Armour Dreams

[Jonathan Moore]

Evening All,

I have managed to get the drive shaft cover finished. It took two attempts, as I decided that although the first design looked more in keeping with the original, it would have been a right pain had I had to take it apart for maintenance.

Jon

[Jonathan Moore]

Evening,

I have achieved bugger all this week, part from adding the floor supports in the crew compartment. The floor is raised to allow for services and a rotary connection that attaches to the commanders chair support.

Jon

[Jonathan Moore]

This is a long shot I know but I am looking for details, pictures of the munitions storage in a late Panzer ll Ausf C. I have a copy of the storage plan or Beladeplan, dated 1038 but that shows the storage for saddle drum magazines for the MG34 and not the canvas Gurtsacs as used in the later versions.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I have emailed the Bovington Tank museum and I am awaiting a response.



Jon

[Jonathan Moore]

Afternoon All,

This is going to be quite long update so sorry in advance.

I have finished the floor in the crew compartment and the battery box and yes I know the tread plate is the wrong pattern but I couldn't find any of the right patterned stuff.

[Jonathan Moore]

The next job was the petrol tank cover, on the original this was an armoured cover welded to the hull, access to the fuel tank would have been from under the tank via a removable plate in the floor. To remove the cover in mine, you would have to lift the top of the hull but I have added inspection, maintenance covers for the fuel sender and the fuel pump. I have also made the cover in two parts so that I can gain access to the engine electrics without having to remove the whole cover.

Jon

[Jonathan Moore]

I decided that I wanted to get the gearbox working so that I could connect the drive chain up and check my theories but I am a bit fed up with doing temporary works and then having to go back and do it properly, it feels like I am doing the job twice. Although the whole vehicle will have to be disassembled for painting I have decided to finish any areas that I feel confident will not have to be reengineered. I have spent hours studying photos trying to make sense of items and their position within the hull, interesting but some times frustrating.

To the right of the driver there are two control panels, a larger one that I have shown before and that has now been bolted in place and a smaller one bolted to the side of the hull. The small panel, contains a water temperature gauge, oil pressure gauge and the light switch.

[Jonathan Moore]

The throttle needed connecting up to the engine and as you can see from the pictures above, it runs just below the main control panel, through conduit and through the engine bulkhead to the throttle body.
You can see the conduit in the picture below, it is bolted to the top of the gearbox, eventually, when I have recreated a dummy box in mine.

[Jonathan Moore]

I have installed a battery isolator switch and routed the wires as per the original vehicle.