Quote:
Originally Posted by maple_leaf_eh
Quote:
Originally Posted by cantankrs
The -C4 cylinders sure look different to the -EC2 and -C1's that were in many of the Lee's/Grant's.
Also back in an earlier post I see the suspension gudgeon's drop down once the caps have been removed in that style of suspension bogie - a significant improvement regarding serviceablility compared to the early US M3 Medium tank bogies.
Great work Jesse!
Regards
Alex
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translation please |
Terry,
Early in this thread is a RHS pic of Jesse's Sexton. It shows track and roadwheels off and suspension units dismantled but with the core suspension housings or stations still bolted to the hull. They appear to have been based on roughly mid-production Sherman design - or maybe they weren't. But on the underside of the stations are caps that retain the suspension arm gudgeon pins to the station housing. So these caps can be undone and levered downward off the bottom (after the volute springs have been compressed first!) presumably allowing the gudgeons still through the suspension arms to be knocked downward and out, followed by the springs and spring base. Maybe Jesse needs to verify or correct what I've written about that.
Whereas on the M3 Medium tanks instead of being capped on the underside of the station, they had a cotter bolt that ran through a fore-and-aft hole. Maybe in service there wasn't a huge difference if they were looked after but 60 years later there is considerable difficulty getting the old units apart. The
whole unit has to be placed in a hydraulic press of around 100ton capacity. Maybe Jesse only had to place the suspension arms with pin in a press. I may be wrong
The Australian Army seemed to have replaced many if not all of the original suspension units with something similar to this later style, on the twin diesel M3 Mediums that they retained in service postwar.
Regards
Alex