Thought you would like to follow along with this link.

http://imageevent.com/ron55/1956ford...&m=24&w=0&p=77

Nice photos Mark. Looks like a very worthy project.

I did manage to find a wajax mark 1 pump last winter thanks to fellow MLU member Grant Hopins. It was posted on kijiji in Quebec, and with the help of my wife who speaks french, a deal was struck with the seller.

King-Seagrave Serial Number
 

Hi Rob.
Is there a King-Seagrave serial number anywhere on your truck? I run the Canadian Fire Truck Archive (www.firetruckarchive.ca) that you referenced in the first post. I know the serial numbers and I know the bases, but I don't know which truck went to which base, other than Camp Picton's.

The number should be anything from 5715 to 5725 (5717 was the Camp Picton truck). If you're able to find it, really appreciate it if you could pass it along.

Dean
Sorry but no number that I can find. It would appear that someone pinched the King Seagrave plate from it. When I get to restoring the truck, perhaps something will show up.

Rats. Thanks. I can't remember where it was on 5717 (saw it in 1999), but I remember that it wasn't hard to find. The Archives at the Canadian Museum of Science & Technology has KS delivery files, so they may have VINs. I'll check my records to see if I can access any other numbers.

As near as I can tell by the shadows, there was a King Seagrave plate on the bottom left front of the box. No idea if it had the serial number.

I do have the Canadian Forces Registration number of mine, as well as the other that was here at Shilo. Would love to be able to track which base mine was from. Please let us know if you have any luck with the numbers and which bases were which. Also let us know where on the box you found the KS serial.

No luck
 

I checked some of the information I have in my files, which is a pile of documents photocopied from King-Seagrave company records. It's a sort of delivery list and some of the entries have engine or pump numbers, which could prove useful in this instance...except the truck isn't listed. There's a note on the first page indicating that trucks delivered to the Federal Government aren't part of the package. I checked and sure enough, no luck.

So...the Science & Tech Museum Archives may be the best bet. However, I haven't been there in years and I don't know if this is something they could/would check. The Archives have service files for King-Seagrave trucks donated to them by a former employee. They can be pretty comprehensive (some have delivery photos), but it varies from truck to truck. In this case, we don't know which of the trucks we're looking at.

In terms of the Regina delivery point, I assumed that it was for Dundurn. I realise that Dundurn is closer to Saskatoon, but thought there might have been a depot there or something. It's entirely plausible that these trucks were moved around from base to base - the Picton truck was pretty close to home, but that base was closed soon after unification. Anyway, if you found it close to Shilo, it makes sense that it was on the base there at some point unless Dundurn shipped their stuff there for disposal. For that matter, there's no guarantee that the Picton truck was delivered to Picton. Kingston is nearby, so maybe they were swapped at some point. Or for that matter, they could have loaded it on a railcar and shipped it from/to wherever.

The spot where you can see the shadow is almost certainly where the KS plate was. I don't remember where I saw it on the Picton truck, but I do remember that it was easy to find, likely on the body near the pump. So the person who removed it did a nice job of covering up the identity. I doubt there are any similar plates elsewhere. Newer rigs had one on the inside of the door, but not the 50s era trucks.

Final thing - I'm a newbie here, but I'm assuming that there's no way to track it using the CFR? I've seen CFRs on other fire trucks, so if there's a way to do that, it would be helpful.

CFRs won't work as the computer only keeps records from 1978 and onwards. The trucks were gone by that point, or the CFRs have been reused since then.

The trucks were range fire trucks, so they would most likely be at bases that had ranges. In the case of Dundurn, Regina would have been the support base at the time. The fact that my truck has prairie command decals indicate it found it's way to reserve use rather than regular force.

Mark, I replied at the link but thought I would try here as well. I was wondering if there's a King-Seagrave plate on your truck. It would include a King-Seagrave serial number ranging from 5715 to 5725.

I see that you purchased it in Michigan. I have no idea which truck it could be or which base , but I have heard of a surplus truck that saw service with the Anderdon Township Fire Department near Amherstburg, Ontario. Amherstburg is just across the river from Michigan. I believe the Township FD had this truck in the 70s and/or 80s. I know of a guy in the area who might have more info about its time there.

Thanks. I figured the CFRs were a non-starter. Too bad, because I've seen a number of pics of the late 50s FWD / Thibault pumpers delivered to the RCAF that carry them.

Incidentally, I've taken photos on a few different bases in recent years and have never seen any sort of fleet number affixed. Someone once told me that the number on the CANADA plate serves as a sort of CFR. Is this true?

Do you think it's plausible that it served at Dundurn at some point? I believe they currently have three of the most recent batch of range trucks (2012 International / Fort Garry) in service.

The number on the plates are the CFR (Canadian Forces Registration) number. The plate does not include the year of acceptance mind you...a complete CFR would be 71-01234. The 71 will be the year of acceptance (not necessary the model year). However, the DND will not re-use the 5 digits again until the old vehicle is long gone.

I do think it was in Dundurn, but moved over to Shilo at some point. Fire-trucks are high cost/low density, so their lifespan is much longer than say something like a pickup truck or staff car. The DND will move vehicles around between bases or units for reasons like fleet rotation, redundancy. etc. In those days, it was not unusual for the regular force to get a new truck, and the old one, if it still had usable life, be assigned to the reserves.

There was one still on this base with the base firehall into the 70s, but it was not this truck. Several range fire trucks are held with the base engineers.....I suspect this may have been the case with this truck back in the day, where it was possibly held in support of the summer militia concentrations.

I confirmed with the original purchaser of this firetruck that he bought it out of Shilo.

1956 Ford Model C500 Fire Truck
 

At least one of these vehicles carried a CFR of 58-18164.

Hey Rob this ones restored :)

https://www.kijiji.ca/v-classic-cars...ine/1316266363

Priced right too. Would be hard pressed to restore one for what this is selling for...

I would take that. Go buy it for me Dave. I have sent the seller a note, lets see if it happens. As Chris says, I couldn't restore mine for that money, and money comes every couple weeks, but time keeps passing me by.

I note a few things missing on this one that are on mine so mine won't go to waste.

Found this on a Canadian Navy history website.

Navy Base firetruck 1966.

The link provides detail as to location and usage.

http://www.forposterityssake.ca/GALL...GLOUCESTER.htm

Obviously not 4X4 ...so guessing Base usage only

Assume some fire-truck company bought a Ford chassis and added the bits and pieces.

Was this a one-off...or a limited production?

The 98036 licence plate is a gift for tracing it's history

And SOLD....but not to me :(

I don't get nuthin. :(

I guess if I want one of these, I'll have to restore what I got.

Photos for posterity. Now I am sad...what a beautiful truck for just $7K.

And another one from pinterest....this one is listed as being from Paris ON.

That same King-Seagrave body was also used to convert CMPs. There are a few minor differences in equipment, but mine looks almost identical. Oddly enough, mine also came from the town of Amherstburg. They acquired it from Base Borden and used it as their brush fire truck.

One nice thing about fire trucks is that they tend to remain in active service and get carefully maintained longer than other trucks. By the time Amherstburg was done with it, it was already a collector's item and became the Kingsville (also Ontario) Fire Department's parade vehicle. It never went through that period when it was just a worn out truck sitting in a field rusting for decades.

Rob,

In this film from Picton in 1963, the fire truck drives by at the 9.44 mark of the video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPlw_Jy3p8I