Vickers Carden Loyd Commercial Light Tanks

[zemsi]

I just discovered this 6 year old topic. The Swiss also used these little tanks (called Panzerwagen 34/35), 6 in total, numbers M+7304 to M+7309. Looking at the period pics I got, they were 1 x model 1933 and 5 x modell 1934. See my blog for some more info in German. And here some technical information. These tanks were put of of service in 1948 and I think two survived.

Before we got the Vickers tanks, we aquired in 1931 two Carden-Loyd Mark VI (numbers M+0206 and M+0207).

Greetings
Chris

[zemsi]

... and watch out for the AFV Weapons Profile No 5 "Light Tanks Marks I - VI"

[George Moore]

Hi Hanno,
By chance a while back I purchased a copy of the "Handbook for Light Tanks Mks II - VI"
A re-print published by MLRS.
Quite informative, but brief descriptions, some drawings etc.

MkII, IIA, IIB and III had Rolls Royce 6 cyl engines.

MkIV, V, VI, VIA and VIB Meadows 6 cyl engines.

Changes were mainly:

• Engine
• Suspension
• Turret type (armament on the VIC)
• Fuel tank arrangement
• Cooling arrangement

Construction, though basically similar, the type of construction differed in the way hulls were rivetted. Possibly for cost !!!

Contact me, and I can scan various sections.

My reason for buying it was to get more info on the engine, however, not as much as I thought, so I am still after photo's of a Meadows engine and drive unit, out of the vehicle.

George.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by George Moore

My reason for buying it was to get more info on the engine, however, not as much as I thought, so I am still after photo's of a Meadows engine and drive unit, out of the vehicle.

George,

I know what you mean. Even though Meadows in its day was a well known engine manufacturer, it is strange not much information about them is available.

A few quotes from these web pages:

• http://mailer.fsu.edu/~akirk/tanks/G...ightTanks.html: "Powerplant 88hp Meadows ESTE 6cyl"
• http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac....nryMeadows.htm: "Another successful product, the 4.5litre 6 cylinder ‘Type 6’ engine is best remembered as the power unit for Invicta and Lagonda cars."
• http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac..../Buses/ajs.htm: "The chassis was powered by a 25hp. 6 cylinder, Meadows 6ERC overhead valve engine, with an integral 4 speed gearbox."

The last two pages listed show some pictures, although I have no idea if these were even remotely connected to the engine used in the Vickers tanks.

Hanno

[zemsi]

... thanks Hanno. Problem already solved. I supplied George with some pics of the Meadows engine and drive train.

greetings
chris

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by zemsi

... thanks Hanno. Problem already solved. I supplied George with some pics of the Meadows engine and drive train.

That's great, could you share them here, too?

Here's a possibly comprehensive list of Meadows 6-cylinder engines used in Vickers Light Tanks:

Name | Cylinders | Fuel / Octane | Coolant | Capacity | Power (HP) | RPM
Meadows | 6 | Gasoline | Water | 4.43 liters| 88 | 3,000
Meadows EPT | 6 | .. | .. | .. | 58 | ..
Meadows EST | 6 | .. | Water | .. | 90 | ..
Meadows ESTB/A or ESTB/B | 6 | .. | .. | .. | 88 | ..
Meadows ESTE | 6 | .. | .. | .. | 88 | ..
Meadows ESTL | 6 | Gasoline | .. | .. | 88 | ..

Source: http://www.wwiivehicles.com/unitedkingdom/engines.asp

[George Moore]

Hi to you both, Chris and Hanno,
Yes some great information re the engine, an added bonus was some details of the gearbox.
The main difference with the MkVI series, the fan was driven by a seperate shaft.
The radiators were mounted over the engine, and a bracket held the fan unit, which had a gear-box that was driven by a shaft running along the engine. This transmitted the drive upwards.

The radiator takes up a lot of room in the engine bay, some museums are getting a bit picky, so to be able to photograph the engine in situ, the radiator would need to be swung up out of the way. As it has a limited movement, even then it would be difficult to photograph properly.

Thanks for all the help guys.

George.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by zemsi

Looking at the period pics I got, they were 1 x model 1933 and 5 x modell 1934.

Chris,

Thansk for the info. Did know the Swiss had some, now learned they were different models.

Great blog and thanks for the link to the Profile publication.