chevrolet ID help needed
 

Hi guys,
Here I am with some KNIL vehicles that need some ID-ing. They are probably all Chevrolet, but types and model years are a mystery to me.
The first one is the KNIL artillery prime mover from the 30s.
It is a 6x4 vehicle bodied locally, reportedly with Timken Detroit axles. There were at least two different versions: artillery prime mover and ammunition vehicle.

Enjoy.
Nuyt

another shot
 

same vehicle type

chevrolet light truck
 

KNIL had many uses for Chevrolet light trucks (or vans?): I have many pics of them as Engineer/Signal Corps trucks, radio truck, staff car.
They looked obsolete by 1942, but this one was still soldiering on in the mud of Sumatra with the Dutch forces in the late forties...

Enjoy.
Nuyt

another shot
 

of a similar vehicle (from Heshusius: KNIL-Ccavalerie). There seemd to be several, slightly different models. What in general were these called?
Thanks.

Nuyt

and another
 

last shot of a Chevrolet minibus as used by the VAC, Women's Aux. Corps in Batavia/Jakarta at the GM Assembly plant, 1941 (pic from Bandjir).

Regards,
Nuyt

ID?
 

The top one I reckon is a circa 1932...those bonnet/hood louvres are similar to the first Bedfords. I will have to check my books. However, the chrome rad grille surround is a GMC trademark, and I am now militating towards a 1932 GMC T-18.

The next one that I could have a go at is a late Twenties 4-cylinder I reckon, very similar to British buses of the period. The artillery-wheeled bus is possibly a 1928 Model Capitol Series LO, unless anyone can tell me it has front brakes ...in which case it,s a LP with 4-speed gearbox. Very similar to British buses of the time.

The 'another shot' appears to be a 1929 International Series LQ, by the small bonnet louvres but that rad grille just might be a GMC one.

Going back to the 6 x 4, a Danish company started up a 6 x 4 bogie conversion for Chevrolets in 1925, and this spawned several British conversions using an extra rear bogie. However I believe that in 1932 there was the first officially approved Chevrolet 6 x 4 conversion for use in say oil exploration, from THORNTON! Thornton of course used Timken components in later times..can I suggest a Thornton conversion as supplied by GM Java on either Chevrolet or GMC chassis?

GMC artillery prime movers
 

Hi David, thanks!

I forgot to mention the artillery tractors are referred to in KNIL literature as "GMC". Year of introduction and model type are as yet unclear.
Greetings,
Nuyt

GMC???
 

I reckon that this confirms Nuyt. Pontiac Plant were at the forefront of military truck building, with the emphasis on heavyweight GMC and Flint Plant undertook work on Chevrolet chassis. However we know that Pontiac supplied military trucks to the Dutch forces from at least 1935, in addition to the DAF conversions on chassis imported through the Rotterdam office of GM Continental, Antwerpen.

Archive papers show that although there were some Canadian Chevrolets supplied to the Canadian forces, the majority were Ford vehicles. GM of Canada preferred to plug their Maple Leaf range of heavyduty Chevrolet chassis, and although ML were essentially GMC clones as I have said before sentiments as to names ran deep in Oshawa. That's why you had 'Maple Leaf' badges and not 'General Motors Truck'.

ID's
 

Ok thanks,

So we have as artillery prime mover for KNIL the GMC 1932 T-18, US sourced and bodied/converted by the KNIL Arsenal in Bandung, Java. I guess we can classify these as militarised civilian trucks?

The light trucks/minibuses then came in different models and were probably 1928 Model Capitol Series LO and 1929 Model International Series LQ (and possibly other years as well).

The former being Chevrolet (is this correct?), the latter GMC. Both US sourced or Canadian? They were all supplied as rhd I assume from the factory and did not need any conversion or local bodywork?

Greetings
Nuyt

US?
 

I would imagine that all were supplied from Bloomfield, New Jersey, Boxing Plant [Chevrolet] and Pontiac, Michigan [GMC].

signal corps version
 

serving with the engineers on Java (telephone unit)
Nuyt

Picture from Stabilan Magazine Jubilee edition

you won a bonus!!!!!!!!!
 

David, you are REALLY fast!
Here's a bonus: KNIL artillery in the twenties:

Greetings
Nuyt

and an easy one for you
 

Morris-Commercial.
I am not sure if these were predecessors of the GMC's or that they opererated them simultaneously...
The Bofors howitser being towed here was delivered in the early twenties to KNIL and I guess these prime movers were ordered in the same period. Picture from Heshusius/Zwitser: KNIL 1830-1950.

Cheers
Nuyt

Photos
 

The evidence is that Chevrolet and GMC were very popular in the Low Countries from the early Twenties, and that official military sales were well under way by 1934.

Re: you won a bonus!!!!!!!!!
 

Eric,

This is another picture from the same period. I beleive this is 1st Field Arty Bn (A I Vd) - in those days in Batavia. 1923-24? Truck type White?

In 1912 the Netherlands East Indies Army had only five trucks type Büssing. Some ten years later they bought some White and Feugel (newer heard of before).

Still in Spain?

Stellan

Another KNIL oldie
 

According to Col Heshusius this should be a White. That I don´t know.

What I do know is that the towed gun is a 120 mm howitzer M/1900. Six (?) such were brought to NEI in the Atjeh War and used during the 1906 Bali expedition. They were in two indep how Btys in Batavia - later became A I Hw. So this picture is taken before the 105 mm how:s came in 1924-25 and with those also new trucks.

4 of these 120 mm howitzers were in 1942 deployed at Kalianget, Madoera.

ADDED 11th Jul: It looks more like a Büssing to me (see the stearing-wheel).

Re: chevrolet ID help needed
 

No, this is an ammo truck - perhaps? Is it a 6x4 or 4x2? Difficult to see.

If 6x4 = artillery ammo truck, if 4x6 Motor Transport Coy.

Re: another shot
 

But this is an artillery prime mover. That you can see because it has a sun-roof for the personell. The space between the cab and the sun-roof was used for trench tools.

reply
 

Stellan, I think you are correct!
The forst one indeed must be an ammo truck.
Thanks.
Nuyt