25 Pounder info needed.

[Private_collector]

That's right Rick, well spotted. Never seen another 25 pdr with vacuum brakes. Good sensible addition for a carriage that simply MUST NOT FAIL during service. I bet it got meticulous overhauling in addition to the upgrade.
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Mrs B got to sit in a Jeep while we were at the museum. I don't recall seeing this 'interactive exhibit' vehicle when I visited in September 2015, but it was a hurried visit that day.
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And this is what will happen to me if any more military vehicles find their way to our place.
That said, I have been given a 1941 Ford CMP which is yet to be retrieved. That hasn't been discussed as yet.

Did you get my PM about your wheels?

[Private_collector]

Shield is painted...just. The hot weather had not been kind to my stock of paint, and one part can had started to go off, so I was confined to another, smaller can. I try not to leave less than 1/4 of volume of any can (regardless of can size) in storage for longer than several weeks, but sometimes it's unavoidable. The off can was 5 months old. That's Queensland summer for you!
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I'm happy with the appearance of the 'rivets', as long as you don't look at the other side of the shield.
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The Illuminating apparatus bracket went on since I took these photos, but i couldn't be bothered cleaning myself up enough to get more bolts from the hardware shop in town, so no other brackets will go on in near future. No matter. Best for the paint to cure a bit more anyway, and it can do that out in the sunshine for a day or so.

[Phillip]

Tony, great work.

The illuminating apparatus for the No.7 Director is interesting and your pictures have solved a small conundrum for me.

I picked one up several years ago but it is slightly different from yours as it has an attachment that illuminates the graticule rather than one that fits in the replacement cover. (My director has the replacement cover but this was already fitted).

The wander light is dated 1941 so these must have actually been useful (unlike the No.5 illuminating apparatus which was reported to be useless)

[Private_collector]

Hello Phillip,

Mine is a no. 1 mark 1 I.A., not a no. 7. That may explain the differences you found. Personally, I don't have a clue how these things work, but would welcome an education. Great piece of equipment. I must get a battery and try mine, when I get a chance. I hope the voltage is written on the bulbs, because I don't even know that much.

There are still some available from where I bought mine, and at $40, I think that's pretty reasonable. Especially when you get the privilege of opening the storage box that has been sealed up since last checked in mid (in my case) 1980s. Not exactly comparable to finding the Dead Sea Scrolls, but a different kind of treasure, regardless.

[Phillip]

Hi Tony,

To clarify, the illuminating apparatus is an Australian No1. Mk1 and is designed to fit the Director No.7. Look up Nigel's website on the laying of guns for a detailed explanation of the process.

Maker on the wander light is Stromberg Carlson, dated 1941 however plug is Australian made. This suggests that the design was used proprietary parts and did not change much between 1940's and the mid 1950's. The box is the same as a field telephone!

I'm curious to see what the difference is between the graticle lights.

[Private_collector]

Cheers Phillip!

If you tell me which bit is the graticle light, I can photograph it close up
for you, and/or take measurements.

[Private_collector]

The shield buildup is nearly finished.
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Just a couple more things to be done, including the second color for one of the signs, brush painting all the bolts (both sides, two or more coats), finishing the leather strap for the canvas bag holder, and finishing the brackets for the slide rule and canvas cover. Now that i think about it, there's quite a bit more to do, damn it! At least I got all the brackets and instruments installed on the lower shield.
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As usual, I started to run out of daylight before I got around to installing the upper shield, so I thought I better not attempt it today. It's not a job I can rush, and it will be a two person job, so it can wait until next weekend.
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Had an interesting time with this 9th Division sign, when I did the black background on Friday afternoon. I have a thing for symmetry, so alignment is important. I used a large carpenters square to get the position correct, then applied tabs of low tack tape to mark where the edges would be. Alas, at some stage the square had moved between applying two pieces of the aligning masking tape. Not realising this, everything I did from that point on was WRONG! This was only confirmed after the paint was applied and all the masking materials removed. I couldn't believe how such a stupid mistake could be made. I always recheck alignment again after final position is marked......except that one occasion. As a resuly, I had to wait for the paint to dry, rub back all the edges, then remask (after measuring multiple times) and repaint again, slightly larger this time. The platypus and boomerang in white, were very much easier. It's not perfect, but I chose to go with higher detail of the design, which meant the lines were not quite as 'clean' as would have been if I accepted image with less detail. I can live with that. The platypus would have lost his facial detail if I smoothed the image any further!

Still looking for an illuminating apparatus box! Anything considered!!!! Seriously.
The space where the box should be, just looks so bare without that piece in place.

Also, I have another, more exciting, piece of news to tell. I don't think I'll go into that until I can take and upload photos at same time. Sorry!

[CWO (ret) Gilles Aubé]

I have acquired the same unit do we know what batteries voltage we need ?
Gilles

Originally Posted by Phillip

Tony, great work.

The illuminating apparatus for the No.7 Director is interesting and your pictures have solved a small conundrum for me.

I picked one up several years ago but it is slightly different from yours as it has an attachment that illuminates the graticule rather than one that fits in the replacement cover. (My director has the replacement cover but this was already fitted).

The wander light is dated 1941 so these must have actually been useful (unlike the No.5 illuminating apparatus which was reported to be useless)

[Niels V]

https://www.bva-auctions.com/auction...r.pageNumber=8
you probably want to take look here

[Private_collector]

Good evening,
It's been one hell of a long time since I've been active here, and although this year hasn't been great for me, it hasn't been great for most of the world either, so I won't moan. Suffice to say I'm still alive! Who was it that said "rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated!"?

Although I've not felt up to working on any heavy project, I have been tarting up an old Land Rover Defender that belonged to my Wife's late Father. We've taken it from a tray back ute, to an enclosed canopy for reasonably comfortable overnight camping. Naturally, it's camo green in color, and has a decidedly 'retro' appearance. Have been away for a couple of brief trips in recent months, with hopefully many more in the future. The other thing I've been amusing myself with, and I can't really explain why I got into this, is the building of movie props. Most significantly, Dr Who props! I built a full scale Dalek that was to be my costume at a work function which sadly had to be cancelled, thanks to COVID-19. So now I have an almost 6ft tall Ironside Dalek sitting in my dining room. I built it on an electric wheelchair base, and it's driven from inside. Obviously, no Dalek is complete without that iconic voice, so it won't come as a surprise that mine has that too.

In the past couple of years I've been in the workshop (where my CMP and 25pr build are waiting) about 5 times in total. Two of those were in the past couple of months, after having the roof replaced due to hail damage. None of those times were to actually do anything, but it is my plan to return to the 25pr in particular, fairly soon. Just haven't had the stamina to do anything that is strenuous. The CMP won't get a look in for a while yet, but after being in hospital recently, I came out more determined to get the 25pr back on track. Then I got a huge motivation boost by stumbling onto a particular part I've been searching for, for years.

After exhausting all avenues for a correct No. 5, Illuminating Apparatus, I found one advertised just a few hours away from my place. It was listed without description to it's purpose, and it appeared the seller did not know it was 25pr application. He obviously knew WHAT it was, hence the high price he was asking, but I suspect it would have been much more if he knew how rare it was. When I got it home, I opened it up and found it was absolutely complete, with exception of a battery. Even the spare parts were in their boxes labelled "A" & "B". After all these years I couldn't believe I finally had one, AND it was complete. I've just finished 2 weeks of renovating, to as good a condition as possible, including color change to match my shield. See attached photos, if I can remember how to upload them. Let me know if it hasn't worked! I will endeavour to add the 'before' photos now, and the 'after' ones in next post.

[Private_collector]

Some photos after I refurbished the unit.
Ended up having to make one of the labels inside lid of the spare part boxes (box A) from what was readable on the old, unsalvagable one. A quick soak in strong tea/coffee mixture aged the paper a little!

Now, if anyone has a set of trails for sale, we need to talk!!!

[rob love]

Great to hear from you again, and that you are on the top side of the grass.



What a great find. Certainly it is one of the holy grails for a 25 pounder, and on my short list of 25 pdr items to find yet. I do have the apparatus, but not the container. Your photos will go a long way towards making one if I have to go that route.



I have a spare 25 pdr carriage here, but postage to your end of the world would be ridiculous.