R.A.F. Ground Equipment Blue - paint specification

[Ian Grieve]

Originally Posted by Keith Orpin

Richard,
Having followed this thread with interest, prompted me to look though some old litrature. I have just come across a sales catalogue from a dispersal sale at Mount Farm in Oxfordshire, during September 1946. Detailed therein are vehicle types, along with their WD or Reg number. Keith

Keith Orpin

Fascinating to hear you have sales catalogues for Mount Farm auctions in September, 1946. On August 19, 1946, the London “Times” newspaper advertised for the M.O.S. 10 day vehicle sales at Mount Farm, Dorchester, on 3 – 6, 10 – 13 and 17 - 18 September, 1946, for 2,300 vehicles. The catalogue was in 3 sections for each week. The advert says vehicles included jeeps and amphibious jeeps.

Question 1 - Are you able to say from your catalogue how many amphibious jeeps there were in total at the sale/s?

Another sale (1,600 vehicles), and possibly the next, was advertised on January 13, 1947, for 27 – 29 January and 3 – 5 February, 1947, ie 6 days and included jeeps and amphibians (these could have been amphibious jeeps).

A sale (1,500 vehicles) was advertised on December 15, 1947, for 6 – 9 and 13 – 14 January, 1948, ie 6 days and included jeeps and amphibian carriers (these could have been amphibious jeeps or DUKW’s, even Terrapin).

A further sale (2,000 vehicles), called the 10th, was advertised on February 23, 1948, for 6 – 9 and 13 – 16 April, 1948, ie 8 days and included jeeps. No mention of amphibious jeeps was made in this sale. There must have been other sales as well at Mount Farm.

I have records of 7 R.N. amphibious jeeps being sold at 3 separate M.O.S. sales at Elstow Storage Depot, Bedfordshire, in 1950 and 1951.

I see big M.O.S. vehicle sales at other depots like;
• Great Missenden
• Byram Park
• Thorp Arch
• Ruddington
• Toddington
• Bentley Wood
• Etc
There is quite a list more with significant numbers of vehicles, however, none of them mentioned amphibious jeeps. Obviously, though, other sales had amphibious jeeps.

Question 2 to the Forum - Has anybody copies of any of these sales catalogues, particularly with amphibious jeep sales?

It is all Sherlock Holmes stuff 65 years after the event, but most interesting. One only wonders whether people took photos of these vast numbers of vehicles.

Ian