From: m35products (m35prod@optonline.net)
Date: Thu May 27 2004 - 05:31:53 PDT
Sounds like a Canadian Ford bomb truck. apb
----- Original Message -----
From: "Mitch Drumm" <LaFong@cox.net>
To: "Military Vehicles Mailing List" <mil-veh@mil-veh.org>
Sent: Thursday, May 27, 2004 7:31 AM
Subject: [MV] help me ID weapons carrier
> hi everyone.
>
> this is my first post. i joined in hopes someone can help me ID a
particular
> pair of weapons carriers that i spent a lot of time in during the early
> 1950s thru the mid 1960s.
>
> i have spent several hours on the web trying to find pictures of similar
> vehicles with no luck. during that time i discovered this list and joined
it
> hoping someone can ID these vehicles.
>
> i have not seen them in about 40 years and have no pictures. what follows
is
> from memory:
>
> general description: 4 wheels, 4 wheel drive, totally open and exposed to
> the elements. high center of gravity, wide track. wheelbase probably a
foot
> or two longer than a typical modern pickup. i was around two of these, one
> of which was painted red and i suspect that is how it was purchased and is
> presumably a "factory" color. these vehicles were used as all purpose
> transports on a large nevada ranch. i can't recall the color of the other
> lesser used vehicle, but don't think it was OD. in general stature, width,
> and ground clearance, these vehicles were closer to a HUMVEE than, say, a
> WW2 ambulance, but were not enclosed.
>
> i cannot specifically recall if the vehicle could be operated in both 2WD
> and 4WD. certainly possible it was 4WD only. nor do i recall anything
about
> low/high range.
>
> seating for two in buckets, on either side of a console. not a bench seat.
> no doors of any kind. you sat down pretty low in the buckets.
>
> snub nosed, with a very short hood. this is unlike any weapons carrier
> vehicle i have seen in pictures. the hood was no more than 30 inches long,
> if not shorter.
>
> gearshift lever was bent and angled forward rather than rearward. as i
> recall, it was a 4 speed gearbox, but may have been 3 speed. because of
the
> angle of the lever, the shifting motion was more of a lifting up than the
> pulling back that might be found in an ordinary passenger car. because of
> the depth of the bucket seat and the height of the console/drivetrain
> tunnel, the lever was probably not far from waist high at the mounting
point
> and chest high at the knob. you reached out for it, rather than down.
>
> boom: one of the two vehicles had a boom extending out to the rear that
was
> equipped with a cable and hook to hoist something--such as a deer (often
> used for deer hunting). the tip of the boom was probably 8 feet above the
> ground and extended at that height over the bed area. i can't recall how
the
> hoist was operated but i am sure it was mechanized rather than hand
> cranked.
>
> the area to the rear of the bucket seats was open to the elements, as was
> the entire vehicle. i can't recall detail, other than it was not
completely
> flat as a flatbed truck would be. there were compartments along the
> perimeter if i recall correctly, but i can't recall if they were covered.
>
> windshield: not sure, but i think it may have folded down to the front if
> desired.
>
> engine: i have no details, presumably 6 or 8 cylinder.
>
> i always thought these were ford products, but it seems that most weapons
> carriers were dodge manufactured. i did find some brief references to
fords,
> but no pictures or descriptions.
>
> both vehicles were simply called "weapons carriers" around the ranch. it
is
> theoretically possible they were not weapons carriers, but i do recall
> certain military-esque nameplates around the cockpit. so best guess is
that
> they were weapons carriers and were certainly of US military origin--or at
> least north american.
>
> considering where and how they were used, it is highly likely that both
were
> unmodified by the civilian owner--i assume the boom, color, etc, were as
> purchased military surplus. they did not have that "antique" look that i
> associate with certain WW2 vehicles, so may have been from slightly after
> the war???
>
> the best clues are the snub nose, boom, bucket seating, gearshift lever,
> unenclosed, and era.
>
> please, can anyone ID these and most of all point me to some high quality
> pictures, either online or in a published book?
>
> regards
>
> mitch
>
>
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