AEC MAtador in Aust.
 

gum trees ..........

Hi Mike,
That looks like an early Matador going by the cab roof and front mudguards.

The camouflage paint scheme makes the thing stand out like a sore thumb in that country.

Anybody know what the gun is. It sure is big.

Dave

Guns, 155mm, M1917A1 or M1918A1 on Carriages, M3.

It is in travelling mode with the ordnance pulled back and locked to the dolly trail.

US manufacture based on a French design.

Used for coast artillery in Australia, New Guinea and other islands to the north by the 'Letter' Batteries.

Mike C

Good day gentlemen,
Many, many years ago the late Ken Hughes at Kingaroy in Queensland had 2 or 3 Matadors in his yard, does any one know where they went?
One at least was painted orange, with olive drab coming through on the wear surfaces, and if memory is correct it was on International Mk3 etc.wheels. I didn't ask Ken why as I had no interest in them, I assumed he had either sold the original wheels or bought the trucks without wheels.
I do know that the trucks were huge and you would have to be very rich and dedicated if you were going to restore one of Ken's trucks. I would like to think that they are in a collection some where and didn't end up as scrap.

Monegeeta pic
 

Nice pic from Anzac Steel website, caption reads "An AEC Matador at the Mechanisation Experimental Establishment. This vehicle, still carrying Middle East camouflage and signs is being trialled."

Difficult to make out the tac sign but appears to be early type (single plate, div sign above unit sign). Note vehicle name on roof, appears to be "FEL..... (Felix...? Felicity...?)

Mike's pics appear to have been taken at MEE too (Monegeeta proving ground). That row of pine trees next to the road seems to feature in many vehicle pics.

The cam pattern is an interesting one. It (or rather, a very similarly dimensioned wavy sub-parallel pattern) is also visible on images of late pattern (no side doors) M3 series Lee tanks in Australia.

The combined unit/formation sign was first promulgated in the Middle East as AIF(ME) Staff Instruction No.34 of 12 January 1942. The image from the Anzac Steel website (which incidentally, came from a Mechanisation Experimental Establishment (MEE) test report so is copyright expired - public domain) shows a formation sign that has a white 'image' over a black background. There were four possibilities in the AIF (ME) instructions: 6, 7, 9 Infantry Divisions, and Base and LofC Troops, the last being a howling dingo, with its head thrown back, facing right. The image is indistinct, but the shape 'fits' this last formation sign more than the other three mentioned. I'd suggest that is what the sign plate is of. The other two formation signs (HQ AIF(ME) and 1 Aust Corps) were coloured, ie not black and white, so don't 'fit' what is visible in the Matador image.

I haven't checked the AIF (ME) OOB for Base and LofC units in 1942 to see which may have been equipped with Matadors. Certainly, they were used for hauling 3.7-inch Mobile HAA guns which might provide a clue.

Mike C

Haha, nice work Mike, I gave up when the kangaroo, kookaburra and platypus wouldn't "fit"! Your dingo is confirmed by the three digit unit sign - Corps and Divisional unit serials were all two digit, whereas HQ/Base/LoC unit serials were all three digit (commencing with 3, which appears to be the case here). However I'm unable to identify a likely Matador unit, and I doubt we can wring much more info from these pixels!

The camo pattern is certainly "interesting" as you say. The pattern seen in this AWM pic is much more familiar.

Interesting about the Monegeeta pic origin, rather cheeky of Anzac Steel to claim copyright.

Yes, that fits well, I think. I couldn't see the 3 digit unit sign, but can on your last image.

You'll find plenty of images on that site with the same copyright claim that were clearly not taken by the claimant, with many originating in MEE test reports. The Staghound image in the same article has the same origin (and legal status), for example.

Mike C

All 3 of those rather badly camouflaged Matadors are the same vehicle aren't they?

Allan

Yes that was my conclusion Allan, unless they were incredibly precise in replicating the pattern.

Another well travelled Matador, this one in NZ hands in New Caledonia.

Is it a Matador? Looks more like a Leyland Workshop to me, but my Pommie vehicle recognition is pretty woeful without a guide book.

Richard Farrant, where are you???

Mike C

I'm sure you're right Mike, I just assumed it was a Matador because it's not a Bedford QL, which is the only other Pommie truck I know!

hi Mike,
It is a Leyland Retriever!

Sorry for the delay, currently enjoying myself at Corowa with temps of mid-30 degs C. The event officially starts this morning.

best regards,
Richard