VICKERS MK6B's resto

[Mike Cecil]

Hi Colin,

The No.7 set was British and only a few were built according to WftW, Vol1, which goes on to say they were fitted to Light Tank Mks 2, 2A, 3 and 5, so presumably not fitted to Mk6A.

The WS7 was pretty much a failure, with production ceasing in 1936 - a year before the few tanks Australia ordered arrived in Australia. Plus newspaper reports of the time mention that the tanks were to be fitted with wireless communications in Australia. For a time, they were certainly equipped with a voice tube between the CC and driver (which evidently didn't work because of the noise of the engine in the driver's ear!) So I think you can discount the No.7 ever getting to Australia: Mike Kelly, what do you think?

The No.9 set was the one that superseded the No.7. Complete it weighed 192 pounds, and measured 41ins long, 16 ins high, 12ins deep. According to WftW, these sets were fitted into the turret bulge of the Mk6A in the UK, with the two 6V batteries in the well of the turret turntable. The WS 109 was the version made in Australia. The dims were 16.5ins H x 25.5 ins L x 10ins deep for the set, and 13.5 x 14.5 x 8.5 for the power supply, the whole unit weighing 201 pounds. It went into production in late 1939. (WftW V1)

An Australian-built set would be the more likely, I would think, but unless you can locate some images or paperwork to show exactly which set was in use in the Australian Mk6A, this is all conjecture boiling down to the 'most likely'.

Mike