1940 Break Down Chevrolet Holden MCP

[Lionelgee]

Hello All,

I just found a new photograph that actually shows the rear view of the breakdown cranes

Do they look more like the M.E Breakdown crane pictured in my last message?

What are the two horizontal boards just below the towing hitch?

Would the lights be converted headlights or were they proper flood/spot/work lamps?

Accessed November 23, 2016 from, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/000365
ID number 000365
Collection type Photograph

Object type Black & white
Maker Parer, Damien Peter
Place made Australia: Victoria, Melbourne, Broadmeadows, Broadmeadows Camp
Date made c December 1939
Physical description Black & white
Description BROADMEADOWS - BREAKDOWN CARS OF MOTOR TRANSPORT. ARMY. TRAINING IN AUST. MOTOR TRANSPORT. (NEGATIVE BY D.P.).


Kind Regards
Lionel

[Tony Smith]

Originally Posted by Lionelgee

Hello All,

I just found a new photograph that actually shows the rear view of the breakdown cranes

What are the two horizontal boards just below the towing hitch?

Fold-out Stabilising Legs for using the crane for heavy lift?

[Lionelgee]

Originally Posted by Tony Smith

Fold-out Stabilising Legs for using the crane for heavy lift?

Cheers Tony,

Thanks for the reply Tony. Much appreciated

Do you reckon that the breakdown cranes on the Chevys are the M. E. Breakdown Crane?

From some angles they look a close match - then sometimes they do not!

It is a shame that the AWM could not have added one more line to their description - such as "Breakdown cranes manufactured by .... and model number .... crane capacity ...."

Kind Regard
Lionel

[Lionelgee]

Hello All,

Woohoo - a possible breakthrough via a lightening fast email response from Mr Mike Saward from Recovery House in Hertford. Thank you so much Mike

Mike identified that the M. E. Breakdown crane is manufactured by Mann Egerton crane in Norwich - Mike provided the link to this site Accessed November 23, 2016 from, http://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk/vinta...ertoncrane.htm. It shows the 10 ton version with two hooks. Maybe the lighter capacity cranes had less hooks?

Thank you again Mike ....

Wow close to midnight here - how did that happen? I had better sign off

More research into cranes tomorrow

The advertisement says "write for a catalogue which gives full details...." Umm I wonder? Teehee!

Kind Regards
Lionel

[Allan Currey]

Hi Lionel,

I can't answer all your questions, but I believe that the two "boards" you see are not boards at all, I think they are possibly called spreader bars, and are basically tubular in shape, with fittings on the end to attach to the towed vehicle. When the towed vehicle is suspended from the crane, the bars each pivot from the centre of the breakdown truck, are chained to the front of the load, and basically form an A frame to keep the towed load firmly spaced from the breakdown truck, stopping it from swinging. That's what they look like to me anyway, someone may know for sure.

If you search for "breakdown" on the AWM site, you will see some of the later Ford breakdown trucks with very similar equipment.

Here's a picture of something similar in use.

Cheers,

Allan

[Lionelgee]

Hello Allan,

Thank you for the tip about the objects being spreader bars. Is the photograph you are referring to about the Ford's with the spreader bars? Accessed November 24, 2016 from https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/127758
ID number 127758
Collection type Photograph

Object type Black & white
Physical description Black & white
Description AUSTRALIA. LORRIES, 3-TON BREAKDOWN (AUSTRALIAN) NO.3A. FORD. THREE-QUARTER REAR VIEW, LEFT SIDE.

Was the Ford a Marmon-Herrington conversion with tandem axles? Was it then even more modified into a 6 x 6 configuration?

I found a site last night that showed what kit was fitted to and stored in the CMP version of the twin boom Holmes or Gar Wood cranes. It was that extensive that the kit took up more space than the truck itself when it was spread out on the ground as a display. I just realised I did not save the link ...

Kind Regards
Lionel

[Mike K]

Would they have imported the cranes from the UK ? Seems unlikely . I would have thought they manufactured the cranes here to a design ?

[Lionelgee]

Hello All,

It is not the same site with all the kit that I found last night. However, this one has some close up photographs of the Gar Wood CMP version of a breakdown truck. Accessed November 24, 2016 from, http://www.wheelsofvictory.com/CMP%20wrecker.html.

There is a close up shot of what Allan identified as Spreader bars in the range of photographs

They have Holmes Crane site too.... but for the Diamond T Wreckers

Kind Regards
Lionel

[Lionelgee]

Originally Posted by Mike Kelly

Would they have imported the cranes from the UK ? Seems unlikely . I would have thought they manufactured the cranes here to a design ?

G'day Mike,

As I think you mentioned earlier with the Meccanno School of Crane Design it would not be too hard to have different companies making very similar cranes or the same crane made under licence. All the companies of the time had to work with the same materials and same engineering techniques and calculations.

Kind Regards
Lionel

[Allan Currey]

Originally Posted by Lionelgee

Thank you for the tip about the objects being spreader bars. Is the photograph you are referring to about the Ford's with the spreader bars?

Hi Lionel,

Yes, that's one of the pictures. There are several others showing both 4 and 6 wheel, MCP and CMP trucks which you would have found. They all appear to have some sort of those bars fitted.

Cheers,

Allan

[Allan Currey]

Originally Posted by Lionelgee

Was the Ford a Marmon-Herrington conversion with tandem axles? Was it then even more modified into a 6 x 6 configuration?

Without wanting to stray too far from the original purpose of your thread, the short answer is, yes, the Fords were 6x6 M-H conversions with the rear-most axle driven via a splitter over the first rear axle.

There have been a few previous discussions of the M-H drive arrangements on here, it gets quite detailed, but well worth reading.

Cheers,

Allan

[mlombard]

Hi

Attached is a memo and drawing related to the placement of the stabilzation bars.

Matt

[Lionelgee]

Originally Posted by mlombard

Hi

Attached is a memo and drawing related to the placement of the stabilzation bars.

Matt

G'day Matt,

OMG!!! how in the world did you manage to track the PDF down???

Is this one of the Australian War Memorial held books for the Breakdown trucks that I have a mate in Canberra trying to make time to visit for me? For example, the Trucks 3-ton breakdown (Aust) no. 4 Chevrolet 6 x 6 held in their library.

Thank you so much for posting it.

Kind Regards
Lionel

[mlombard]

Hi

This is from a set of two DME Technical Instruction volumes I have access to. I am in the process of copying them.

regards

Matt