Carriers and 2" mortars

[Michael R.]

You may find four different mounts and brackets for the 2" mortar series found on MK-I/MK-I*, MK-II/MK-II*, T16 and Windsor carriers. The 2" mortar does not appear to have been mounted on the Canadian production tank hunter or factory produced 3" mortar carriers, each using the MK-I* hull. The 2" mortar brackets were designed to fit different mortar base plates. For example, the MK-8 and MK-8* 2" mortar base for airborne and infantry being dissimilar to the MK-2* and MK-7 2" mortar base.

The MK-I* Universal Carrier vehicle series introduced a Canadian produced mount fitted to the top plate of the engine cover. That also required reworking the firing rest into a collapsible position. The CAMT as posted by Jordan, as well as the Canadian Army Modification Bulletin L-1 of 15 Nov 43 refer in varying details. The factory produced mount for the MK-I* is CTL-739-SA, the modified firing rest assembly is CTL-1562-A.

The MK-II/MK-II* and converted MK-I/MK-I* series Universal carriers had two different style factory produced brackets attached to the gunner front left upper protection plate. The late 1944/early 1945 MK-II* bracket was also factory mounted using a composite belting material sandwiched between the armour and an additional plate on the exterior of the hull, beneath the clearance lamp. Similar factory brackets are observed in both models of the Windsor carrier as well as the first model T16.

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