Cab 11 C15 and 2A1 body

[Alex van de Wetering]

Excellent work Dave. I really like how the 2A1 is coming along.

Regarding the paintjob; I don't know if I can agree on the camo job on the inside of the body. Most examples I have seen only show camo on the outside and on the canvas.

Here's a question for you. How do you know when you've got enough runs and drips?

When it looks like the wood grain suddenly switched 90 degrees?

Alex

[cletrac (RIP)]

Alex,
In Europe the inside of the box was dark since the later camo schemes wanted all upward facing surfaces the dark colour to blend in with the ground. In Africa, however, the solid dark would stand out against the desert. That's why I carried the pattern through the box but I don't know if it was done like that or not. You'd also think they'd want the fold down sides to be camouflaged when down. Another thing, all the other trucks ran with the canvas in place but the AAATs needed the gun in the open.
I guess if I ever decide I did it wrong, it's a simple thing to change.

[cletrac (RIP)]

I painted the seat and installed it. I looked through all my pics again and came up with two camo paint jobs where you can see the inside of the box and no camo. I never noticed on that Morris western desert pic before but they're bolting a motley seat into place.

[cletrac (RIP)]

I have an original top hoop and it has those pins welded in (see picture) and a wire in the cross hole. What would they be for? The pins go through a hole in the pipe and are welded on the outside end. They only list one kind of hoop in the parts manual so they must all be like that. I attached the relevant part of the parts list and it mentions upper and lower rubber straps so maybe they have something to do with the top straps.
There's also a strap and buckle assembly for the front hoopstick which I assume would be used to tie the three hoops together when the hoops are stored at the front of the box.
The parts list says the AAAT doesn't use the hoops but I came across a picture with the front two in place with the Motley seat mounted at the rear of the box. I can see where you might want to keep stuff dry. This was in Europe.

[cliff]

Originally Posted by cletrac

I have an original top hoop and it has those pins welded in (see picture) and a wire in the cross hole. What would they be for?

To me it appears that the canvas hood may have had tie down straps that had an eyelet hole in the end of them which slotted over that pin and then a circlip or similar pushed though the hole to hold it in place. This would in effect been a quick and easy method of holding the canvas in place but also a quick way of releasing it for removal as well.

[cletrac (RIP)]

The 2B1 uses all the same straps as the 2A1 according to the parts list. The only difference is the size of the canvas. You can see by the first pic where the top straps hold the top in place when the sides are rolled up. The second pic is a good shot of the 2B1 with the canvas in place.

[cletrac (RIP)]

I made up some more of the hardware and bolted it on. I also made a spent brass catcher for the Lewis out of a ratty old aerial bag of some kind.