VICKERS MK6B's resto

[colin jones]

I have to say that i'm ever so lucky that the gears, shafts and other steel components are in such remarkable condition. The top and bell housing are pitted but again still in good usable condition.

[David Dunlop]

Looks fantastic, Colin. Well done!

Where applicable, any idea what type of gasket materials were used on the original? I am assuming you will go with modern equivalents where needed.

Be interesting to see how quiet she is when finally running. That new steel case may absorb more sound than the original.

David

[colin jones]

Thankyou Dave, I will use modern gasket material as the old ones were paper. I would think it should be very quite when running.
An interesting one came up today. As you can see by the photo, there are two of these lever stands that bolt to the side of the gearbox. They are tapered on 3 sides but straight on the other. I sat there for awhile and tried to think how can I do that on the lathe. Then it struck me.
Any ideas?

[Howard]

Originally Posted by colin jones

...I sat there for awhile and tried to think how can I do that on the lathe. Then it struck me.
Any ideas?

Call Colin Jones. He's good with that sort of thing.

[hrpearce]

My wild guess is; mount it in the lathe off centre by the amount of the taper?

[colin jones]

The box is totally finished including the dipstick entry tube and it's all primed and ready for a coat or two of silver enamel.
I'll give you the answer to the above after I give everyone a bit of time to put their thinking caps on and yes, I did do mine on the lathe.

[Chris Collins]

I'd say you machined the cone out of a solid cylinder then cut the flat faces after laying it on its now tapered side. as long as the cone stays oriented so the two faces remain perfectly parallel while the faces are cut, it would achieve what you are aiming for; but there's probably many ways of skinning that cat.

Do I win a ride in the finished tank?

[colin jones]

Chris, you got the prize. It is so simple when you think about it. I just had to do that first. You can have a drive, not just a ride.

[charlie fitton]

Damn! I didn't even see the question..

[Wayne Henderson]

Geez Colin... that looks brilliant, an amazing bit of engineering.

Now why don't you try something hard, like changing the water pump on a Austin Champ without swearing or getting a 14 year old girl to clean her room...

[colin jones]

Thanks Wayne, I'm pretty happy with it.
A couple of other parts I have made and a picture of one of the steering clutches which is in very good condition. I also took a few parts of the engine and again in very good condition.

[colin jones]

It's incredible that all the bots that hold the inlet manifold on came straight off and so did the exhaust nuts as well, although they were brass. The starter bolts came off and the water jackets that were almost gone just about undone also. I think they used some copper grease perhaps. Anyway it's ready to go and get rebuilt. The sump is in great condition so I am really hoping that the internal components will be also. The engine rebuilder wants to disassemble the engine himself so he can inspect and familiarize all the parts and the timing aspect as well. I will be looking forward to getting it back as I'll have the trans all ready to couple together.

[Tony Smith]

I think you need to get a hobby to occupy your spare time!

[Lynn Eades]

Colin, Can you put up a picture of the oil filler cap as it has some relevance to the riveted carrier guys?

[colin jones]

I already have a hobby thanks Tony Here's the photos Lynn and also of the clutch from the engine as well and that is in really good condition too.
While i'm here, does anyone know of the where abouts of a
Solex type 40 Z.V.D.L. Carburetta as the one on this meadows is not the correct one.
Colin.

[colin jones]

Hi all, I haven't forgotten my Vickers but I just had to do a little job for a couple of weeks. This is an Australian 2LB anti tank carrier and it's No 2 off the production line. Probably not the right place to put it but oh well! I don't need to do any more that I have done. I'm now back on the Vickers now.

[colin jones]

I have just done a bit on the other Vickers to get this one up to speed. The sides were leaning in and there was some damage to the centre mullion. This particular hull was buried for quite some time in a dump in Victoria somewhere until it was dug up. The use of porta power is invaluable with this kind of work.

[colin jones]

The centre section was quite bent and I certainly put a lot of pressure on the porta power to get it back to shape. I started with some 1.5" steel rod as a diagonal support but it just bent when I released the hydraulics so I had to use 75mm channel on edge. I think it will be there for a while. This hull is BOWER BIRD. It's still in quite good shape.
I should be able to get it back into shape tomorrow.

[colin jones]

The front of the second Vickers has now been straightened and new parts made.

[colin jones]

The hull was seriously out of shape but I have got it back to a very acceptable tolerance and everything is fitting back on. I have repaired a lot of serious cracks as well and it is not time to turn them both over and repair the floors.

[colin jones]

I took both Vickers out of my workshop, turned them upside down and they're back under cover. I'm getting the old floor off them and replacing with new.

[colin jones]

That's one floor off and one to go. There's a photo of some of the old floor just to show that it is only 3mm plate. Very thin for a tank but great for restoration.

[colin jones]

Interesting rear suspension system making use of the leaf springs. I don't know of any other armoured vehicle that uses this design. I am very glad I have the wheel station for both as I would never find anything like this around the place. However, I don't have the return roller brackets for the second one. They will be a little bit of a challenge to make too as they were cast.

[Lynn Eades]

Corten type floor going in Colin?

[David Dunlop]

Looks like, apart from the axle channels, the floor framework is in pretty good shape, for the most part just needing realignment.

That is a very interesting rear suspension system indeed. Can you tell yet if the leaf springs will need to be reworked, or any of the suspension arms require straightening? Wouldn't want to see you racing over bumpy ground later on and spilling your tea!

David

[colin jones]

Sorry Lynn but, what is a Corten type floor as I am not familiar with that. I will however be getting both hulls sand blasted prior to putting the new 3mm steel floor back on.
Hi Dave, I am quite lucky that the suspension is in quite good condition and it is all still straight. The frame is OK but a few blemishes here and there and a simple job to reinstate back to good. It is a bit bent but the porta power will do it's job once again. It all looked worse than it really is, so I'm just doing one area at a time rather than jump from place to place. It's very exiting doing these and not something that is common and it's all new territory for me.

[David Dunlop]

Curiosity question, Colin.

In Posts 197 through 199, there appear to be some aluminium, or alloy, bulkhead frames fitted to the internal steel structure. What part of the vehicle are they related to? I am not sure if they define one of the crew areas or perhaps the engine bay.

David

[Lynn Eades]

Colin, I bought a sheet (3mm)of what was called Corten or Cor-ten (years ago) for the floor of my carrier. It was marketed as a steel that had more corrosion resistance. (sometimes used in truck decks) Now it seems to be used more as a paneling or cladding finish where the steel corrodes (oxidizes)and that protects the steel from further deterioration. (no further treatment) It is of course a trade name and so other steel producers have other names for a similar spec.
It just might be a slightly better option than mild steel.

[Andrew Rowe]

Hi Colin, Lynn is referring to Corten. As you probably know there are several grades of steel. Mild steel comes in what we call grade 250 , I think that is (mpa ) scientific jargon. This can come in "hot" rolled and " cold " rolled sheet. Cold being a bit more supple to work with, when bending and forming. Corten is grade 350 , which is suppose to have more corrosion resistance properties in the steel and harder wearing. We use this for building truck decks, etc. Slightly harder to drill , but easy when using rotobroach cutters. Then obviously you can then go even harder , even up to 1200mpa " Hardox" is a brand of steel, but very , very hard to drill and when bending in a brake press, have to bend 30% over as it springs back , this type of steel would probably be equivalent to armour plate. Just my observations, Cheers Andrew.

[colin jones]

David, there is a lot of aluminium in these tanks but what you see there are part of the bulkhead divisions. The part that you see I straightened is the division between the driver and engine. There are two doors with pressings that close that section and the turret baskets and ammo storage areas are also made of aluminium.
Lynn/Andrew thanks for that! after all the years of working with steel I had not heard of that name. I have never had a use for hardened steel with all the commercial building I did over the years. You learn something everyday