1944 C-15A-Wire-5 Restoration

[Robert Bergeron]

Thank-you very much Nicholas, Rob and David. The red paint was there for a reason.The white paint of course is because it was saturday and the yard was already cleaned out of the leaves and the grass mown.Missus had no new tasks for me so i got carried away..

Speaking of paint. What colours if any were the tools stored in or on the trucks, or vehicules painted ? On the Wire 5 truck i have a spade and a pick axe. On the Mk 2 Carrier i have the same plus a heavy mining bar.

On US vehicules i have seen pretty much OD ( green ) as a colour but on British and some Canadian pictures i have seen mostly black on the metal and the wood left natural.

I enjoy your responses and insights greatly.I feel like i am part of a great community.

Cheers.

Bob

[Harry Moon]

I have often wondered if the practice of painting the center of your rear differential when hotrodding in the 50's and 60's had anything to do with the wartime practice of painting the differentials white? I remember jacking up the rear ends on cars with a (?) leaf spring hanger extension, putting wide tires on and painting the center of the differential white, anybody else do those things or was it limited to the west coast?

[Robert Bergeron]

Hi Harry,

I am too young to have practiced that art.

But i found the reference on red nuts.

Cheers.

Bob

[David Dunlop]

Harry.

Hate to admit it but I do remember that habit back in the day. Don't think it was a military connection at all, however, as I used to see white, black, yellow, red and even chromed diff covers. Think it was more a case of since the ass end of the car was up so high the diff could be easily seen so needed to be prettied up.

David

[Robert Bergeron]

Friends,

The Wire 5 truck runs well. I prepared it for winter by installing a canvas "arctic" grill cover. As well as i was visiting a local farm supply shop , i picked up a good luck charm in the form of a real horseshoe.

The attendant, a really nice man asked what size (weight ) my horse was. I said 15 Cwt. I answered his query by saying it's not for a horse it's for my truck, it is for good luck .

We proceeded outside and he lent me a pair of pliers and a pair of cutter to affix said horseshoe to the grill with some fence wire.

He then said wait here a minute i will be back. Upon his return he handed me a Rosary and added : It was personaly blessed by the Cardinal , it will bring you real good luck.

We meet the nicest people riding a CMP around town, really.

The truck passed the safety inspection on the first attempt last week and it is now road licensed in Québec . It is a feat brought about by the excellent work Richard and his team have done.

I wil be starting the restoration of the inside of the box tomorrow. I will keep you posted .

Cheers.

[Wayne Hingley]

Looks great! Glad you are now able to take it out and enjoy a drive through the countryside. Was the Quebec inspection process quite detailed? Do they put any special conditions on 70+ year old vehicles? Is it a one time inspection,or annual?

[Robert Bergeron]

Hello Wayne,

It is a one time inspection upon road registration. The irony in this is Richard in Huntsville Ontario had gone through the whole process already just a few months prior .

When you import a used vehicule in Québec , wether it came from Malaya or Ontario you have to go through the safety inspection to licence it in the province..

There are no exceptions in Québec statutes for antique vehicules . The only helpfull rule is that you have to have installed and in working condition all the safety equipment installed by the manufacturer at time of delivery. So in the specific case of a C-15 CMP , no seat belts , no turn lights but a working handbrake, windshield wipers and high low headlight beam for example. They do not accept the blackout headlight on the left side and a bridge plate in the right side headlight bucket. I do that AFTER the safety inspection and registration when it is all done ..

Richard and i chose to install turn signals , brake and back-up lights and that is a personal survival reason. Of course , if installed they have to work.

They check the braking performance, the undercarriage , suspension and muffler.

It is quite an involved inspection and took almost 1 hour and 40 minutes.

The inspector called the head office at least 5 times. He was asking about the ''plastic'' side windows, the absence of a safety glass logo in the windshield etc.. because it was all new to him but he was still interested on hearing my remarks on the technical aspects of wartime truck production in Canada.

He insisted on seing the gas tank gauge indicator move. I flipped the switch to left tank and nothing happened . My tanks were full. I flipped the switch to right tank and it moved , slowly . O. K. he said it moved. I explained there was a wooden dipststick in the tool kit that came with the truck to check fuel level and he bought it.

It is an adventure to put a 71 year old HMV through a safety inspection but if you are well prepared , documented and knowledgeable about your truck it should go well.

When it was all over and he handed me his inspection report he said i needed side reflectors front and back. Yellow in front and red in the back. He continued and said he had stickers for $3 each that could do the job very well and i answered '' sold '' . He left a litlle corner lifted on each one because he very well knew i would take them off as soon as i drove out of his garage.

He then took pictures for his file and the licensing authority and i suspect to show off to his kids and that was it.

All said , it is like an exam at college or
High school. It is a chore to prepare but you are happy proud and content when it is finished and you don't have to do it again.

It is the final exam after a restoration and it says a lot about the quality of your work or as in my case of Richard's work.

I hope this detailed report will encourage you and other guys to go ahead
with your projects.

I have started the restoration of the inside of my box this morning . Everythig is cleaned out, the rusted old screws i have buffed away and the old plywood remaining i threw out.

Tomorrow the insulation and wednesday the new plywood.

It is a lot of fun and rewarding.

Cheers and good luck.