Marmon Herrington For Sale In Oz

[Bob Moseley (RIP)]

Hi all - a contact of mine in Melbourne has asked me to post this for him. Below are details from the owner.

1939 Ford Marmon-Herrington 4X4, ex-Australian Army, with roadster cab. 161-in. wheelbase, never had a pintle hook, so probably not a gun tractor. Frame rails are factory-doubled, so 3-ton rating, plus 1/4" plate reinforcements professionally riveted on the outside of the rails -- maybe Ford or Aust. Army mods?

The thrice-wounded WWII vet I bought it from remembered the Aust. Engineers in Egypt having such trucks. Post-war, this vehicle went directly from the military to the NSW rural fire service, and from there to the vet who sold it to me; never licensed for the road. Truck is fairly complete, but missing top bows, seat and tray. Slight fire damage, but easily repairable. 20" wheels and tires. Includes an extra complete rear axle, grill, radiator, front fender, running boards, plus a few bits and pieces. Chassis is very good; sheet metal is good to fair, with usual rust spots in cab; underseat petrol tank is rusted out. I don't know if it runs; never tried to turn the engine over, but it's complete and original. All M-H 4X4 components intact. Located in Melbourne. Price $2,600.

PM me for owner details. Nothing in this for me apart from the joy of networking.

Bob

[Hanno Spoelstra]

This truck was offered for sale on Ebay recently:
1939 Marmon-Herrington Ford roadster cab military truck Item number: 150054884155

Rare military roadster cab model. 3-ton rating with factory doubled frame rails plus professionally riveted ¼ inch plate reinforcements. 160-inch wheelbase, 9.00-20 tires, rolls freely. Correct and complete 24-stud sidevalve engine turns freely, condition unknown. All M-H 4x4 components present, condition unknown. Gearbox shifts OK. Front bumper and toeboard (not shown) included, plus spare radiator, grill, hood ornament, mudguards, pedals, complete rear axle, rear springs, rear crossmember, pintle assembly and more. Top irons and seat missing, gas tank rusted out. Chassis built in Canada, body added in Australia. Post-war, truck went direct from military to NSW rural fire brigade in Blue Mts. – never licensed. Usual rust for its age plus some fire damage, but very repairable. Great old truck with history, presence and fantastic restoration potential. How many of these have you seen lately?

[Mike Kelly]

There was one of these for sale about 8 years ago, about 40 km East of me , in the Latrobe valley . The vehicle pictured is not the one I knew of , the one I recall had a closed cab on it .

There are two restored examples I know of , the ex Colin Anderson truck, now in South Aust. , ( fitted with incorrect body ) and the pristine one in New Zealand .

The vehicle pictured would be a major undertaking , costing around $10K to restore I would think . There are some nice pics of these on the AWM database , taken up at Broadmeadows , just Nth of Melbourne , in 1939 .

I drove Colins truck a few times in 1984 , while invloved in the making of a TV mini series called 'The Dunera boys' . The Dunera was a ship loaded with Jewish refugees of German origin , who were labelled as enemy aliens and transported to Australia from the UK during 1940. They were jailed in interned camps , but later on released and some of them joined the Australian military . The vehicles used during filming were a motely collection including a :

MB Jeep
WOA2 Fordson staff car
1939 Marmon-H tractor
series 1 Land Rover !

The main players were
Bob Hoskins ( now a famous actor )
Warren Mitchell ( Alf Garnett )
John Mellion

They built a fake internment camp down at Point Cook , just S.W. of Melbourne , it looked very authentic , but most of the buildings were hollow shells . The Marmon ran out of petrol a few times during critical scenes , the director would have shot me easily as I was the guy who looked after the vehicles . A film crew costing thousands was held up as petrol was found .

http://www.holocaust.com.au/mm/i_horst.htm

Mike