T-16 S/N 5399 T.D. 97377 Restoration

[horsa]

Just posted you a PM for a contact in your part of the world who can likely provide WWII surplus 3-inch bomb carriers. The 3-inch pattern have always seemed to be available even here in the USA. It's the 2-inch and PIAT patterns which are hard to find. And the 4.2-inch pattern don't seem to exist anymore which is why I had to resort to making my own.

Essentially the tubes are rolled cardboard and I ordered them from a place that could turn them out with the needed inside diameter, wall thickness and overall length that I needed. I used a hole saw to cut 4.2" wooden disks which I then bored 1.5" holes in the center to hold the fuzed bombs inside. The disks got nailed to the inside of the tube while a round was inside to ensure they stayed centered and flat. Then I rolled the disks in a tin filled with lacquer so they would get coated inside and outside. It dries quickly and will make them water resistant. I used an amber tinted lacquer since it matches early to mid-war originals I had for the 3-inch pattern. They quit doing this later in the war to save on materials but I want them to last so treated mine even though the carrier represents a D-Day+ time period. The black bands are packing crate straps with crimp clips. They get nailed to wooden spacers that I cut out with a skill saw (jig saw in some parts of the world). The end caps are made from sheet metal with the edges welded on. Originals would have been pressed but you can't really tell once painted. They have a strap guide spot welded to the end that opens just as the originals had. The handle and closing strap are actually a wartime double buckle web strap that I had available here and they fit onto another short crimped piece of flat metal strap which was patterned after the type used on all other mortar bomb carriers. Quite a production but doing them over a few weekends like an assembly line made it go quickly. Also got the opportunity to teach my kids about WWII English Cottage Industry

[tankbarrell]

David,

thanks for the contact on the clamps, getting prices as I type!

Regards,

Adrian

[Nigel Watson]

Lovely job David. Always brilliant to see these machines given the treatment. You couldn't motor it up to South Carolina this July and give me a shot in it? That would be a nice wee run for it!!! Will be over on me hols!

Nigel

[horsa]

Hey Nigel,

Might be a problem with that run. Its 1150 miles from Austin, Texas to central South Carolina. Not sure if me and the carrier are up to 38 hours of continous driving at 30 mph

I've still got to finish cleaning up the panels that cover the engine compartment but after that, I'll shoot a series of photos with the vehicle outside and fully loaded up for you. Wasn't sure if you still planned to do a Vol III with modern photos or not.

We have a WWII vehicle rally here in Texas mid-March so that is where I plan to really break everything in. The fields in that area have a nice lush Normandy look to them. Good tank hunting ground.

[Nigel Watson]

Originally Posted by horsa

Hey Nigel,

Might be a problem with that run. Its 1150 miles from Austin, Texas to central South Carolina. Not sure if me and the carrier are up to 38 hours of continous driving at 30 mph

I've still got to finish cleaning up the panels that cover the engine compartment but after that, I'll shoot a series of photos with the vehicle outside and fully loaded up for you. Wasn't sure if you still planned to do a Vol III with modern photos or not.

We have a WWII vehicle rally here in Texas mid-March so that is where I plan to really break everything in. The fields in that area have a nice lush Normandy look to them. Good tank hunting ground.

It would be fun though! I'd come back with you only if you would give me a shot of the controls!! Thought your speed limit was 50mph anyway!

I'd appreciate a selection of photos of your restoration and finished machine for Volume 3.

Nigel

[horsa]

Manual says the top speed is 33mph for the T-16 which would be regulated by the governor. I still haven't found a correct Waltham speedometer and haven't installed a more common jeep type yet so don't know what my actual top speed is. Haven't gotten into fourth gear either way since I haven't been out in a field for a real run yet and am really limited in what I can do driving on my side lot and quarter mile of flat road in the housing area.

I do know from past experience with my jeep, that a long trip can be pretty rough on the passengers and the vehicle when you're trying to pedal at max speed on a hot day. Nothing like driving an open air vehicle without seatbelts doing 50mph on the highway with regular cars and trucks blowing past you on both sides going 80 plus mph. Only good thing is so far nobody has gotten angry at me being a rolling roadblock. They all seem to either smile and give a thumbs up or look concerned when they see me in WWII Denison with the weapons mounted on the side and hood

No problem doing a spread of shots for you. That way you can pick and choose based on allocated space. Once it's all done, I'll also set something up so I can take some photographs from overhead in a similar way to the 4.2" Mortar Carrier shots the Canadian's did for their prototype T-16s.

[David Ellery]

Thanks David for the PM, Much appreciated

David...

[horsa]

Shot of the British Towed 4.2-Inch Mortar after setting it up for firing this past weekend. The manuals officially refer to it as a Mobile Base Plate for the 4.2-Inch Mortar and Mounting but what do they know...

This fires the 30-pound bombs that were transported in the cardboard carriers stored in the bins over the tracks on the T-16 (message # 46 in this thread on page two for reference).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HD_-b3FM3I

Short video linked above shows one of the bombs being fired at a 70 degree angle into a 15-20 mph gusting wind. We did this in conjunction with light launching charges to keep the bombs in a 350-400 yard impact range for easier recovery. The smoke coming from the bomb's nose in the video is to help track the shots and has nothing to do with the bomb firing in case it appears that I'm walking with a lit fuze. The bombs are actually launched with a cartridge in the tail unit in conjunction with a firing pin in the bottom of the mortar barrel which initiates once the bomb drops to the end.