Canadian Dodge, 3 ton 4x2

[Lang]

Can't find Dodge photos with a quick search but this is an Army Chev which along with the Fords and Dodges formed the backbone of the farm fleets in the late 40's and 50's.

Photo split in two for some reason.

Wheat.jpg wheat2.jpg

[Kevin Goodwin]

Thanks for posting the pictures Lang they will prove really useful.
Ian, I was aware that the truck had been used primarily for the Beet season and that the 'greedy boards' were not standard fitment together with the tipping gear, however I was not sure if the main body was the original that had been modified for its new role, as it turns out the original body has long since gone! I must have been very fortunate to acquire the truck if yourself/others were aware of its existence, are you able to throw any light on its history?
Kevin

[Lang]

Just looking at the Dodge photos in the parts manual. Similar to other British vehicles it only has one blackout light and no headlights. You can see the Australian Dodges from the same build had full headlights.

Even the bloke who decided to do this could not in his wildest dreams have believed an army vehicle would spend all or even most of its life in a situation requiring night concealment from the enemy.

I wonder how many vehicles were wrecked and how many people died because of this stupidity. I think the more common single full headlight (maybe a blackout light with cover removed) often seen in photos of CMP's was possibly more dangerous as on coming traffic did not know how wide - is it a truck, jeep or motorcycle - and on which side of the road you were.

The American system of both full and blackout lights was much more versatile and safer. Only a few wrecked vehicles because of lack of vision or collision would have paid for proper lights for the whole fleet and allowed trucks to travel much safer, faster and more efficiently in non-combat situations.

[motto]

Originally Posted by Lang

Just looking at the Dodge photos in the parts manual. Similar to other British vehicles it only has one blackout light and no headlights. You can see the Australian Dodges from the same build had full headlights.
I think the more common single full headlight (maybe a blackout light with cover removed) often seen in photos of CMP's was possibly more dangerous as on coming traffic did not know how wide - is it a truck, jeep or motorcycle - and on which side of the road you were and safer..

Because of the single headlight-oncoming vehicle situation described I have wired my vehicles to have the parking lights stay on with headlights on in case I have a headlight go out.
I also now instal headlights that have an integral parking bulb so as to do away with the need for dedicated lights cluttering the front of the vehicle.
Many years ago I had a cousin ride his motorcycle into the front of an oncoming vehicle with a headlight out and miraculously live to tell the tale.
It may have been this event that alerted me to the possibility.

David

[Mike Cecil]

The reason the immediate post-war civilian fleet had so many ex-military MC types, including the Dodge D60L, plus small numbers of British military types such as WOT, and Bedford QLs, was that these were the vehicles that the military disposed of first and in the largest numbers, while retaining large numbers of the US Military Pattern and Canadian Military Pattern vehicles.

Jeeps were disposed of because of the very large numbers involved: the Army did not see a need to retain (store & maintain) some 12 or 13,000 of them for the post-war force. Same for motorcycles: once the Harley Davidson was decided upon as the immediate post-war motorcycle, all the thousands of BSA M20s, etc, were turned over to the Commonwealth Disposals Commission.

Mike

[motto]

The MC trucks released from military service as a result of downsizing would have added to a large number already in civilian hands imported during the war for essential civilian service. The so called Lend/Lease vehicles.
Altogether these vehicles made the post war boom possible and their contribution is barely recognised. In my youth there were dead WW2 era Chevs laying all over the country. (The sunglasses I wore filtered out other types).

David

[Kevin Goodwin]

I came across these pictures in a magazine on classic commercials by chance at the weekend.
Kevin

[Mike K]

Originally Posted by Mike Cecil

The reason the immediate post-war civilian fleet had so many ex-military MC types, including the Dodge D60L, plus small numbers of British military types such as WOT, and Bedford QLs, was that these were the vehicles that the military disposed of first and in the largest numbers, while retaining large numbers of the US Military Pattern and Canadian Military Pattern vehicles.


Mike

They were disposing of some British types before the war had finished . The Morris PU here was civilian registered in July 45, I have the rego papers .

An old timer at Whittlesea told me his dad bought a Morris CS8 from the local Morris dealership a few months before the war finished, he took it to the local cop to be registered but because it had no spare wheel ( run flat tyres ) the cop would not register it . So back to the dealers where a complete CS8 was broken up , just to get a spare wheel ! The old chap offered me the rear axle housing from the donor CS8 as it was still on the farm . He said his father traded in the Morris in 1952 for a new Land Rover , this was after two trips to Sydney in the Morris at 40mph towing a horse float !


Colin Anderson told me the Shepparton Morris dealers were selling CS8's just after the war. I'd like to find some newspaper adverts but so far none have been found . Colin said his neighbour had a CS8 with a extended chassis and he offered it to Colin, but Colin said to me " I thought it was too antique looking "