Wire-3 Fitted For Wireless Box details

[Jordan Baker]

There were also two sheets on the tools shipped with the truck.

[Jordan Baker]

Barry, thanks for the info on how the seats were mounted in the C15Ta. Im not sure this is how the Wire-3 had them though. When I tried out my seats in the box the other night, they seemed to match up to the wheel well height pretty closely while mounted on the original seat sliders. I have been told the seat mounts appeared similar to the 8cwt wireless truck seat mounts.

refF85.jpg

Chris, your point about the tray under the table possibly being for another wireless set is very good. The table tops have a variety of different mounting holes and I believe it was intended that this truck could carry the WS9, WS11 and WS19 radios.


I tried out the two cable reels I have and they both fit perfectly on the threaded rod. The rod is 1/2" diameter carriage bolt. Im not sure if this was added by the end user or came from the factory. You can see that the smaller diameter reel does slid around on the rod. If this was in fact what it was for, Im wondering if a compression spring was on the rod between the mounting bar and the square plate. This would keep it away from hitting the bar.

[Jordan Baker]

The two right ups in the AEDB Design records books.

[Grant Bowker]

Looking around the Hammond barn today I found a seat riser similar to the one in the photo above. Bob states it came from David Moore following his F8 project. As shown it fits neatly under the cab 11/12 style seats. A photo of the seat (but not the riser) in Bob's C15A cab11 is included for comparison.

[Jordan Baker]

Hi Grant

Thanks for the photos. If possible could you provide the distance between the front and back holes for the surface that would be against the floor? I'm curious to see if this design would be close.

[Grant Bowker]

Originally Posted by Jordan Baker

If possible could you provide the distance between the front and back holes for the surface that would be against the floor? I'm curious to see if this design would be close.

I measured the center to center for the bolts holding the riser to the floor as 9-3/4 left to-right and 14-3/4 front to back. (assuming the higher edge of the riser is the front).

[Jordan Baker]

Grant, thanks for the measurments. I just went and checked on the box floor. Front to back it is 17-1/4". And side to side for the rear two holes is 11". The front hole is offset to the right of the left hole by 8".

[Jordan Baker]

Found the following in the C15a Illustrated Parts Manual.

Anyone know what would have been meant by the seat less trim?

Also, why a specific part number for the terminal strip? Anyone have one with a matching part #?

[Chris Suslowicz]

Originally Posted by Jordan Baker

Chris, your point about the tray under the table possibly being for another wireless set is very good. The table tops have a variety of different mounting holes and I believe it was intended that this truck could carry the WS9, WS11 and WS19 radios.


I tried out the two cable reels I have and they both fit perfectly on the threaded rod. The rod is 1/2" diameter carriage bolt. Im not sure if this was added by the end user or came from the factory. You can see that the smaller diameter reel does slid around on the rod. If this was in fact what it was for, Im wondering if a compression spring was on the rod between the mounting bar and the square plate. This would keep it away from hitting the bar.

I was thinking it would be very handy for the remote control units, and make things much simpler when reeling the wire in later. It may well be factory fitted (or a common user modification) because in a photograph further up the thread (discussing battery mounting) there is a what appears to be either the metal plate or a reel cheek and the shadow it's casting on the wall behind the table. (It's too tall to be a battery clamping bolt, I think.)

The WS19 'truck and ground station' kit list shows cable reels and (I think) a wooden drum of telephone cable, but no sign of cable reeling equipment, so either it was intended to be scrounged from the infantry signallers when required or there was something fitted to the vehicle that would do the job.

On batteries....

I have a fair selection of the later steel-cased batteries (6V, 40, 85 and 170 AH, and 12V 22 and 75 AH), plus wooden cased 16AH units in 6V and 10V, and will run a ruler over them so you can see if any of them will fit the tray under the table. The steel-cased batteries will be the same dimensions as the earlier wooden-cased ones to avoid having to modify the mounting trays.

(The individual cell inserts will also be identical, for manufacturing reasons!)

Chris.

[Chris Suslowicz]

Okay, as mentioned earlier, these are some reasonably accurate sizes for the batterias I can find (or have measurements of), for the purpose of deciding what was likely to go in the trays in a wireless truck:

6-volt

16 Amp Hour - I can't find this at present.
40 Amp Hour - 9.5" long, 5.5" wide, 10.5" high. 2-pin Niphan socket to front.
72 Amp Hour - 9.5" long, 7.25" wide, 10.5" high, wing-nut terminals.
85 Amp Hour - 12" long, 7" wide, 9.25" high, 2-pin Niphan socket to one end.
100/125 Amp Hour - 15.5 long, 7.5" wide, 12" high, wing-nut terminals
170 Amp Hour - 15.5" long, 7.5" wide, 13" high, wing-nut terminals

10-volt (Used with early wavemeters and Lamp, Daylight Signalling, Long Range.)

16 Amp Hour - 11.5" long, 5.5" wide, 9.25" high (missing) sockets for 4V and 10V on end.

12-volt

14 Amp Hour - not got, but for WS62 with 2 rubber sockets on front face.
22 Amp Hour - 12.5" long, 5.5" wide, 9.75" high. 2-pin Niphan socket on front.
75 Amp Hour - 15" long, 7.5" wide, 11" high. 2-pin Niphan socket on end.

The 16 AH batteries are made up of individual "Cell, Secondary, Portable, 2V 16AH" connected together with 10 SWG copper wire links. (Not the usual poured lead permanent connections) The 6V unit has a Niphan socket and the much older 'pair of brass socket contacts' in the end wall of the case - that system started in WW1 or before. The 10 volt unit only has the old type sockets, which are unfortunately missing from my box. (Pin diameters and spacings varied to protect equipment from mis-connection to the wrong voltage - unlike the WW2 "one niphan conector fits both 6 and 12V batteries"!)

Chris. (G8KGS)

[Bruce Parker (RIP)]

The HUW used two pair of these, and I expect so too did the WIRE-3 and WIRE-5.

100/125 Amp Hour - 15.5 long, 7.5" wide, 12" high, wing-nut terminals

[Chris Suslowicz]

Originally Posted by Bruce Parker

The HUW used two pair of these, and I expect so too did the WIRE-3 and WIRE-5.

100/125 Amp Hour - 15.5 long, 7.5" wide, 12" high, wing-nut terminals

That may depend on the radio fit. The WS 11 vehicle had 85 AH accumulators.

WS9 or WS52 may well have used something rather larger (though I have no idea what).

Ah... WftW Volume 2 quotes pairs of 6V 200AH batteries for the WS52 truck and ground station, also two pairs of 6V 170AH batteries for the ASSU Tentacle, and the command vehicles used quads of 170AH batteries in series parallel - 8 batteries per vehicle! (That's getting on for half a ton of batteries, because they're 99lb each unfilled!)

Chris.

[Bruce Parker (RIP)]

It is not dependent for the HUW. There are purpose built battery trays under the table for this size alone, and the trays can only fit in the established brackets on the floor so any other size would have to be placed with no way to secure them. The HUW was built from 1942 to 45 so the radio options would generally have been the 19 or 19HP (although 9 Mk1 and 29 were also fitted).

Originally Posted by Chris Suslowicz

That may depend on the radio fit. The WS 11 vehicle had 85 AH accumulators.

WS9 or WS52 may well have used something rather larger (though I have no idea what).

Ah... WftW Volume 2 quotes pairs of 6V 200AH batteries for the WS52 truck and ground station, also two pairs of 6V 170AH batteries for the ASSU Tentacle, and the command vehicles used quads of 170AH batteries in series parallel - 8 batteries per vehicle! (That's getting on for half a ton of batteries, because they're 99lb each unfilled!)

Chris.