LarryH57 Posted October 28, 2008 Share Posted October 28, 2008 In this day and age it seems that an order for a few dozen vehicles costs the MOD billions of Pounds (of our money!) and I bet they won't last very long either. So what is or was the oldest most long lasting bit of kit that the British Armed forces have had or still use. A few things come to mind like the Centurions used in Suez and retired after the Gulf war and Ferrets of similar age. But surely the award must go to those DUKW's still in use by the Royal Marines albeit with replacement engines. Can anyone think of other examples where we have had our monies worth? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirhc Posted October 28, 2008 Share Posted October 28, 2008 Well I had an FV432 which was 40 years old when it came out of Service in 2005. At the same time an advert was running on the TV showing 432s, with a slogan along the lines of the most modern army in the world! The 432s have now been (mostly) upgraded with new engines and gearboxes, I wonder if they will last another 40 years? Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
croc Posted October 28, 2008 Share Posted October 28, 2008 I think it might be a ship.... http://www.hms-victory.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bystander Posted October 28, 2008 Share Posted October 28, 2008 I think it might be a ship....http://www.hms-victory.com Agreed, although there is very, very little of the vessel that dates back to either 1765 or Trafalgar, from memory: most of the keel, the lower part of the sternpost, a few of the raking timbers in the stern structure and most of the lower gundeck. There might be a few older items of naval ordinance around. In the case of the army the ceremonial WW1 field artillery? For the RAF the BBMF? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Elsdon Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 Not in service now, although the last one was sold at Withams recently, the Humber Pig, started in truck form in the 50's and only in the nineties with the wind down of the troubles in N.I. was it made available for disposal. A fairly reasonable stretch of service, especially considering the hammering they got. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony B Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 The SMLE was in service from 1903 till about 1968. not quite military but Fort Halstead have an overhead crane liberated from the Luftwaffe in 1945. Farnbourough had a wind tunnel from the same scource, used till the '70s. It was used on Concorde. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrewroberts.1953 Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 The RHA's guns date back to pre 1914, and of course still in use most days of the year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormin Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 The good old Scammell Pioneer must be worth a mention. Lasting from the mid Thirties right up to the 70's. The Diamond T tank transporter was in service from 1941 til the 1980's I believe, albeit re-engined. The AEC matadors did a good stretch as well. These are all just marques of vehicle though. No evidence that one particular vehicle served 40 years plus. Diffilcult to pin down as we know so many vehicles are held in reserve and have an easy life. Be good to try and find the single vehicle (wheeled and engined) that has done the longest stint of real service, (not just ceremonial or sat in reserve). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edd Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 There were at least two pioneers that lasted into the late eighties/early nineties. One is in the REME collection and came back from somewhere like Belize. Also I remember seeing a pair of them parked up at one of the aldershot military bases into the mid nineties when we went by on the train. Used to live outside and moved around the yard. Not sure what they were there for! Ed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 Not British, but my Jimmy was with the Swiss army being used until 1997 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony B Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 The RHA's guns date back to pre 1914, and of course still in use most days of the year. There the world's oldest serving artillery picies If I remember correctly. They are NDT'ed evry year at FH. The wheels take a hell of hammering as you might expect. The 25 pounder has to be in the running entered service in the 1930's finally retired from service in 1999/2000. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianScottish Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 Sawyer cookers? Introduced in The Crimea and sent to the Falklands in 1980. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redcap Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 The Household Cavalry probably have a few breastplates dating back to the Victorian Era, if that's any help :nut: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antarmike Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 The good old Scammell Pioneer must be worth a mention. Lasting from the mid Thirties right up to the 70's.The Diamond T tank transporter was in service from 1941 til the 1980's I believe, albeit re-engined. The AEC matadors did a good stretch as well. These are all just marques of vehicle though. No evidence that one particular vehicle served 40 years plus. Diffilcult to pin down as we know so many vehicles are held in reserve and have an easy life. Be good to try and find the single vehicle (wheeled and engined) that has done the longest stint of real service, (not just ceremonial or sat in reserve). Isn't Boscombe Down's Pioneer still on the books and used from time to time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest catweazle (Banned Member) Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 D.u.k.w. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Farrant Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 The wheels take a hell of hammering as you might expect. My local garage has a wheelwrights shop and rebuilds the wheels for these guns.......and the Lord Mayor's coach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest catweazle (Banned Member) Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 Thats wheely amazing Richard.:-D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Farrant Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 Thats wheely amazing Richard.:-D Thought perhaps you would get round to making a comment on that :rofl: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 On a limb here but the VC? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryH57 Posted October 29, 2008 Author Share Posted October 29, 2008 You can't really count HMS Victory as you cannot really go to sea in her and as for the VC, Jack, if you count that you may as well include human beings. In fact I know some people who have served full time in the British Forces for well over 40 years Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Farrant Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 I would think certain Centurions would be longest serving. I had to visit Catterick workshops around 1993 and while there saw a Centurion ARV that was in for winch tests, it had a postwar census number starting in "Z", which means it was re-numbered in 1947, thus a pre-'47 vehicle. My reckoning is that it could have been about 48 years old at that time. Back around 1980, some 1944 Leyland Hippos were brought out of storage from Antwerp Vehicle Depot and were issued to training material parks, as there was a shortage of 10 tonners at that time. A few new parts were still available then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Elsdon Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 The Royal Navy Historical Flight has an airworthy Fairey Swordfish on its books! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bystander Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 If we are talking about military equipment in a non-ceromonial role, what about the Bofors? Although no longer used in the RN I believe that the RFA still uses it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony B Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Are there still any Orlekion about? Mess tin design hasn't changed much since 1930's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreadavide Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Not striclty military, but the Green goddesses lasted quite some time. On a different note, many of the trolleycars in Milan are in service since 1928... Andrea Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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