Canvas doors

[Ian Fawbert]

Hi Tony,

ARN is 208140 and I've been meaning to ask Mike if he has any record

With the number of 208140, it (i believe) falls into the RAAF registration number range. This might account for the strange rear you have found as it seems from the few pictures ive seen of vehicles, the RAAF did modify things to suit their individual purposes on a case by case basis?

Good luck finding the RAAF ledgers. Ive been told they went 'missing' along time ago when the lent them to someone and the were never returned. Foolishly, it seems the didnt keep track of who they lent them to.

Id be happy to be proved wrong on that one!

Cheers,
Ian.

[Mike Cecil]

Tony: missed your query first time around, but picked it up in Ian's post. 208140 is indeed within the registration block issued to the RAAF. The number was issued to a 'Truck, Heavy, Wireless/Telegraphy', a Ford F60S, taken on charge 14 November 1944, and disposed of on 7 August 1956.

To clarify Ian's comments, the RAAF vehicle registers were originally located at RAAF Support Command, Logistics Management Unit, St Kilda Road, Melbourne. They were relocated to the RAAF Museum in the mid-1990s, but were recalled by the Support Command in the late 1990s, against the wishes of the RAAF Museum staff. Soon after, they went missing and have not been seen since. The RAAF Museum librarian was extremely upset by their loss. As far as I am aware from speaking with her, there is no record of them having been 'lent' to anyone, and this is the first I've heard of that: the more likely scenario is they were 'round filed' during a clean-up/move: the unit certainly didn't appreciate what they were holding when I accessed them in the late 1980s and early 1990s, until I informed them of their historical value.

In the mid-1990s, I was instrumental in having them moved to the RAAF Museum (I actually recommended they be forwarded to the AWM, to be held along with the Army registers). I still have the correspondence.

Fortunately, I made copious notes from the registers when I had access. Those records were then transcribed to my registrations database: a HUGE and time-consuming job!

Mike C

[Tony Wheeler]

Thanks Ian and Mike, I forgot to mention it was a RAAF vehicle. It's one I saved from the scrappy in Drouin last year, which I subsequently managed to ID from a 40 year old photo taken by Keith in Noojee, about 50 km away. Interesting to find it was a Wireless truck, do we have any pics of these?

img088 - Copy (3) - Copy - Copy.jpg img089 - Copy (3).jpg TONY6038 - Copy.jpg TONY6134 - Copy - Copy (2).jpg

Tragic to lose the RAAF vehicle registers after they'd actually been found and placed in safe hands. They should never have been relinquished back to dickhead staffers at Vic Barracks where they'd be virtually guaranteed to wind up lost or round filed. Champion effort by you Mike to transcribe the records, that would have been a herculean task.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by Mike Cecil

To clarify Ian's comments, the RAAF vehicle registers were originally located at RAAF Support Command, Logistics Management Unit, St Kilda Road, Melbourne. They were relocated to the RAAF Museum in the mid-1990s, but were recalled by the Support Command in the late 1990s, against the wishes of the RAAF Museum staff. Soon after, they went missing and have not been seen since. The RAAF Museum librarian was extremely upset by their loss. As far as I am aware from speaking with her, there is no record of them having been 'lent' to anyone, and this is the first I've heard of that: the more likely scenario is they were 'round filed' during a clean-up/move: the unit certainly didn't appreciate what they were holding when I accessed them in the late 1980s and early 1990s, until I informed them of their historical value.

In the mid-1990s, I was instrumental in having them moved to the RAAF Museum (I actually recommended they be forwarded to the AWM, to be held along with the Army registers). I still have the correspondence.

Fortunately, I made copious notes from the registers when I had access. Those records were then transcribed to my registrations database: a HUGE and time-consuming job!

Same sort of thing happened here in Holland, where vehicle registration cards were taken from the Army's archives and were going to be disposed of. Two acquaintances of mine asked if they could have the cards as they were collecting vehicle registration numbers and details. The answer was no, they were to be destroyed.
But they were allowed to copy details. This was in the pre-digital camera days, so they had to sit down and take notes. Sadly, time was lacking to record all vehicle histories.....

My experience with serving military is that anything struck off charge is of no value to them, except when it can be used as a range target

H.

[Mike Cecil]

Yes, Hanno, there are similar tails of the vehicle history cards in Australia: most were binned when the system was computerized. Only the basic registration details remain in the registers in most cases (which are now at the AWM), whereas the history cards recorded most movements of a registered item between units, storage, rebuild, and so on. Alas, mostly gone...

Most vehicle log books went the same way, though I see the most recent round of disposals includes the log book: quite a departure from what happened previously.

The Truck Heavy Wireless/Telegraphy was a composite bodied (wood/Masonite/caneite) van with a rear door and steps. There were a number parked at RAAF Point Cook under the trees lining the main road for many years: Keith, do you have any monochromes of those?

Mike C

[Keith Webb]

Keith, do you have any monochromes of those?

No I don't have any of the vehicles at Point Cook but I do have a pic of a different one, will dig it out.

[Keith Webb]

The remains of the frame looks about the right shape.

[Mike K]

I have a 1944 equipment memorandum, in it the canvas doors are detailed .

The book suggests the doors were a optional thing , it does not mention specific models of CMP's .

The little book belongs to P Growse .. I should return it

I think one of those RAAF wireless vans was sold at the BAndianna museum cleanout, around 15 years ago, it was in faded RAAF livery .... it was very complete . who bought it ?