[Philliphastings]

Thanks for posting these pics up. It's very frustrating not being able to post up images of what I'm involved in.

Nungarin was the site of 5 Base Ordnance Depot during WW2 and was built so far inland as to be out of range of Japanese carrier borne aircraft. At that early stage of the war our western Coast was under sporadic attack by japanese Naval air forces and even visited by small parties of Japanese soldiers on reconassance. There were at the peak of activity 4000 troops stationed here (600 female personnel). There were vast equipment warehouses, a small hospital, fire station power station Tank and armoured vehicle rebuild production lines and a vehicle park containing more than 2000 wheeled and tracked military vehicles! The museum is housed in the original Wheeled vehicle workshop building and it is considered one of the larget standing timber buildings of it's type in the southern hemisphere.

The first two pics show the museum's M3 White Scout Car under restoration. I started the tear-down two years ago, safe in the belief that apart from having to re-manufacture the armour sides at least it was driveable. Well we were wrong and it is now having a full (albeit slow) ground up rebuild - and still need the rear armour remanufactured. We have the steel plate on hand but persistent problems with my plasma cutter misbehaving have seen a big delay in completing it.

Nest image is of the Museum's Australian Dingo Scout Car. It's nearly complete and was running and driven into it's current location. I have been adding small fitting and it will soon receive a set of appropriate tactical markings and hopefully a No19 Wireless set. The 18' tyres on this machine are completely shot and crumble to the touch but no replacements are available anywhere that we can find.

Finally for th first series is the Museum's unrestored M3 Stuart Light tank. It was used, in conjunction with a General Grant Tank for land clearing on a local farm and eventually given to the museum more or less complete about 16 years ago. Over the years though a number of small and vital parts have been removed and 'lost' so it's not likely to be going again anytime soon. I have spent many hours trying to get the turret free and have managed to swing it only about 2 or 3 feet before it jams solid. A heritage appraisal has deemed the vehicle should not be restored as such but preserved in this 'off the farm' condition. I'm not sure how I feel about that...

Cheers

Phill