Carrier armour manufacturer?

[rob love]

I just finished sandblasting a carrier about 2 weeks ago, and found that SDA Galt mark several times, sometimes two and three times on the same plate.

The hammer marks will be the straightening process. As well, there is a fixed number of little punch marks (usually 5 on each side armour) with a cleaned circular area around each. It is thought this is some kind of hardness testing. There are normally 4 of them in a rectangular formation on the larger portion of the side armour, and one more on the smaller portion of the side armour. I have found this to be the case with both mk1 and mk2 armour.

As well, sanding marks can be seen where factory holes were drilled for things like the smoke discharger mount or the antenna mounts. I am unsure whether these were punched before hardening or drilled before hardening.

There are about 3 pages in the design branch records re the manufacture of armour plate in Canada. If there is interest I could photograph them and post them here. I can't scan them as I don't wish to break the spine on these rather uncommon manuals.

[japes]

Grant's info is confirmed by Peter Ford's Infoex. Shurley-Dietrich Atkins of Galt is listed as making armour plate and universal carrier components.

J.P.

[maple_leaf_eh]

Originally Posted by rob love

...

There are about 3 pages in the design branch records re the manufacture of armour plate in Canada. If there is interest I could photograph them and post them here. I can't scan them as I don't wish to break the spine on these rather uncommon manuals.

Make an angle book rest to hold the book open, like a church pulpit for the Bible. Then photograph the open pages. I suppose if your needed to get some separation on the crease, you could use a small round rod.

[Edwin Wand]

I would be very interested in seeing the specs.

We are trying to document where various items of war materiel for Canada's war transportation industry were manufactured and how.

Presumably the plate was received from perhaps Dofasco and/or Stelco in Hamilton (about 30 miles from Galt and shipped from Hamilton to Galt. M Foundry or Varity Plow in Brantford might also have been involved.

At Galt, again presumably, the plate was sheared or flame cut to a pattern and holes were punched, as needed.

The Niagara area is at the western end of Lake Ontario and close by the Welland Canal which was used to ship many automotive parts and assemblies.

In general, Ford CMPs were assembled in Windsor Ontario and GM CMPs in Oshawa Ontario. Many of the single parts were manufactured in Niagara and shiped to Oshawa and Windsor for final assembly.

CMP owners will see the names of many Niagara factories on various parts of their CMPs.
These could be Hayes Steel. Now Hayes Dana but during the war years Hayes Steel. They did forging and cutting. During the war they had some quite heavy (and Noisy) Drop Hammers and many smaller ones which ran 3 shifts and seven days. No one every complained about the noise and if they did it would be pointed out that it was their patriotic duty to live with it. and so we did. By any standard it was a large factory but with the recent deindustrialization of the Niagara area it is gone.

The GM Plant in Niagara was McKinnon Industries, after about 1935 a GM subsidiary. At the same time in Oshawa the factory that was originally McLaughlin Buick which became GM of Canada.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McLaughlin_automobile

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_McLaughlin

Other well known war industries were
English Electric: electric propulsion engines
John Inglis: Naval Guns and Turbines
Massey Ferguson: Mosquito wings and farm machinery including the first self propelled combine.
Lightning Fastener: Zippers in various forms
Thompson Products: Many of their parts were common to all companies and were stamped Ford, GM or Cyrco.

Recall the Hay Fork used by the English farmer during the capture of Rudolph Hess was manufactured in Niagara.

Later I will pass on a description of the various items produced by McKinnons such as 19 set vibrators, axle parts for CMP's, fuses etc.

[Jordan Baker]

Previous thread on marks found on Carrier plate.

http://www.mapleleafup.net/forums/sh...ghlight=hammer

http://www.mapleleafup.net/forums/sh...ad.php?t=22242

[Richard Farrant]

Originally Posted by Edwin Wand

Other well known war industries were
Massey Ferguson: Mosquito wings and farm machinery including the first self propelled combine.

That would have been Massey-Harris, the Ferguson link did not come until the 1950's.

[Lynn Eades]

And the Bren guns were made by Inglis

[charlie fitton]

I've got GSW on Helmets and ammo boxes

Electrohome on Radios

BFG on Rubber bits ( gas mask...)

TipTop Tailors and Montreal garment works on Battledress uniforms

[kosbie]

Many thanks guys, very interesting. Didn't really expect so many replies.
Rick

[Robert Bergeron]

William Scully in Montreal for badges and crests. GSW for Général Steel Wares for steel helmets, pots,mess kits. canadian Marconi for No19 radios for Universal Carriers. RCA Victor for same radios. Montreal Locomotive Works for Valentine and Grisly tanks. Dominion Bridge in Montreal for armour for preceeding. Etc...

[brengunman]

It has been pointed out to me that my mention of Montreal Locomotive Works manufacturing the carrier hulls is incorrect. One should not quote from memory at my age!

W. A. M. Gregg in his Canadian Military Vehicles Profiles describes the manufacturing of the armour:

"Although a few hand built armoured cars had been built by Russell Motor Car Co. and others during the First World War, virtually no Canadian Manufacturer had any knowledge of bullet proof or armour plate production prior to 1940. The problem was further complicated by British advisors inferring that some mystical process was involved, which surely was beyond colonial comprehension. Metallurgists at Dominion Foundries and Steel (Dofasco) in Hamilton soon discovered, however, that good quality steel could take on all the desired properties through straight forward alloy and carbon adjustment. Dofasco established, through its tests in 1940, that a level of alloy well below that in allied use at the time, had optimum qualities for armour plate. The Dofasco formula was soon adopted by both American and British manufacturers. Dofasco was able to produce good plate but had difficulty with proper heat treating and straightening. Dietrich Saw Company of Galt had developed techniques for straightening large saw blades and were able to do the job with little delay. The plate was then sent to International Harvester Co. in Hamilton for punching and forwarded to Dominion Bridge Co. for hull fabrication which was done in an old plant south of Windsor which was reopened for the purpose."

George