[Big D]

Hi all,

I have now learnt (thanks to Willy) that the conduit that runs around the hull actually carries the 12 volt power supply for the terminal box on each sponson, as well as the CO213 cordage that links the BC606's for the commander and the loader. The conduit terminates at the terminal boxes and then there is a short length of cordage to each BC606. This fits with what I was seeing in the plans.

What I was confused about were photos of some restored M8’s that had the cordage on the firewall inside the hull connecting the commander’s and loaders BC606’s. I understand now that this is a post-war change. I’m going the wartime route with the conduit around the hull, providing I can get my hands on enough of the conduit!

I’ve now connected up the four BC606’s and the FT237 radio tray using the CO213 cordage. Preparing the cordage was a bit of a tedious job. Seperating the shield on the outside is time-consuming as it is very tightly wound around the internal wires.

I wired in the cordage for the driver and co-driver BC606’s in situ, only because I wanted to be sure of the lengths of the cable required. I wired the BC606’s for the commander and loader out of the vehicle and that was a darned sight easier. I’d have to say, that despite all the drawings and plans, without knowing exactly how it was all laid out, I still needed to do lots of research and have a good think about the layout and how it was connected both before and during the installation.

I was (and still am) a bit confused by the layout of the BC606’s. The plans show that the BC606’s for the driver, co-driver and commander should be positioned with the INT/RADIO switch and Volume Control side of the unit down. I setup the BC606’s for the driver and co-driver in this way as per the drawings.

I placed the loader’s BC606 as per the drawings with the INT/RADIO switch and Volume Control up. As I say, the drawings say that the Commander’s BC606 should be positioned with the INT/RADIO switch and Volume Control side down though, which didn’t make much sense to me.

What was the logic to how these BC606’s were fitted? I have seen numerous variations in the setups in restored M8’s, and a number of pictures of M8’s during wartime also showed variations. Why not keep them all in the same layout with the INT/RADIO switch and Volume Control upwards where the crewman can see it and change it if required?

In the end, I positioned the Commander’s unit with the INT/RADIO switch and Volume Control up, as per the Loader’s unit. I guess someone will correct me if it is wrong.

Along with the radio stuff, I’ve been trying to progress the gun. We haven’t been able to remove the two screws holding the recoil system in place. These screws have an allen type head on them but they were pretty knackered and corroded. I had been soaking the screws with penetrating oil for several months but the heads weren’t good enough to get a decent bite on them with the allen screw bit. We tried welding a bolt onto one screw but even then we couldn’t get the thing to budge. As a result, I will be taking it into a metal specialist next week to get the screws removed by spark erosion.

I got the boys in the engineering shop to profile cut a tool for removing the big nut on the barrel. This will allow me to remove the sleigh. Again, this nut is stuck and I’m better off having a tool that fits it properly before trying to lever it much more. l will give this tool a try next week and see if that will shift the nut.