Ford Blitz Restoration/Rebuild

[Private_collector]

Some of you may recall a while ago, that I was considering placing a 40mm Gun on the rear of my truck. From line drawings and B&W photos, it wouldn't be difficult to manufacture the basic components, then cover breech mech & muzzle with purpose made canvas covers.

The largest hurdle is how to get the opportunity to see, photograph and measure a genuine specimen. I have a few reproduced manuals, and more PDF resources, but REALLY wanted to be able to walk up to a real 40mm and capture the finer details for reproduction. All this AFTER I finish the CMP of course (so it will be at least 2121!)

Today, I made a fortunate discovery. In my work I travel a reasonable number of miles each day. Some days more than others, but usually in the same general areas, so I know these places reasonably well.........or so I thought! Well, today I went a slightly different route to visit a patient and came face to face with a complete 40mm BOFORS sitting on its original four wheeled platform. It was standing proudly in what is effectively an odd shaped roundabout, surrounded on all sides by thoroughfares. It is not fenced, has not been dismantled or greatly vandalised and will be the perfect subject for detailed inspection & photography.

I suspect this relic is the property of either the local RSL or council, and I will start to make enquiries next week, to gain permission to allow my close attention without incurring wrath from owners. The local police station sits in clear view of the gun, and i'm sure they would rather I had permission to 'play' on this little gem too!

Will post a couple of photos when I can.

[Keith Webb]

... is a working pintle hook on your Ford I think.

[Private_collector]

Rain, rain & more rain.

Most of today spent in town, and as threatened, I have bought lots of cutting and grinding discs for chassis rail repair tomorrow. It WILL GET DONE tomorrow, even if I have to grind in one hand & hold an umbrella in the other hand. Electrocution quite likely

Today I got thinking about what I would like to have as a number plate for the truck.
vj45.bmp
Perhaps V.J day.


vjd45 green.gif
What about a different way to write it, and an appropriate color choice.

cmf45 black.gif cmf45 white.gif
My Dad was in the CMF. He was in NG until 46 actually, but that might be a bit cryptic for spotters.

It's a shame that CMP 42 is already taken, but I could get either CMP 43 or CMP 44, they are available. There will doubtless be something on my truck of that vintage.

I also considered '1 NIL' or '14ALL', but those are taken too. (Would have REALLY loved the 1 NIL plate!)

BLITZ 42 green.bmp
This one's not bad either. So long as you don't mind paying $2400 for it.

Cont'd...

[Private_collector]

CMP 1942.bmp
This one would be the supreme price of $3400. Seriously, that's what they are asking for 6-7 digits. If they want that amount of money from me, they would only get One Digit in return
DDAY44.bmp
D Day is gone, but this one's not bad. It's another $2300 plate.
HHOUR.bmp
This would be a good one!
SHAEF.gif
As would this.
LETS GO.bmp
Lets Go was taken unfortunately, so this is as close as it gets.

These are all actual images from the QLD Transport website, showing real combinations. Pity 6ULDV8 was taken

My searching plates today was basically to see if my prefered choice was still available. It is available, and don't ask what it is. I will reveal this once purchased in coming months (or years). I think its too good to broadcast & if I let the cat out of the bag someone will surely buy before I can afford it, and i'll get

[Private_collector]

Chassis bare 1.jpg chassis bare 2.jpg
Chassis work continues. Considerably more time spent on this, than I had originally intended, I must admit. I keep finding things to do you see. There is always another rivet, previously bround down, that has to be removed. There is always another place where some kind of bracket/s have been welded (mostly very badly) to secure god knows what. Numerous bits of weld, not desired. Getting all these places back to some semblence of normality is turning into a trilogy in four parts, but i'm nearly done now.

chassis crack passenger rear 3.jpg chassis crack passenger rear 2.jpg
The passenger side rear rail has been returned to its proper profile, but I have not attempted to trim the edges down at this stage, because I am hoping to remove a small length aft of where the new rail and pintle brackets will go. There is a significant crack in this location which will disappear if I cut off the last 10-11 inches of each rail. I wager this crack was why the sides were plated in past.
chassis crack passenger rear 1.jpg
This little crack will need repair regardless. It will not be in the area to be removed. Will leave this job for a professional because they will also need to bring the top part of the rail back to level. It has seen some dreadful treatment in the past? You can see the remains of the vertical plate which has been cut off today, jutting out from the rail.

Cont'd...

[Private_collector]

chassis bare 5.jpg
This is where the new cross member will sit in relation to the holes for spring hanger. Cross member will have to be slightly aft of the spring hanger. To put it exactly where it should go, there will be issues with existing holes being a problem. They would have to be filled first. That's a job I don't need! You can see some of the holes in the photo but these aren't a real issue. There are more, and of greater concern, where the big bracket would sit. By dumb luck, a couple of the existing holes are 1/2 a 'hole' away from where the new holes would go. Brilliant

On the other hand, in the position you see above, I can mooch of an existing hole one each side, as a 'starter for 10'! And they are even equal side to side. So are the spring hanger mounting places. I woke up one night with the sudden fear that a bodge may have been done.

TONY3875_2c.jpg
Looking at Tony W's photo, my cross member should be about 4cm (just over inch & 1/2) further forward, to look like this one. I can live with the difference, and there will still be sufficient room to cut off the bad part of rear chassis rail, leaving a fairly neat finish. I do note that mine will have a slightly different appearance anyway, because my rails are double thickness.

Will I need to cut the hole through the chassis rails, to match the large opening in side of the pintle brackets? If this was not always done, mine won't be either. If it is..........well........thats a problem for the engineers

At least my chassis is nice and straight. Well it should be too, there's hardly enough metal in the rear section to keep it out of level. The chassis engineers use a system for keeping chassis perfectly level while assembling the bits back together. Some of those parts are now in the boot of my car, to be sandblasted seperately, so I can show the guys how the parts are supposed to go together. Don't really want them to put it all together splendidly and then find a cross member is back to front!!!!

[Keith Webb]

Will I need to cut the hole through the chassis rails, to match the large opening in side of the pintle brackets? If this was not always done, mine won't be either. If it is..........well........thats a problem for the engineers

Looks like your engineers will have the interesting job of adding the big holes in the sides as they are always part of a CMP chassis.

[Private_collector]

Ford instruction book fifth ed..jpg
Just won an auction for: Ford Instruction Book - Fifth Edition.

Four down, one to go. Unless there's an edition six!

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Private_collector

Will I need to cut the hole through the chassis rails, to match the large opening in side of the pintle brackets?

As Keith says this hole is present on all CMP chassis. It's not essential but it's quite distinctive cosmetically. My suggestion would be to wait until the pintle hook mounts are bolted on, then simply run an appropriate sized hole saw through the chassis rail. That way it will be sure to line up with the hole in the pintle hook mount.

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Private_collector

There is a significant crack in this location....I wager this crack was why the sides were plated in past.

Yes I'm sure you're right Tony, there had to be a reason for these extensive chassis mods in the past. Perhaps the rearmost part of the chassis was even worse so they decided to shorten it as well.

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Private_collector

This little crack will need repair regardless. It has seen some dreadful treatment in the past?

Quite possibly, but I suspect the principal cause of blitz chassis failure is removal of the original body. The loss of rigidity leads to enormous flexion in the rear chassis, which is really quite spindly, esp. the Ford rear chassis. Also the loss of weight over the rear axle means the springs are virtually rigid, so the rear chassis simply twists back and forth over uneven ground, eventually causing fatigue cracks. We rarely see a bent chassis from overloading, but it's common to see fatigue cracks from constant torsion. Of course, with a dodgy crane fitted, the torsion forces can be massive.

Another area subject to repetitive torsion is the front chassis under the steering box. The chassis rail is only single skin at this point, and it has to support the engine mount on one side, and the spring hanger on the other side, plus the back and forth steering wheel force multiplied 20+ times through the steering box. Pics below show a fatigue crack in this area on a F60L chassis I scrapped recently. As you can see it has progressed almost half way through the chassis rail....imagine the consequences of sudden total failure at speed!

[Keith Webb]

I like the way you think things through, Tony.

Another common fatigue spot (at least on Fords) is the top of the dash panel and where it bolts onto the steering shaft bracket, due to flexing of these parts over the years. You sometimes see either cracks stretching from the bolt holes, sometimes even a half-moon shape separates when you undo one of these bolts.

[Tony Wheeler]

Here's another fatigue crack on the same F60L chassis. This one has cracked through the double skin section amidships. It's located precisely above the dodgy front crane mount which has focussed the bending/twisting forces at that point. I think you can see why I scrapped this chassis!