canadian mk1 restoration

[eddy8men]

hi fella's

let me introduce myself my names eddy and i'm from manchester i used to be a mechanic in the reme and having had a mid life crisis last year when i reached forty i thought it would be a good idea to relive my glory days so i found this carrier for sale on this site and bought it from a guy called john bizal at midwest military a while back, well it arrived in southampton last week and i picked it up with a trailer and towed it home to manchester on friday to start the restoration. i was surprised at how good the carrier was considering it's been outdoors for so long although most of the brake linkages are shot and the track warping looks seized up but i was going to leave the track warping disconnected anyway. however there are a couple of things that also need sorting like the lack of an engine, g/box,rad and various armour but i'm sure it will all come together given time.
as i said earlier i'm new to this game so if i make mistakes don't be afraid to pull me up as it's the best way to learn. the carrier is a canadian mk1 built in 41 by ford, i tried to find the wd no. and had a little success after carefully sanding the top coat of paint off but the numbers were too hard to read but i did uncover the original name WELLAND written in yellow on the sides so i googled welland and it's a canadian town and regiment, there's also a regimental museum which i'll email the pics to for info.
any help or advice would be gratefully received as i've a feeling i'll be needing plenty.

all the best

eddy

[Lynn Eades]

Looks like a nice carrier to start the project with.
I think its a big mistake to not have the whole steering system functioning as it should. It's much easier to deal to it, while there is no power unit in there.
A read through Jordan Bakers rebuild thread will fill in a few gaps for you.

[rob love]

Thats a nice carrier; I was sure it would not be on John's site for very long.

I'll second Lynn's recommendation about the warp steering system; restore it. Without the warp system the brakes tend to overheat and fade, making steering very poor. It is amazing how much steering is accomplished by the warping of the tracks.

[jeff davis]

I recommend that you fix the warp steering it makes driving the carrier much more pleasant.at top speed it is very smooth.
jeff

[RichardT10829]

Eddy i can help you on the armour front just let me know, i am in Newcastle so feel free to pop up any time you like.

I am after details of the battery box you have and any tins / boxes you might have left inside.

welcome to the family mate

Richie

[kevin powles]

Glad you got it home o.k., when you get time post up some more pics of the rear compartment inside and drivers position.

kevin.

[RichardT10829]

Also buddy beware that the exhaust covers on the rear deck contain asbestos as do the heat shields behind the mufflers, so be carefull. I have schematics for the center plate looking at what is left it will be a sinch to replace the missing bits.

may be able to assist with gauges etc too.

[The Bedford Boys]

Originally Posted by eddy8men

hi fella's

let me introduce myself my names eddy and i'm from manchester i used to be a mechanic in the reme and having had a mid life crisis last year when i reached forty i thought it would be a good idea to relive my glory days so i found this carrier for sale on this site and bought it from a guy called john bizal at midwest military a while back, well it arrived in southampton last week and i picked it up with a trailer and towed it home to manchester on friday to start the restoration. i was surprised at how good the carrier was considering it's been outdoors for so long although most of the brake linkages are shot and the track warping looks seized up but i was going to leave the track warping disconnected anyway. however there are a couple of things that also need sorting like the lack of an engine, g/box,rad and various armour but i'm sure it will all come together given time.
as i said earlier i'm new to this game so if i make mistakes don't be afraid to pull me up as it's the best way to learn. the carrier is a canadian mk1 built in 41 by ford, i tried to find the wd no. and had a little success after carefully sanding the top coat of paint off but the numbers were too hard to read but i did uncover the original name WELLAND written in yellow on the sides so i googled welland and it's a canadian town and regiment, there's also a regimental museum which i'll email the pics to for info.
any help or advice would be gratefully received as i've a feeling i'll be needing plenty.

all the best

eddy

Restoring the track warping system to working condition is a must in my opinion. The Loyd carrier, which doesn't have this system, experiences brake inefficency problems after prolonged use as it uses only it's brakes to steer. This overheating of the brakes makes it INCREDIBLY hard to steer. In a Universal carrier, the track warping system allows nice small corrections of the path of the vehicle to be made without using the brakes. I have driven both of these vehicles in the same day, and there is a very distinct difference in the steering. The Universal being easier to correct and drive around curved pieces of road.

Your carrier looks to be in great condition. I wish you all the best with the restorastion. You have defintiely come to the right place for getting help with any queries.

[eddy8men]

hi fella's

thanks for the replies, ok then i'll restore the track warping while there's nothing in the way, my only concern was the wear it might place on the tracks as replacements seem to be a big issue but i could always leave it disconnected if i found that to be ok afterwards, does anyone have a diagram of the warping system and any tips on how to strip it. cheers.

richie i'll send you a pm as i could do with some drawings of the armour .

all the best

eddy

[The Bedford Boys]

The carrier my father restored, and is now owned by a member of this forum, has been running for 30 years on the tracks it came with. They were defintely not new tracks when he restored it either. The track warping doesn't place any undue stress on the track. The track was designed to run like this.

[Lynn Eades]

How about some pictures of the inside?
Does the cam plate turn?Is there a steering box connected, and functioning?
Firstly disconnect the long rods that go through the rear plate to the bellcranks.(this will allow everything else to move hopefully) If not drop the plate off the bottom of the hull that the cam plate is mounted on. With the hull blocked up, and the double bogies removed, can you move the cross tube in it mounting blocks?
These pictures are for an Australian carrier, but they are much the same.

[ajmac]

What is the bell crank associated with? Is it for the track warping?