aluminum 15cwt

[Bruce MacMillan]

I've just received a couple of hundred pages of the policy and provisioning of the wireless set 19 to the Canadian Army Overseas. One item of interest is a memo concerning a test in a new aluminum 15cwt house type vehicle. A look through Gregg's Canadian Military Vehicle Series only shows steel body houses. Was this only a prototype or did the wireless vans convert to aluminum?

[Grant Bowker]

As I understand it (based on the AEDB Design Record), the 2K1 body used for the 15cwt Wire-5 trucks was aluminum skin on steel frame. I've spoken with a couple of people who either own or have examined such bodies. From memory the skin is described as "16 or 18 guage, half-hard aluminum", riveted to the steel frame. Is there a chance that you can either post the memo you refer to (or if it's in electronic form e-mail me a copy)?

[Bruce MacMillan]

Here is the memo. It is dated June/44 and it sounds like they are waiting for delivery of the new truck. There is a followup memo a month later saying they are ready to ship to England as soon as arrangements can be made. From this I guess I can assume the production of the aluminum wireless trucks began summer of 44.

[Grant Bowker]

Interesting. If I'm correct that they are talking about the 2K1 body it gives a "not in use before" date, which in turn should permit better guesses of which truck features should be expected with the body (leaving out considerations of using up old stock for production and field modifications once the truck was in use).

[sapper740]

Originally posted by Grant Bowker
From memory the skin is described as "16 or 18 guage, half-hard aluminum", riveted to the steel frame.

Sounds like a perfect recipe for electrolysis: bond two dissimilar metals together, apply an electric current (freely supplied during transmission) and watch the corrosion grow.