Yesterday (Saturday 14th July) GT & Myself followed up on a lead of an ex-rural fire service Blitz a half hour or so drive from town.
The present owner purchased the truck from the RFS about 15 years ago and was shedded until a couple of years ago.
It turned out to be a 1945 F60L GS ex RAAF. Excitement turned to disdain as he told me how the truck was so much better after a Chev engine was fitted! The truck is well out of my budget but looks to be an excellent project. If you are interested contact me & I will put you in touch with the owner who has asked me not to publish his personal details. Asking $2800.
Cheers, Howard.

I have more hi res photos, PM me for more

F60L: ARN 214008, data plate

A few mile from the F60L we found this Chev. Turns out to be a cut-and-shut radio van. I have purchased this.

Here's the chassis

Chev ARN 6015, data plate

$2800 and thats without the original motor :eek: tell him he`s dreaming !

Nice Chev looks in pretty good nick

Its the Chev engine that gives it its value!!! :yappy:

Uh-oh....
 

...here we go again... thanks Mr. Farmer, I just spit my tea all over the keyboard! :D :D :D

BTW, nice finds, Howard, even considering the Chev bits! :coffee

I didnt know boat anchors cost that much ? :p :yappy:

Plates
 

Note the Ford has a 1943 engine, and yet was assembled in November '45! The Chevrolet has no assembly plant code. Corrected: it has a S for Sydney Plant Code. but unusually at the end of the chassis number. I looked at it originally but thought that it was just a crease or mark on the plate. Brisbane traditionally "did their own thing" as regards serial numbers, compared with the other Plants.

*I wonder if Elizabeth, aka Adelaide ever used their "A", as I have no evidence of any so far?

Re: Plates
 

No there was an 'S' stamped to the right. The pair of plates for that Chev clear up a bit of a mystery as the Sydney plant didn't put a date on the dashboard data plate because, it seems the date was on the other plate on the engine cover.

The Melbourne Holden factory would generally put the date on the dash plate.

Plate on engine cover
 

Here's the brass plate:

4G engine
 

Here's a 4G engine in a 1947 assembled F15A.

Plates
 

1. Thanks for the correction! Sydney at elast clearly placed the Plant Code letter after the Model Number or at the end of the complete chassis number. I suppose the new design of GM of Canada plate with the room for date of assembly obviated the need to put the date on the other plate.

2. The "1927" assembly date for a truck with a 1943 engine raises the query as to whether it was a rebuild by Fords post-war, or a crate that was left unassembled for three years? We know that in the UK there was a huge number of Canadian-order crates that were sent back to Canada in August 1945 or so, some of which dated to 1943!

Post-war assembly
 

There were many Ford F60Ls sold off as incomplete kits after the war here, usually with the back and top of the cab missing (which were the bits locally built).

The F15A though appears to be a factory job, and I have seen some others with 1947 dates which were the same in that they were complete.

Holden's
 

I know GM-Holden's rebuilt and then re-sold military vehicles post-war. I wonder whether they too had any leftover uncrated vehicles? Thanks for the new information, which is extremely interesting, Keith.

Vehicle record books
 

If you go through the vehicle record books held by the AWM you'll see large numbers of CMPs, both Ford and Chevrolet which were repurchased by the manufacturers to be sold through the dealer networks.

Although I haven't ever seen any documentation, it would be safe to assume there would have been some sort of rectification process by the factory or dealers to ensure they were in good condition for sale.

Sorry to hijack your thread Howard... :p

Re: Vehicle record books
 

Not at all, this is interesting stuff...

Here's one of those cabs
 

This cab (known to Howard) is an example of an incomplete cab which has been 'completed' by cleverly integrating a cab 12 roof.

Kits
 

Colin Bell, the former counter sales person at Auto Surplus , told me he worked for Healings in Melbourne just after the war . He said they had brand new SWB Ford CMP's in CKD form that were sold to farmers etc.

Lanes Motors, the large Morris agency in Melbourne were selling army Morris Commercial CS8's and PU's as early as mid 1945 , to essential users . Lanes would typically supply 4 or 5 at a time to their sub dealerships in rural areas e.g., I can confirm that a Shepparton dealer got some CS8's and so did a Whittlesea Morris dealership . Lanes painted the trucks with in a cheap grey paint , over the army scheme . The grey paint fell off rather quickly . A Mr McLean from Whittlesea purchased a CS8 in 1945 and it was used until traded in on a new Land Rover in 1952. The Morris travelled to Sydney and back twice towing a horse float ..... This info came from his son , who then aged 15 , recalled the Morris so well . It was many years later ( 2000) , I was at Bendigo swap meet when I came across a CS8 radiator and surround , painted grey . The seller told me he was from Whittlesea and his very eldery neighbour across the road had a CS8 in his back yard , the truck was terribly rusty and beyond repair , but he had salvaged the radiator from it . The elderly neighbour had bought it in the early 1950's and converted it into a camper , by building a enclosed van body . .... is this a coincidence or is it the same truck bought by McLeans . Who knows .

Mike

The owner of this 1945 F60L bought it from a Defence Surplus auction in Liverpool, NSW in 1946 as a "Cowl/Chassis" in a crate. He even had to supply his own wheels to get it home (and make a windscreen surround for it!).

Re: Here's one of those cabs
 

Gee, Keith. I have to admit that I am disapointed! I was expecting a barage of questions about the Landie & the Holden Utes in the background of the photo... Not One! (I guess it goes to show that MLU'ers DO have good taste!) :yappy:
HH

Re: Re: Here's one of those cabs
 

Well I wasn't exactly expecting you to go out to save Holden utes, unless you've completely lost your marbles!

G'day All, Howard I did see the Series 1 parked right up at the back, but it's way too far away for me to be interested and besides it wouldn't have any military history :rolleyes so this was just to let you know that it was seen, LOL cheers Dennis :sheep:
PS I'm always looking in the background to see what's lurking.

Dinty looks in the background for anything, I'm always looking out for land rovers :p :yappy: