Surrey BC or Ardenne Forest?

[jdmcm]

Went to bed last night in warm and green Surrey BC, woke up in the Ardenne forest circa 1944...scuttlebutt on the line is if it keeps snowing Patton is going to make us whitewash the tanks

[jdmcm]

Ok what started as a little joke has now become very much like winter...ok rest of Canada...we get it! Very Funny! you can stop with the snow and cold now...please...trying to get the next one started and this aint helping!

[Wayne Hingley]

Ha... (sorry John). I was thinking of your first photo today when I saw the weather update for the Lr. Mainland... and how its gone on for several days. Maybe winter will be more than just rain for you this year. I have some snowshoes for sale.

[rob love]

http://weather.gc.ca/city/pages/mb-52_metric_e.html

[jdmcm]

Ok Rob wins!

[Marc van Aalderen]

+8 Celsius here!!

[rob love]

Originally Posted by jdmcm

Ok Rob wins!

If this is winning I would prefer to lose.

Shouldn't complain I guess.....it has warmed up to a balmy -21°C now. But if it gets much colder I am going to start wearing my parka instead of just the fleece hoodie.

[Colin Alford]

While we are not dealing with the cold weather that the prairies are experiencing right now, the approx 2 feet of snow that fell in the last few days makes for a good test of one's AFV recognition skills.

Colin

[David Herbert]

It's a Grizzly. And I did use my amazing AFV recognition skills as I have no idea where it is plinthed and don't think I have seen it before. So part two of this quiz it to give its location.

David

[Ed Storey]

The location is the CFB Borden outdoor rust collection. Canada's continuing answer to no funds, no direction, no plan, no interest and a never ending legacy of parking vehicles on outdoor display.

[Colin Alford]

Hi David,

Yes, they are in CFB Borden. I did an internet search and here is a link to some pictures in decent weather:

http://preservedtanks.com/Image.aspx...ID=2411&Page=6

The first 2 images are of the same vehicle but there is a significant difference to the vehicle in the 3rd image.

John, hopefully I haven't highjacked your thread too bad, I think that we have all been experiencing some significant winter weather in this vast country of ours.

Colin

[jdmcm]

Ahhh....no worries Colin, turns out there is no way to control the weather!

[Alex van de Wetering]

John...no Snow in Bastogne, last Sunday.......

Alex

p.s. I am sure you know....this is the Brussels Army museum Jumbo, not the real "Cobra King". I think original Cobra King is being restored in the US.....and probably finished in the meantime(?)

[jdmcm]

Hi Alex

yes the real Cobra King got a great cosmetic restoration at the Patton museum and was shipped to Ft. Benning in 2011, where I believe it languishes in storage away from the public eye.

Even though it is not the "real" Cobra King, it is still one of I think 8 out of 254 left in the world. So great to see that Jumbo all together in one piece, hope ours turns out half as nice as that one some day!

John

[Alex van de Wetering]

I agree John. A few years ago they pulled this Jumbo, behind a Leopard ARV, through the main street in Bastogne for the remembrance!

Thanks for the update on the real Cobra King.

Alex

[maple_leaf_eh]

There is a long neglected 76.2mm Sherman in Quebec sitting outside a Legion. One FB group asked, how much work and cost would be required to put a coat of paint on it? So, as the man who most recently painted a Sherman in Canada, what are your estimates?

Nothing planned or offered to the Branch or even discussed outside FB, just round figures for time, consumables, primer and finish paint.

[jdmcm]

Seeing as my paint job is temporary and the tank will one day be sandblasted before real restoration begins I didn't bother priming. My advice would be to use the same BEHR house paint, I used 2 gallons, and to pressure wash and clean the tank as best you can, scrape off any flaking paint and paint right over the existing paint, that paint will be a fine base for the paint, though it wouldn't hurt to test a not too obvious spot first to ensure the paint color is what you are after as well as to see if there is any reaction to the paint. I just used a cheapo Wagner electric sprayer. If it ever becomes spring here, and I have my doubts, I will let you know how the paint is holding up and if it is holding its color. The whole paint job took about two hours by myself. Nice thing was I gave the lady at home depot a sample of a part which had a nice OD finish on it and she matched it up in no time. BEHR is designed for outside so it has a great UV protection rating, unlike the real Milspec paint which goes chalky so very fast. Once the tank is sandblasted and restored, it will get a coat of Dupont Imron, much more expensive, harder and more dangerous to work with but tough as nails and should last forever. So hard costs were $200 and change for paint, $100 for the electric sprayer, and my time...which is priceless!