Churchill Tank Chat

picked up a gearbox last week for the churchill and although it looks rough, once i started to strip it i found it was remarkably well preserved. which is often the case with restoration. you look at something and think it's rusted solid but with the application of a bit of heat and a big hammer it often comes good in the end.

 

rich, thats interesting, will follow this thread with interest!

The findon, tank, next time im down there will get some pics. There was a lot of Canadians around those parts, lots of bits to be seen up at cissbury ring etc, the odd 303 case, mortar fins etc

 

Rick -
That Gearbox still looks good - even the brake pads have a few miles on them still - good luck with the rest of it ..

MR Ed
The Canadian 5th Armoured spent some time around the Cissbury Ring area before shipping out to Italy in the late October '43 -they left their vehicles in the Uk.
On landing in Italy they refused to piock up the cast - offs of Brit 7th Armoured and demanded new stuff which had to be sent out from the Uk - this didn't endear them to anyone - then they had a fight with the Seaforths fo 1st Cdn Div -Monty fired them - and we didn't see them again until the Diadem Operation in the Liri Valley - by then they had smartend up.

Meanwhile the Brit 21st and 25th (Gerry's mob) took over the support of 1st Cdn until they left in the Feb of '45 for Belgium.

Notta Lotta people know that
Cheers

 

I took this of a churchill waiting to be placed on the range in about 1970 -ish , plus a number of other bridge laying chassis
and had a clamber over it and in it ,

John

 

groundhugger
which range area was it on, i could do with some parts for mine
i wonder if this is the same one on warcop

 

Rick - they both look a bit woebegone - you'll be lucky to get a whole part from those two..after the lads have hit them a few times....
Cheers

 

hi tom
i'm reme there's nothing we can't do with a gas axe and a hammer. i was meaning to ask you a question so you could clear something up for me. what colour was the inside of you churchill, i only ask as i had always assumed british armoured vehicles were painted silver but i've heard some interiors were white due to a shortage of silver paint. could you confirm whether or not you ever saw or heard of a white interior.
cheers

rick

 

some views of the same tank on the carpark at Warcop in the early 70's

 

Rick -
as far as I am aware ALL Churchills in our bde - certainly the Regiment's interiors were white as one of my jobs was to wash down the Turret interior of dust mainly as you didn't want that stuff up your nose...
Cheers

 

that's what i was hoping to hear tom, thanks. i always prefered the white interiors to silver when i was still in the army.
groundhugger thanks for the churchill pics, do you have anymore you could post up for us .

cheers

rick

 

sorry Rik thats the only one i've seen in captivity [apart from the one at Eden camp [crocodile]] although there were some other bridging stuff on the park at the time

 

thanks anyway it's always nice to see churchill pics, here's the one at eden camp. the engine and box have been stripped but the interior looks very complete. might make a good restoration project, i wonder if they'll part with it

 

Thats good to know Rik , Last year I looked throught the hole in the front and the interior was really scabby and rusty Its nice to know she's getting spruced up .

John

 

Rick - got me puzzled with this one - looks like a flamethower - CS Mk V - of Hobo's Funnies of 79th Div - with no Besa mounted in the turret - BUT showing the insignia of VIII armoured bde's Fox mask - or do my glasses need sand blasting ...?
Cheers

 

hi tom
don't worry you're not losing your marbles, it's a bit of a lash up as you can see from the pics but i suppose it was done to the best of their ability/budget at the time, i've no doubt it came from the famous pounds yard, pretty much in the same condition it's in now although it looks to have had a gun barrel welded on and a lick of paint, as for the besa mount it looks too good to be fabricated so it's possible it's a modification of some kind but that's just a guess.
the interior pic shows the flame projector.

rick

 

Rick - you are possibly right about it being a lash up job as the round driver's escape hatch looks like it might be a MkVII....as I thought only the MkV were the flamethrowers - and the turret Besa mounting looks suspect.....and a welded gun ...?
Cheers

 

thanks anyway it's always nice to see churchill pics, here's the one at eden camp. the engine and box have been stripped but the interior looks very complete. might make a good restoration project, i wonder if they'll part with it

That one must have been a Mk VII (or later) - round drivers visor, round escape hatches, cheek armour on the mantlet and turret ring protection round the bottom of the turret - and a crocodile's flame gun in the hull MG position.

Chris

 

hi tom
this was originally a crocodile and does have the right turret and hull as they were based on the mk7 but the barrel is probably a dummy as you can see from the terrible welding (it's worse than mine and that's saying something). the besa mount has me confused too but i've a freind who knows just about everything when it comes to churchills, which is no mean feat when you consider all the variants and slight differences, i'll ask him if he knows anything about it. by the way the mkv was the 95mm close support gun or bombard as it's sometimes known.

all the best
rick

 

Rick
as Chris has corrected my correction on the MkVII - I do recall the CS MKv 95mm.bombard as we had a whole one in our squadron and Wee Wully Fenn from Glasgow of 3rd troop had the joy of being the gunner and took great delight in "bombing" various German hide outs - who thought they were being bombed - with no aircraft around !
Cheers