A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Sun Mar 20, 2022 12:00 pm

Both cushions were fitted into the seat for a photograph and then removed again.

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The paint on the seat was touched up around the welds and other scratches and it was left out in the sun to bake for a while. Later in the afternoon, it was bolted back in the Dodge, ready for the first show of the year in the middle of next month.

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I've also got a new battery on order. Despite being kept on a maintenance charger, the old one is showing signs of not being as healthy as it should be. I can't complain too much, as the current battery is at least 15 years old that I know of! The new battery should be here in the next few days.
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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Wed Mar 23, 2022 7:49 am

March 23rd - New 6 volt Battery Fitted

On Tuesday 22nd, the new battery arrived. I think the pallet was just to make sure it couldn't be tipped over. Once removed, it was taken to my workshop and put on a slow charge, for the rest of the day, ready for fitting the next day.

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It was fitted on the morning of the 23rd, after a little modification to the battery clamp and then test run. I may take a mould from the lead bars on top of the old battery and cast some resin ones for this battery. I couldn't justify the cost of a rubber cased, period looking battery, particularly as it's buried low down in the engine bay.

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Mon Mar 28, 2022 2:58 am

Dodge Pre-Season Drive - March 27th

With an unusual mild spell in the weather and a nice weather forecast, we decided to have a topless, pre-season run out in the Dodge. This would be our first run out of 2022 and a shakedown trip prior to events starting next month. We got around 10 gallons fuel on the way out, enough for the next couple of events in April and May. It's worrying when you think £1.66.9 per litre isn't a bad price!! I think that works out at about $8.30 per US gallon.

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The Dodge looked quite different with the canvas off, but I think I prefer it on. Next time, I'll fit the canvas, but might try folding the rear half forwards to leave the crane more visible.

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Mon Mar 28, 2022 3:00 am

I planned a 16 mile route around Durham, via the petrol station in the early part of the trip. It was such a warm day, even while on the move, I was warm enough in a shirt, though I'd taken a fleece just in case - this is England after all!

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With the warm day and blue sky, we got some nice pictures of the Dodge and lovely views of County Durham. At one point, following a single lane track, we climbed to quite a height over the surrounding countryside.

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Mon Mar 28, 2022 3:01 am

Neither of the Jeeps have been out yet this year, as I've been waiting for the weather to warm up before doing any maintenance. However, there's hail and sleet forecast this week, so that may have to wait a little longer.

We finished the trip at a road we call sunset lane, after a Jeep photoshoot there last year. It's a nice spot without too many modern distractions in the background. I did have a starting problem after one stop, possibly a vapour lock as it was quite hot. So I think I'll treat the Dodge to some new plugs and possibly a condenser before the next run out.

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Sun Apr 03, 2022 8:41 am

April 1st ~ 3rd - Battery Pallet to .50 Cal Ammo Crate

When the new Dodge battery arrived, it came on a nice big wooden pallet. I didn't need a pallet, but there was a decent amount of wood in it that I saw as potentially useful. It took some dismantling as the nails were all barbed, but eventually I got all the planks separated.

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The plan was to make another .50 Cal ammo crate. I'd made two a couple of years ago to carry some of the camping accessories and with the new look Dodge, another as an accessory would be a useful display item as well as being able to store and carry stuff. The curved inset handle on each end was cut from a strip of wood on my bandsaw. This strip was then glued back into the end panel.

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Sun Apr 03, 2022 8:44 am

Once the handles were glued back into the ends, the box sides and ends were assembled onto the base.

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The holes in the lid were marked up and the inner diameter of the tapered hole cut with a hole saw. The centre piece was broken out with a chisel and the outer taper carved out with a scalpel and finished with a mini sanding drum.

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Sun Apr 03, 2022 8:45 am

The box was painted with an olive drab I mixed myself from left over emulsion tester pots. I mixed the paint with waterproof PVA glue to strengthen the wood, as some of the planks were quite a low density. The glue helped to toughen up the outer fibres and waterproof the box for those less than ideal show days! I still had the stencils I cut for the original boxes. They'd been printed on paper, onto which I applied 2 inch Sellotape.

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This toughened up the paper for the small cuts in the lettering and makes them last longer when painted over. The paint was applied with both a stippling brush and sponge, used quite dry to minimise paint creep under the stencil. A couple of coats of yellow Humbrol modelling enamel was enough to give a reasonable coverage, without tooking too perfect up close.

The new .50 Cal crate, seen in a slightly lighter green with some of my other boxes, will be a useful addition to my Dodge.

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by 70th Division » Sun Apr 03, 2022 9:52 am

Hello,

Excellent workmanship !!

They look outstanding and will great for your Dodge !!!



Thanks for sharing your efforts !

Best Regards,
Ray

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by MP45 » Mon Apr 04, 2022 5:21 am

70th Division wrote:
Sun Apr 03, 2022 9:52 am
Hello,

Excellent workmanship !!

They look outstanding and will great for your Dodge !!!



Thanks for sharing your efforts !

Best Regards,
Ray

I second that, awesome job. I like your idea for the side handles, I will have to use that myself.

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Wed Apr 06, 2022 2:34 pm

Thanks guys. Over the last couple of days, I've been in discussions with a friend about getting my fullsize B-17 propeller 3D printed to dangle from the Dodge crane. That will possibly be the next build project.

April 6th 2022 - Engine Maintenance

In the mean time, I've been doing a little tinkering with the M201 Jeep. It wasn't quite running right in December, but it's been too cold during the beginning of the year to work in the garage. Also, with two Jeeps, a Dodge and a trailer in there, there's not much space!

By early April, the weather was warming up, so I spent some of this morning doing a little tinkering on the Jeep engine. Old plugs out, new plugs gapped and put in. The old plugs were very sooty, but being a French Solex carb, there's no top end adjustment, only the idle screw. So that was turned in a little and I'll keep an eye on the plug colour. The old plugs still look in fairly good condition, so will be cleaned up and kept in a locker as spares.

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I also removed the PCV, stripped it, then soaked the parts in cellulose thinners. It wasn't completely blocked, but there was crud in there that needed removing. After a good soak and clean, it was reassembled and fitted again.

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There's still the starter to strip and overhaul, as the starter dog keeps sticking and not engaging when I hit the starter button. The commutator also gets quite scruffy, so I usually clean that while it's in bits. I'll do that when it's a bit warmer still and I can work outside with a bit more space.
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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Wed Apr 06, 2022 2:41 pm

So this afternoon, I decided to do a test drive combined with the school run. The Jeep was running nice and smooth in the garage, so a longer run was then next step. This would be the first drive in 2022 and the first since December 30th, when it wasn't quite running right. I pulled it out of the garage for a picture about ten minutes before I needed to go.

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My daughter's "Street Cred" will be running high tomorrow! A number of friends and a couple of teachers saw her strapped in the back. All was well during the drive, apart from a little light rain on the way home.

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We just got the Jeep back in the garage and it really chucked it down, immediately followed by bright sun ( English weather likes to do that! ), and got a nice rainbow to finish the afternoon.

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In a little over a week, we'll have our first event of 2022, taking the Dodge to Heugh Battery in Hartlepool. Heugh Battery claims to be the UK's only World War 1 battlefield, after a German Naval bombardment of the coast in December 1914.
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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Sun Apr 17, 2022 12:53 am

Heugh Battery - April 16th

It was a misty and damp start to the drive to Heugh Battery in Hartlepool for our first event of 2022. The last time we were there was in 2019, before covid stopped everything. It was a 38 mile round trip, cutting cross country on the slower roads and we almost got to the point where we could see the battery and then discovered a road close sign due to roadworks. The diversion signs weren't great, but Google maps came to the rescue and we made it there with two parking spots left, just inside the gate.

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Last edited by armyairforce on Sun Apr 17, 2022 1:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Sun Apr 17, 2022 12:57 am

Not too long after we got there, the sun broke through and it ended up being a hot day and a great first event of the season. There was a good turnout of vehicles, dioramas, re-enactors and a great turnout of public. The vehicles were squeezed in amongst the Battery exhibits, in the courtyard behind the gun battery emplacements and ammunition stores.

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Re: A B-17 Fortress, Two Jeeps and a Dodge - My Ongoing MV Journey

Post by armyairforce » Sun Apr 17, 2022 12:58 am

Heugh Battery was one of three erected in 1860 to protect the fast-growing port of Hartlepool. Heugh Battery is the only WW1 battlefield in the United Kingdom, after the German Navy attacked the battery on December 16th 1914, trying to provoke small naval engagements to whittle down the British fleet.

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