chev portee

[Dick Wheat]

Hi Pete you are right about the question thats one of the two asked for me. Remember the story I told you. Should have put this in the last reply. Still learning. cheers Dick

[Dick Wheat]

Hi is it possible to find out if any of the units using the portee in the desert came back to fight in europe and what vehicles were they issued with. Dick

[David_Hayward (RIP)]

There must if you think about it, have been some Portees (2-Pounder) in England to be rebuilt. We know that converted 17-Pounder tractors were used in Italy, so logically were rebuilt in say Alexandria and then shipped to Sicily or mainland Italy. I assume that the MCC and Chevrolet Portees sold to New Zealand in 1944 came from England although they could have been sold direct from North Africa although that latter suggestion does not make sense. I would like to know if there was any evidence of vehicles being shipped from North Africa to England in late 1943 ready for the Normandy Invasion.

The only hard evidence I have of any vehicle being exported from the UK and repatriated is of crates of Morris-Commercial CD wreckers that were evidently exported at some time...to the Mid-East?....and then crated up and sent to Liverpool and uncrated with vehicle re-assembled by Ministry of Supply contractor. Does anyone have any evidence please that vehicles not sent to Italy were shipped back, crated or uncrated, to the UK in advance of D-Day?

[dodgenut]

Dick, chances are its the same Kevin Wheatcroft who (with his father) own & run Donington Park racing circuit here in the UK, you could contact him via their offices. I went to his farm once and he had quite a lot of military stuff.

hth
Rick.

[Gunner]

Hi All:

I thought I'd weigh in here as I'm a bit confused by some of the posts.

If I understand correctly, some 15 CWT were fitted as 17 Pounder tractors?

I question this based on 31 years practical experience in the artillery... the 15 CWT would make a poor tractor for the 17 pounder as you would end up with a combination where the gun almost outweighs the tractor, the brakes on the 15 CWT would be taxed with stopping the load, there would be little room for a full detachment and all the stores and ammunition.

Stranger things have happened but I suspect that a poor 15 CWT would near collapse from the load it would be asked to handle.

Six or seven strapping big Gunners @ 300 lbs apiece (soldier and kit) = 2100 lbs.

Gun Stores = 1000 lbs (tools, parts, cam nets, etc)

Ammunition (basic load of 50 rds mixed) = 2500 lbs

Tongue weight of 17 Pounder = 100 lbs

Vehicles stores = 300 lbs

So far, just rough order calculations mean we are asking the 15 CWT to haul just over 6000 lbs or damn near 60 CWT!

I haven't thought through the added complication of adding in the Trailer No. 27 (Limber) to this equation.

I certainly wouldn't want to ride in it (if I could find room!)

Cheers! Mike

[David_Hayward (RIP)]

1. The Chevrolet 2-Pounder Portees were based very largely on the Chevrolet Gun Tractor chassis; very largely! They were officially rated at 30-cwt, but we now know via MLU that the C-GT and its Ford brother were 3-tonners in military rating.

2. Those Portees still extant by the end of 1943, possibly early 1944 were either sold to the New Zealan Government and thereafter rebuilt it seems as G/S trucks, or rebuilt, either inthe UK or possibly even Alexandria, to:
a) 17-Pounder Gun Tractors, e.g. H 4594682, IWM PHOTO NA 19787 or
b) it now seems. G/S lorries which would have been I suggest still rated at 30-cwt. There were also C30 Light A/A tractors.

3. There were also C15 and F15 former VAN-6 trucks converted to 'TRUCK 15 CWT. 4 X 2 AA (20 M.M.)' . There is a photo of one in the wartime retrospective book AN ACCOUNT OF OUR STEWARDSHIP by Vauxhall Motors.

[Alex Blair (RIP)]

Originally posted by Gunner
Six or seven strapping big Gunners @ 300 lbs apiece (soldier and kit) = 2100 lbs.

Mike...

When you said....

I certainly wouldn't want to ride in it (if I could find room!)

If you cut off your head you could loose 20 pounds of ugly fat,and then you might fit....
Haha...Gotcha....!!!

[alleramilitaria]

the morris C-8 15CWT that i have was made to tow the 17lb gun. from the vets i have talked to it was a disaster, more trucks were crashed than were distroyed by hostile fire.

[David_Hayward (RIP)]

As you know, MCC C8 Portees were also converted as were some C8/P Predictors. to 17-pounder tractors. In addition some were converted to airportable versions for use with the 17-pounder airportable version.

[David_Hayward (RIP)]

Note # 43 cab..looks reasonable!

[Gunner]

Hi David;

I missed your post of 24 Aug. Thanks. that confirms in my mind that 30 and 60 Cwt vehs were used as tractors for the 17 pounder (other tha Texas Dave's Morrises).

Alex: 20 pounds... geez, you forgot the weight of my fancy Instructor-in-Gunnery hat; must add another five pounds at least!
Oh and by the way... go poke a weasel you know where!

Back to David: would it be an imposition to post the numbers off my Ford LAAT so I can figure out if it was an F30 upgrdaed to F60 or built as an F60 outright?

If you are collecting that sort of data I'll send the numbers from all our CMPs and MCPs.

Cheers! Mike

[David_Hayward (RIP)]

Post anything that might be of interest please!

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally posted by Hanno Spoelstra
See http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~Sbarnes/portee/chev.html for some pictures of surviving Chev Portees.

Link update: http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~Sbarnes/portee/