate price. Is there not another tyre size option that can be used? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Farrant Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 I missed out on one very well priced one recently, the thing is they are not much bigger than your average family car. But youve answered a couple of questions Richard, especially the availability of tyres etc. Are they not available from vintage tyres, allbeit at an extortionate price. Is there not another tyre size option that can be used? Rick, Believe me, we have looked at numerous options, like making a 16" wheel and using an available tyre off the shelf, but the size of the brake drum stops this. The wheel size is 18" and the tyre was a runflat. Early ones were tubed runflats, like Ferrets, etc, but later on a runflat was introduced which did not have a tube, it was a very heavy, thick walled tyre with a bead spacer which when clamped between the rim halves, clamped the tyre in position to stop it creeping. These tyres were only ever made for the Daimler Scout Car and as they were coming to the end of their service by the early 1960's there was no requirement for more tyres to be made, stocks being sufficient at the time. I have been in contact with specialist tyre makers in the UK who have their tyres made in the Far East and a rough figure is £25,000 for a mould to be made and a minimum run of 200 tyres, so figure it out, the tyres could cost over £100 each then the mould cost has to be spread over that. Makers would want paying all at once, so it is not a venture I would like to get involved with. Remoulding old casings is not practical due to the age of them. So we found a practical answer, a truck tyre of the same size although not quite the same appearance. It is made in the USA and available through a specialist tyre dealer in UK. When worn out, you can buy another without problems. The intention was to wear them out, then get an authentic remould tread put on, but at present, they show no sign of wearing. So that is the story! Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antar Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 I owned and did a nut and bolt restoration on a Dingo about 23 years ago, nearly lost an eye during the process but thats another story. SUPERB vehicle to own, all apart from the sandblasting of the body the restoration was done on mum and dads drive at home. Ran it for 7 years including driving to Normandy in 1986. Very few problems with it, like mentioned previously you have to keep the bevel boxes topped up, on the way back from Normandy on the A34 ran out of oil in LHF bevel, only noticed when paint and co-drivers left boot set on fire due to the heat !!! Poured in about 3 litres of new 90's oil which immediately vapourised. Still managed the 200miles home to Manchester without having to strip it. On stripping down once home the only part required was a new traca joint bush. Only sold it to make way for a new project ANTAR MK3 ballast tractor, that did not fit on mum and dads drive !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Farrant Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 nearly lost an eye during the process but thats another story. John, Anything to do with removing the suspension coil springs by chance ? Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antar Posted December 26, 2007 Share Posted December 26, 2007 No actually is was not. I was using a pop rivet gun to anchor the end of the webbing strip which the armoured bonnet rests on. I was leaning over the gun whilst squeezing the handles together to close the rivet, then bang the next thing I'm pulling the rivet stalk out of my eye ! 1 week in hospital many out patient visits, loss of sight in right eye for 6 months, operation to install replacement lens, another week in hospital, numerous visits for laser treatment. All over 20 years ago now. Lesson learn't WEAR EYE PROTECTION. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Farrant Posted December 26, 2007 Share Posted December 26, 2007 John, I was using a disc grinder one day with goggles, which did not fit particularly well, and something went up under them. I spent an afternoon in hospital having a small piece of metal scraped off my eye. NEVER AGAIN ! I always take extra precautions now, when using any grinder or sander. Maybe we want a Safety thread on the forum, because there are many hazards in this game! Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antarmike Posted December 26, 2007 Share Posted December 26, 2007 My mate has got one but I only helped by boring out and re-sleeving the wheel cylinders and a few other jobs... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
singaeger Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 Antar. Hi, i run the dingo register (with Danny Bosma from the Netherlands). Ive obtained from Philip Winterburn, some dingo photo's of acar he used to own. It was unusual in that it had a tow hitch fitted. and painted sand/green 70's style camo pattern. Philip cannot remember the F number. We would like to findthis out to try and trace it / establish if it still exists or is another thathas magically vanished over the years. Is this the same one you restored, can you assist in identifying her? We are up to about 200 surviving vehicles now! is this another one? Cheers Singe www.daimler-fighting-vehicles.co.uk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antar Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 Antar. Hi, i run the dingo register (with Danny Bosma from the Netherlands). Ive obtained from Philip Winterburn, some dingo photo's of acar he used to own. It was unusual in that it had a tow hitch fitted. and painted sand/green 70's style camo pattern. [ATTACH=CONFIG]72416[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]72417[/ATTACH] Philip cannot remember the F number. We would like to findthis out to try and trace it / establish if it still exists or is another thathas magically vanished over the years. Is this the same one you restored, can you assist in identifying her? We are up to about 200 surviving vehicles now! is this another one? Cheers Singe www.daimler-fighting-vehicles.co.uk Singe, Yes DSU553 is my old Dingo, unfortunately I do not have any record of the documentation, it all went to Phil Winterburn Senior who sadly died a few years ago when I sold it to him back in the early 90's. I manufactured and fitted the tow hitch so I could tow a Champ trailer to shows with all my camping equipment. About 4 years ago I saw it for sale on Milweb at a very reasonable price of £7795. It sold imediately, I think Marcus Glenn may have purchased it. When I had it amongst the documentation was the release papers from Long Kesh in Northern Ireland where it was last in service. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ferrettkitt Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 Is it still registered with the DVLA? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antar Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 Is it still registered with the DVLA? Dont know how to check ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Johns Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 (edited) Is it still registered with the DVLA? Yes it is, search shows DSU 553 is currently taxed untill August Edited January 30, 2013 by Nick Johns Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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