Wanted: UC Track for collection

[Michael R.]

The track links manufactured for North American production universal carriers are made by a number of different companies, made using different alloys. Nigel Watson covers this rather well in his ‘Universal Carriers, Volume 1’.

While the most common track link profile has a flat surface where it contacts the ground, the less common common link is “spudded” profile, with three truncated cones on the portion that contacts the ground. Initially spudded track was issued to the Russian contract universal carriers. However, the MK-I* UC in the Ditsong Museum, Johannesburg, South Africa is equipped with spudded track. (Have a look at the track damage to the floor in their display room.)

There are reports of a third track type, with a bar on the track surface, to be installed every ninth link. While I have seen multiple examples of U.C. track links with one or two ‘bars’ on the surface, I cannot say if that is a factory production or not. It appears to have been a common workshop modification in post-war civilian use, perhaps for winter conditions?

The first 500 Windsor universal carriers (first model) were produced using standard size universal carrier bogie wheels and track. The following 4505 Windsor carriers (second model) had wider bogie wheels, which required wider spaced track horns. The other dimensions of these track links are unchanged.