Blitz Chassis and Truck info wanted

[Keith Webb]

Originally Posted by Jason Linders

Were is the closses one located.

There are a couple in Qld but I don't have any details of where they are. This one belongs to Len Watkins, just out of Sydney.

[Jason Linders]

Hi Keith so the main diff between the no8 and no9 tractors for the rear are,the roof height no9 higher,the rear door single on no8 and the spare wheel carrier on the RH side of the no9 and lockerbox's on no8.
the extra side doors (rear seat) are they all the same dual cab and ford and chev.

[Jason Linders]

This is the engine number but what is the go with the number 6 it looks like number 6 and 7 mixed

[Cameron Reed]

Hi Jason, just curious does your engine have 21 head studs or 24.
I think that mine is a Ford pilot but not for certain, but the engine no is quite similar

[Jason Linders]

Hi Cameron mine has 21 head studs

[Jason Linders]

Is this correct : the main diff between the no8 and no9 tractors for the rear are,the roof height no9 higher,the rear door single on no8 and the spare wheel carrier on the RH side of the no9 and lockerbox's on no8.
the extra side doors (rear seat) are they all the same dual cab and ford and chev, any help would be great.

[Keith Webb]

Originally Posted by Jason Linders

Is this correct : the main diff between the no8 and no9 tractors for the rear are,the roof height no9 higher,the rear door single on no8 and the spare wheel carrier on the RH side of the no9 and lockerbox's on no8.
the extra side doors (rear seat) are they all the same dual cab and ford and chev, any help would be great.

That's it in a nutshell Jason. The No9 has a pair of doors on the rear and is designed to carry a spare inside with the ramp stowed on the RH outside.
The No8 also has a stowage box on the RR outside for the side curtains while the No9 has a canvas bag behind the crew seats. The No8 also has a lot more internal stowage.

[Jason Linders]

Thanks for that Keith
are the crew side doors the same chev,ford and dual cabs

[Keith Webb]

Originally Posted by Jason Linders

Thanks for that Keith
are the crew side doors the same chev,ford and dual cabs

Yes, but they are either Chev or Ford (there are differences) and are made by cutting and modifying front doors.

[Jason Linders]

Ok thanks for that Keith, so if i have chev doors they will not be right or fit then.

[Keith Webb]

They are interchangeable but the GM-H manufactured doors have a different pattern on the inside.

[Jason Linders]

Hi how do i know what ford flathead v8 i have, so i can start to get the engine gasket kit and parts required would it be a 39,40,42 engine

Thanks

[Keith Webb]

Originally Posted by Jason Linders

Hi how do i know what ford flate head v8 i have, so i can start to get the engine gasket kit and parts required would it be a 39,40,42 engine

Thanks

It would seem from the earlier post by Cameron you may have a post war 21 stud Pilot engine which I think was the 3 1/16 bore 85 BHP version rather than the CMP Mercury engine of 95 BHP.

These sites may be useful:
http://www.telusplanet.net/public/bboogaar/engine.htm

http://www.crankshaftcoalition.com/w...tify_a_Ford_V8

[Jason Linders]

Thanks for the info Keith.

[Lynn Eades]

Jason, my guess is that the "BB" that starts the serial number, means that the motor was built in Dagenham. The only thing I base that on,(50years later) was that I had an English assembled Ford Escort. The serial number also started "BB", which according to the Ford parts book meant that the car was built at the Dagenham Ford factory. This would need to be verified.
The 6 and 7 thing. I imagine the person doing the stamping picked up the wrong punch (he / she had just used the 7) The 7 is light, and the 6 is heavier.

[Jason Linders]

Thanks Lynn for the info

[Lynn Eades]

Jason, If it was up to me, I'd ditch it, and go for a 3 3/16" bore 24 stud motor. They are all expensive to do up, and the higher H.P. motor will cost about the same money (you get more bang for your buck!). There is a lot of info available on the net and in various recon books. Have a hunt around on the net and learn what you can before you spend any $$. Some of the U.S parts companies have some very good info on their sites.
If your motor is british (relatively speaking they are not common) the ring gear and starter are not interchangeable with the U.S. or Canadian motors. There will be other things as well.
There are no dumb questions, and there are some pretty clued up people on this forum (they just don't speak up as quick as me) Tony Smith is one local who knows his way around the FHV8.
Good luck.

[Jason Linders]

Thanks for that Lynn more info can never be enough and how hard are the 24 stud engines going to be to find.

[Cameron Reed]

Hi Jason, my guess is it is a pilot or it could well be out of a pommy truck (thames) or the like, although i'm no expert on these things. I've have spent a bit of time trying to identify it any better, thats why i was curious when you posted your engine no, as it doesn't marry up with any either yankee or canadian models. The best I have come up with from speaking to different people is they seemed to be made up of various parts left over from post war, sort of based on the late '37 early'38 american motor. Keith is correct 3 1/16" bore, I put rings and bearings in it and had a bit of a hard time finding suitable bits as it was .045" over(which is aparently a common size for them)and the big end bearings are different to everything else. The use a bearing that is flanged on one side only and is a individual insert type with a lock tang, same as the BA motors not the fully floaters (ie two rods on the one wide bearing).
You could try a company called Yesteryear ford in Burgess rd Bayswater Vic as he was the only place that I had any success.
Either way if its a runner it'll get you going till you can find a suitable replacement with time and dollars, it wont give you wiplash but it gets you going mine will cruise on the flat comfy at about 75km or 80 if you want to push it along a little it's done 2500 miles now in the last 12 months and are currently building a replacement 99 block as dollars become available
Water pumps are the same as car ones single pulley you can get the later type with a sealed bearing instead of a bush, couldn't see any reason why you couldn't use the truck twin pulley type, I didn't in my case as I run an alternator and drive the fan of the extra front pulley on the crank ( didn't like the idea of that big heavy steel fan of the little alternator shaft) although it probably wouldn't fail.

[Jason Linders]

Thanks for that Cameron that helps a bit it might be a great idea to use for now and track down a 24 bolt later on or if one pops up without removing a leg for one.

Thanks for the replies and help

[Jason Linders]

found a Rebuilt tag on rh side of engine
from Ford Motor Company of Australia
Engine no:9850
AV2R
Model:78E

(CYL BLOCK)
CYL BORE:STD

(CRANKSHAT)
MAINS: .020
PINS: .030
CONROD:E21A

So does this mean its not a UK bitza Engine

[Jason Linders]

Here are the "unit mark" on the left side front, hard to see but you can see the
boomerang and it looks like the buffalo to me and some pics of the paint layers looks like sand under the two differant colour greens

[Keith Webb]

Originally Posted by Jason Linders

Here are the "unit mark" on the left side front, hard to see but you can see the
boomerang and it looks like the buffalo to me and some pics of the paint layers looks like sand under the two differant colour greens

The top coat (as can be seen on the body) is deep bronze green, then under that it would have had khaki with a disruptive pattern of something like light stone or light earth. Light stone is a sandy colour.

[Jason Linders]

Hi Keith i only put up the colour because their was a earlier message from Tony asking if i had the same colours on my truck as he had on his khaki green /light stone
To me it looks like the buffalo can anyone confirm it for me

Thanks

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Jason Linders

To me it looks like the buffalo can anyone confirm it for me

Yes it's definitely the water buffalo Jason, well done. Looks like you may reveal more if you rub very gently with say 400 wet and dry (use wet). Is there any trace of the tractor number on the other side? It would have looked like the pic below. I'll post some pics of the various colours you'll find on your FGT, there are at least seven.

[Jason Linders]

I will see how i go and see whats their

[Tony Wheeler]

Here's some work I did on my door last year Jason, unfortunately you have rather less area to work with! However I notice you've found the pale green colour, which appears to be some kind of gloss repaint prior to DBG. It's an entirely different formulation to the matt paint coats, you'll find it goes quite soft when rubbed back wet, and tends to peel and tear instead of powdering, much like cheap plastic house paint. The pale grey colour you're seeing underneath is heavily oxidized, you'll find it's considerably darker when rubbed back slightly. The reddish colour you've found underneath is yet to appear on the door, which would seem to indicate a disruptive pattern. Likewise the sandy colour only appears in certain areas on the door. If you work carefully in this area you should find the factory camo underneath, however I don't know what part of the vehicle you've photographed so I can't say whether you'll find Light Stone pattern.













Evidently these two NT Force FGTs had a rather unusual camo scheme applied in service, and it's interesting to speculate on what it may have been. Following are the camo schemes approved in January '42:

Three-Tone
1. Light Stone N. Light Brown P. Khaki Green J.
2. Light Green H. Khaki Green J. Black U.
3. Light Stone N. Light Green H. Khaki Green J.
4. Light Stone N. Khaki Green J. Dark Green M.
5. Light Stone N. Light Brown P. Basalt Red S.*

Two-Tone
6. Light Stone N. Khaki Green J.*
7. Light Brown P. Khaki Green J.*

Instructions stated: "The colour combination selected should approximate to the colours of the country in which it is expected the vehicle will operate......For Australian Central and Northern Areas use Set No.5 or 7."

There are many twists and turns to the story, but it's possible the two disruptive colours we're seeing are Light Brown and Basalt Red, used with the greyish colour no. 6 in pic 3, instead of the prescribed Light Stone of Set No.5, which as a Middle East colour had been found too light for anything but desert use and discontinued. Such a combination would approximate Set No.5 as originally conceived, adapted with the benefit of experience in the field. As for colour 6 there are several possibilities, including approved colours such as Slate Grey or conceivably Darwin Stone....whatever that may be! Of course, a further range of possibilities exist in relation to the other two colours, for example the sandy colour may be Warm Sand, which was added to the range in September '42.

I'd be interested to learn more about camo schemes used in Central/Northern Australia, as they may be worth considering instead of factory camo. Certainly they'd be more authentic on these NT Force FGTs.

[Jason Linders]

Hi Tony very interesting read so what colour should they be
camo and is their any colour pics of what they should look like in camo
most of the paint has gone surface rust has covered most of the truck but
i will see what i can uncover anyway