Originally Posted by Bob Carriere
Hi Scott
Don't let any one deter you from building a pilot Ford truck. Most information is very scant and in the fever of war if they could make it fit, work or serve the purpose then it was great. It's your truck as you would have built it in Cairo in 1940 with whatever you could scrounge...
Captivated with the North African campaign and the LRDG I have acquired and read most of the books floating around.
My conclusion is that local workshops, military or private, were pushed by a few individuals ( Badnold) to modify what they could find.... in the rush of war not too many detailed records / photos were kept. All we know for sure is they purchased, acquired or liberated various vehicles....most of which were found on location, previously delivered in some degree of knock down configuration for eventual selling locally with local made mostly wooden bodies. The military used what they could find that came either as a bare cowl frame power train.... some cowls had a full civilian wind shield frame that may have been cut up. I would say that the initial vehicles were 99% cowl only whether GM or Ford........some 3/4 ton pick up may have slipped in.... so most would have had a wooden bench with,if lucky a one piece coil spring seat similar to a pick up...... and the cargo box would depend on what steel or wood was available,,,,always trying to keep them simle and aslight as possible...... surely parts from damaged vehicleswere salvaged from both allied and captured vehicle dumps.......
do your own design based on the frame you have.....welded/bolted or mixed
be inspired by the technology of the day in other documented trucks and trailers from early 39/40..... you can't go wrong and no one can prove your wrong either.....alot of these vehicles were unique and based on what was available and/or where they were going... some woody station wagons made topless...car into crude UTE models
I have acquired a 1940 WA 1533...... 3 spare cabs.... also scored a C15 2x4 for the special beam front axle, Have a frame reinforcement plat for a template, 16 inch rims which I will modify to 8 inches wide to take the STA Chevron 10:50x16 and all kind of factory and book pictures to be guided from...... it will represent the early local made LRDG trucks....been collecting Gerry, USA British and Cdn fuel containers.......assorted back packs......will have assorted Lee Enfield Mark 1 rifles ( from the first world war old stock)fully de-activated and NO machine guns due to stupid regulations.........
My box will be hand made, welded to look like gas welding,,,,,copied loosely from 4x2 1942 model with the 3B4 box but will be shorter to mach my 1533 frame..... it will include cheater wooden boards and home made sand channels.....
One thing is holding me back.....can't find a good set of 39 or 40 front (Chev or GM)fenders to save my soul!!!!
Fee free to contact me at home at RAC1812 hat AOL.COM.... it is far easier to forward/share photos in large quantity.
Bob C.
PS,,,, steel repro rear Ford fenders are readily vailable to install and futher modify.....ie openned up,.....
PPS 2........ apparently the GoodYear Tire Cy is now making or has made a recent batch of 900 x 16 All Weather Traction ( sand ) tires...... selling from $400 each to some one gauging at $999. each............... AND they are not MOT approved......BUT they do look good..... meant for golf and gardening.....
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