Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Armor, Military Vehicles, Wanted, For Sale (NO AUCTION or EBAY), and Knowledge Base
Post Reply
Big D
G-Captain
G-Captain
Posts: 788
Joined: Sat Sep 19, 2009 11:22 pm
Location:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by Big D » Sun Apr 15, 2018 12:59 am

Hi GreyWulf,

That is very kind of you to say. I have had a lot of help though!

Many thanks.
Darryl Lennane
NZ

1943 Willys MB
1941 LP2A MG Carrier
1943 White M3A1 AOP
1942 Willys MBT
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car


dgrev
Sergeant Major of the Gee
Sergeant Major of the Gee
Posts: 383
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 6:44 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by dgrev » Sun Apr 15, 2018 1:05 am

Darrell

For your future reference, I proved yesterday that it is possible to remove a Greyhound petrol pump from above rather than from below.
I just could not be stuffed struggling with that splash shield again. Those things take the patience of a saint to get in and out. Being a wizz at solving Rubik's Cubes would also be a definite qualification.

Leak fixed.

Now to reverse the process.

Sigh...........

Regards
Doug

Big D
G-Captain
G-Captain
Posts: 788
Joined: Sat Sep 19, 2009 11:22 pm
Location:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by Big D » Sun Apr 15, 2018 2:40 am

Hi Doug

Sounds like something I need to avoid. Did you take any photos of the process by chance?
Darryl Lennane
NZ

1943 Willys MB
1941 LP2A MG Carrier
1943 White M3A1 AOP
1942 Willys MBT
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car

Big D
G-Captain
G-Captain
Posts: 788
Joined: Sat Sep 19, 2009 11:22 pm
Location:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by Big D » Sun Apr 15, 2018 2:45 am

Hi all,

Here are a few more progress photos from the last couple of days.

All the radio wiring and conduit is in now, some albeit temporarily. I didn't have any pictures of this cabling before I started so these photos might be handy for anyone else doing this sort of restoration.

I haven’t connected the cordage to the BC606’s for the commander and loader yet. Once I have the radios and a battery in, I will check that the system is working with the BC606’s for the driver and co-driver before connecting the other two BC606’s. I don’t see any point in complicating things until I know I have wired it right.

The mounting of the conduit and piping holding the CO213 cordage is not finalised yet as you can see by the cable ties. You probably get the idea though. I could use some of the correct conduit clamps if anyone has any. My homemade ones just aren’t quite the right shape. I am still finalising the layout and there is a possibility I will have to move the cabling/conduit in the hull to get the firewall in, as that is a tight fit, and not something I am looking forward to fitting. I still have some routing of the wiring to tidy up but I think it is pretty close to how I want it.

The steering box and clutch and brake pedal assembly are next so that I can sort out the hydraulics and instrument panel wiring. I managed to make one pushrod that I needed for the master cylinders and I have the other one coming (thanks John).
Attachments
Codriver.jpg
Codriver.jpg (65.15 KiB) Viewed 2571 times
20180415_184301.jpg
20180415_184301.jpg (77.62 KiB) Viewed 2571 times
20180415_184312.jpg
20180415_184312.jpg (75.43 KiB) Viewed 2571 times
20180415_184120.jpg
20180415_184120.jpg (89.65 KiB) Viewed 2571 times
20180415_184130.jpg
20180415_184130.jpg (91.17 KiB) Viewed 2571 times
20180415_184834.jpg
20180415_184834.jpg (85.25 KiB) Viewed 2571 times
20180415_184321.jpg
20180415_184321.jpg (87.57 KiB) Viewed 2571 times
20180415_184054.jpg
20180415_184054.jpg (106.42 KiB) Viewed 2571 times
20180415_184603.jpg
20180415_184603.jpg (86.17 KiB) Viewed 2571 times
20180415_184734.jpg
20180415_184734.jpg (91.61 KiB) Viewed 2571 times
Darryl Lennane
NZ

1943 Willys MB
1941 LP2A MG Carrier
1943 White M3A1 AOP
1942 Willys MBT
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car

dgrev
Sergeant Major of the Gee
Sergeant Major of the Gee
Posts: 383
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 6:44 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by dgrev » Sun Apr 15, 2018 2:46 am

Sorry, I was too busy struggling.

One of those jobs where undoing the 2 nuts that hold it to the engine block has to be done by feel
and hex by hex.
Then the darn thing would only move about 1cm and fought me the rest of the way off the studs.

User avatar
seacon
Sergeant Major of the Gee
Sergeant Major of the Gee
Posts: 430
Joined: Thu Jun 11, 2009 5:04 am
Location: NW Italian Riviera

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by seacon » Sun Apr 15, 2018 9:59 pm

Stelan has NOS hardware boxes for sale. Try to contact him.
here are the links:

https://www.jeepsudest.com/boutique/191 ... ule-type2/

https://www.jeepsudest.com/boutique/191 ... ule-type1/

ciao
m

Big D
G-Captain
G-Captain
Posts: 788
Joined: Sat Sep 19, 2009 11:22 pm
Location:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by Big D » Thu Apr 19, 2018 2:35 am

Hi Seacon,

Thanks for that. I actually have the second kit but even then I needed some more of a bigger type clamp to hold the conduit to the hull. I have made some more of these clamps now so we will see how they go.

That first kit you listed actually looks very good and it includes new fixing points for welding to the hull. I had to make a few of these up so I wish I had spotted that kit!
Darryl Lennane
NZ

1943 Willys MB
1941 LP2A MG Carrier
1943 White M3A1 AOP
1942 Willys MBT
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car

Big D
G-Captain
G-Captain
Posts: 788
Joined: Sat Sep 19, 2009 11:22 pm
Location:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by Big D » Fri Apr 20, 2018 8:32 pm

Hi all,

Here is what I’ve been busy with over the last few days.

I fabricated a couple of pieces for the pushrods for the brake and clutch master cylinders, so I’ve now been able to mount the clutch and brake pedal assembly. The pushrod pieces aren’t my best work but they will do until if/when I source some new ones. I have some NOS return springs coming (thanks Philippe). I took some extra photos of the clutch and brake pedal assembly as I didn’t have a lot of photos of the layout. It is quite heavy and I had to use wooden blocks to hold this up while I bolted it in place. It is really a two man job to bolt it in but there isn’t room for two people in there!

The handbrake is now mounted. The mounting holes required 3/8” UNC bolts which had me fooled for a while. Most of the other stuff is UNF. The sector gear on the handbrake was pretty corroded and is not great but we’ll see how it goes.

I’ve fitted the steering box. I’ve used a grease and oil slurry in the steering box rather than just straight oil. The vehicle will be sitting around a lot and it might help prevent leaks. It has been sitting for a while now with no leaks so I have my fingers crossed.

I’ve done some touching up of the various mounting bolts in the front of the hull with the modeller’s paint but I still need to do a bit more.

I also starting routing the wiring for the instrument panel. I forgot to take the circuit diagram with me so I haven’t got this right yet and still have some work to do on it the next time I am in the workshop.

Next will be sorting out the hydraulic lines. I note in the parts manual that there are two different versions of the layout for the fuel primer pump. The version described as the ‘old primer installation’ has a fuel line from the fuel filter to the primer pump and a line from the primer pump to the fuel pump. The ‘new primer installation’ seems to have a third line for an engine setup with a vacuum pump. The old layout seems like the most straightforward way to set up the primer pump. Has anyone got any other thoughts?

I need to join a couple of pieces of brass braided conduit. What method do you guys use for that? I’ve heard of copper sheet being used to join pieces. What about the brass fittings on the end of these bits of conduit? Are these ‘sweated on’ to the braided conduit?

Does anyone recognise the single conduit with the fitting on the end of it in the photo? I’m told it is M8/M20 but just not sure what it is for.

I’m working on the markings etc to paint on the vehicle so am looking for some advice on that. I am talking to a couple of suppliers of paint stencil kits so I get the correct sized stars etc. I want the vehicle to have the markings of the US 86th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron Mechanised, 6th Armored Division. Can any of the experts on here advise the correct unit numbering? Presumably something like ‘6 Δ 86C’? What about Company/Troop numbering?
Attachments
20180420_115517.jpg
20180420_115517.jpg (115.28 KiB) Viewed 2475 times
20180420_150710.jpg
20180420_150710.jpg (70.97 KiB) Viewed 2475 times
20180420_150950.jpg
20180420_150950.jpg (81.48 KiB) Viewed 2475 times
20180420_151035.jpg
20180420_151035.jpg (76.18 KiB) Viewed 2475 times
20180421_115426.jpg
20180421_115426.jpg (86.59 KiB) Viewed 2475 times
20180421_122723.jpg
20180421_122723.jpg (85.56 KiB) Viewed 2475 times
20180421_150509.jpg
20180421_150509.jpg (100.26 KiB) Viewed 2475 times
20180421_150649.jpg
20180421_150649.jpg (108.75 KiB) Viewed 2475 times
20180420_184152.jpg
20180420_184152.jpg (160.9 KiB) Viewed 2475 times
20180420_171937.jpg
20180420_171937.jpg (146.76 KiB) Viewed 2475 times
Darryl Lennane
NZ

1943 Willys MB
1941 LP2A MG Carrier
1943 White M3A1 AOP
1942 Willys MBT
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car

Big D
G-Captain
G-Captain
Posts: 788
Joined: Sat Sep 19, 2009 11:22 pm
Location:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by Big D » Mon Apr 30, 2018 1:59 am

Hi all,

I’ve been continuing with the wiring on the M8 over the last week or so. I first had to spend some time vacuuming out the channels in the hull where the wiring and hydraulic lines go. It’s amazing how much they fill up with the grit from the blasting.

The instrument panel wiring is in now and the instrument wiring is connected to the rear terminal box. I’ve also been putting together the front wiring assembly. I didn’t have all of the original conduit so I’ve had to make a few pieces up and thanks to Willy for his guidance on these. I think what I’ve come up with is pretty close to correct. I am still needing a couple of the conduit unions for the brake light switch which I will keep an eye out for. The conduit I have for the compass is pretty worn so I will make up another piece for this.

I still need to connect the wires to the correct terminals on the headlight switch. Can anyone confirm what the different abbreviations on the headlight switch shown on the photo stand for?

Is this correct?

SS = Service Stop lights?
S = Service Head and Tail?
BS = Black out stop lights?
HT =
TT =
BHT = Black out head and tail lights?
B =

What do the others stand for? Is 'B' for battery? The circuit diagrams in the manual give terminal numbers on the headlight switch, but not the corresponding abbreviation above. There should be 6 different connections to the headlight switch so I''m keen to get this right first time.

The 12 volt power supply line to both sponsons for the radios is installed now along with the wiring in the junction box on the engine cross member. Can anyone confirm the wiring conduits that come out of this junction block? I have cables for ‘Gas’, ‘Oil’, ‘Temp’, ‘Solenoid’ and overhead filter to the coil. Is that correct? I am actually missing one of the wee plates as per the photo if anyone has a spare.

I’ve found that the conduit for the siren has to be in a very tight curl to get it to fit, so I will need to experiment further with that.

I’ve talked to the engineering guys who are doing the spark erosion on the two screws holding the recoil system onto the mantlet. They think the screws are too big for that and are looking at other options. I’ll let you know how I get on.

Thanks to Seacon, I’ve finalised the Company and Troop markings so will get the stencils for those sorted out ASAP.

The hull is going to be moved in the workshop this week which will allow me better access to it and I hope to have the front axle and springs fitted in the next week or so.
Attachments
20180427_130216.jpg
20180427_130216.jpg (113.32 KiB) Viewed 2395 times
20180430_173637.jpg
20180430_173637.jpg (89.91 KiB) Viewed 2395 times
20180428_121754.jpg
20180428_121754.jpg (135.48 KiB) Viewed 2395 times
20180430_143332.jpg
20180430_143332.jpg (131.4 KiB) Viewed 2395 times
20180430_172806.jpg
20180430_172806.jpg (75.54 KiB) Viewed 2395 times
20180430_170409.jpg
20180430_170409.jpg (98.09 KiB) Viewed 2395 times
20180430_164058.jpg
20180430_164058.jpg (90.86 KiB) Viewed 2395 times
20180430_165941.jpg
20180430_165941.jpg (101.96 KiB) Viewed 2395 times
Darryl Lennane
NZ

1943 Willys MB
1941 LP2A MG Carrier
1943 White M3A1 AOP
1942 Willys MBT
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car

User avatar
17thAirborne
G-Lieutenant General
G-Lieutenant General
Posts: 5847
Joined: Mon Jun 21, 2004 5:42 am
Location: Central TN

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by 17thAirborne » Mon Apr 30, 2018 4:56 am

Absolutely superb work. Well done!
Oz

Feb 43 GPW 98532 USA 20206257
Oct 70 Land Rover Series 2a 25334079G NZ16GF36
http://gpw.castraponere.com/ (My Restoration Page)

Big D
G-Captain
G-Captain
Posts: 788
Joined: Sat Sep 19, 2009 11:22 pm
Location:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by Big D » Thu May 03, 2018 12:46 pm

Hi Oz,

Thanks for that. I have almost finished a restoration on a White Scout Car as well so I will be watching the restoration of your one with interest.
Darryl Lennane
NZ

1943 Willys MB
1941 LP2A MG Carrier
1943 White M3A1 AOP
1942 Willys MBT
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car

motto
G-Lieutenant Colonel
G-Lieutenant Colonel
Posts: 1002
Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2012 12:24 pm
Location: 70 km outside of Melbourne Australia

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by motto » Thu May 03, 2018 2:02 pm

Hi Darryl The main lighting switch in question appears to be the standard US military push-pull type.
The break down on the light switch codes is as follows
S-Service Signal Light
BS-Blackout Signal Light
TT-Trailer Tail Lights
HT-Service Headlights and Service Tail Lights
BHT-Blackout Front Lights and Blackout Tail Lights.
SS-Signal Light Switch.
SW-Signal Light Switch Feed.
A-Auxiliary Feed
B-Battery.
The term Signal Light or Signal Switch refers to Brake Light or Brake light Switch.

HTH

Dave

Big D
G-Captain
G-Captain
Posts: 788
Joined: Sat Sep 19, 2009 11:22 pm
Location:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by Big D » Thu May 03, 2018 5:26 pm

Hi Dave

Awesome! That's a big help and just what I needed. I couldn't see anything on line or in the manuals to confirm that so much appreciated.
Darryl Lennane
NZ

1943 Willys MB
1941 LP2A MG Carrier
1943 White M3A1 AOP
1942 Willys MBT
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car

User avatar
17thAirborne
G-Lieutenant General
G-Lieutenant General
Posts: 5847
Joined: Mon Jun 21, 2004 5:42 am
Location: Central TN

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by 17thAirborne » Thu May 03, 2018 5:29 pm

Congrats, you just went over 20,000 hits on your thread. Thanks for posting the candid info and pictures of your project. Everything you add here will be a help to all of us even in our different projects.
Oz

Feb 43 GPW 98532 USA 20206257
Oct 70 Land Rover Series 2a 25334079G NZ16GF36
http://gpw.castraponere.com/ (My Restoration Page)

Big D
G-Captain
G-Captain
Posts: 788
Joined: Sat Sep 19, 2009 11:22 pm
Location:

Re: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car U.S Ordnance number 7373

Post by Big D » Tue May 15, 2018 11:39 pm

Hi Oz,

Many thanks for the kind words.
Darryl Lennane
NZ

1943 Willys MB
1941 LP2A MG Carrier
1943 White M3A1 AOP
1942 Willys MBT
1944 Ford M8 Armoured Car
1945 Ford M20 Armoured Car


Post Reply

Return to “Armor”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 70 guests