No one could be more sorry then i for the failings of the T34/85 at Fort Nelson.
The show and trench were brill and apart from the tank my family enjoyed our time defending the Mother Land !

Just to keep you all updatted.

After alot of blood sweat and tears the T34/85 did make it on to the low loader with the help and support of the Fort Nelson Staff and there Sexton.

My brother meet us at my farm and after closing the road (Dedham can be full of stuck up people who dont see why they should have to stop just so we could unload a brocken down tank on a blind bend) we managed to pull the T34/85 off the low loader with his Abbott SPG and push her through the gates in to our field.

Unfortunatly the weather down our way has been a bit damp, and when the T34/85 got half way across the meadow and started to go up a slight incline she decided to give us a chalenge and sink in to the mud a little bit. OK up to the bottom of the hull.

despite our best efforts with the Abbout SPG and a couple of moden tractors she did not want to play, and was left to think about her actions over night !

Having just finished work for the day my plan of attact is to move my diamond T out of retirment and before her new owners arive to collect her, and with a couple of tractors as ground ancours winch the T34/85 the rest of the way across the field.

i will of course keep you all posted on the current situation and inpending repair of said Tank ready for Detling.

I hope all goes well with her I'm off for two weeks starting Monday if you need another pair of hands t help you with things, I'm more than happy to pop over as I'm in Chingford North London

_________________
Guards Serjant Yevgeni Trubetskoi 2nd Gds rifle div

Thanks for the update Neil and good luck with her repair.

_________________
Name: Valtar Valtarovich Prusins
Rank: Serzhant
Suvarov Section Leader

Hi Neil, sounds like you have had a nightmare! Keep us posted with yourprogress.

Cheers, Ade.

_________________
http://www.2ndguards.com/index.html

Adrian Borisovitch Stepanov
Guards Starshina
Unit 2 I/C 2nd Guards Rifle Div.

Well youll be pleased to know that after a night out in the cold with a wet and muddy tummy the T34/85 decided to play by my rules and was winched up to the top of the meadow and on to harder ground.

Now the fun can rearly start.

All i have to do is move a brocken down tank through 2 sets of gates and in through a yard in to a shed, so i can strip down and repair the engine. Unfortunatly the gates are not in a straight line and the yard is full of other toys ect.

Rest assured, i will keep posting regular updates as the work progresses so you all know how we are doing and can then all get excited about Detling (hopefully) !

The rain recently has not helped with the movement of the T34 in to the dry so i can start on the repair.
Yesterday inbetween the thunder storms i managed to move the T34 in between the 2 sets of gates, and hope to get her in to the yard after work today.
I have found that my modern tractor likes to dig 4 big holes when you ask it to pull or push a brocken down tank, so i am lucky that the new owner of my Diamand T tank transporter still has not collected her.

More to follow !

Im happy to report that the T34 is finally back in the yard and sitting in her normal spot.
As we have had so much fun (NOT) moving her that far we have decided not to try and move her in to a shed to work on rather build a new shed over where she sits now as that will be easyer and proberbly quicker !

Hopfully if the weather holds out i can start the job of stripping her down latter in the week.

It seems such a pity she wouldn`t go but she looked magnifiicent even in her silence.
You must have the patience of a saint (and your family) to have gone through all you have in gettig her back.
Clacton is a long way from me but if you need a spanner man I will gladly help.
I risk my neck on the block by saying that there are a few of us with an engineering bent that would gladly get stuck in an help if you need us.

After all the effort you made to get her there ; and back its the least we can do.

_________________
Name: Robert Fillipovich Soodyarov
Rank: Yefreytor
Очын приатна - Эа вас !!
Drink Tea, Be Mellow !

Hi Neil, thanks for the update. Keep us posted.

Cheers, Ade.

_________________
http://www.2ndguards.com/index.html

Adrian Borisovitch Stepanov
Guards Starshina
Unit 2 I/C 2nd Guards Rifle Div.

Thank you all for your words of support and offers of help, ill keep you postted and let you know if i need some more assistance.

Keep watching !

If need be I can take a few days leave and sleep in a tent ( or a plasche!).

I have plenty of leave to use .

Its just a thought in case you need an extra hand.

_________________
Name: Robert Fillipovich Soodyarov
Rank: Yefreytor
Очын приатна - Эа вас !!
Drink Tea, Be Mellow !

2nd Guards Rifle Division

Greeting comrade tankman. How's the T34 getting on will it be ready for Military Odysey (Detling)? PM me please.

Guards Kapitan Roman Rodinovich Neman
2nd Guards Unit Commander

_________________
After Stalingrad the Red Army knew the Germans could be beaten but after Kursk, they knew they would win!

I am currently burning the candel at both ends to make sure we are ready for battle in time for Detling.

I hope to be up and running long before then, as i have been approached by a film company who are making a six part documentry about great battles of WWII, and asked if the T34 could be filmed for the program on Stalingrad and the program on Kursk.
I will of course inform you once plans are drawn up if they require any extras !

Back to the T34 story;

Yesterday i manged to remove all of the armour decking from over the engine at the rear of the tank.
you still can't see much, but i can now start to remove parts so i will be able to get to the head.
Only got to remove the;
Oil cooler
Left hand radiator
exhaust manifold
injectors
air start pipes
inlet manifold
and the left hand batteries
to remove then i can start to remove the head !

Its my rest days tomorrow and Tuesday, so by Wednesday i should be able to give you an update on how far i have got.


[i]Keep living the dream !!![/i]

Ouch..........Big job. Good luck with it all.

And about extras, did i tell you about the time i was in a documentary.....It was called D-Day to Berlin. I was shown on it in the documentary 3 times.............oh and some others of the 2nd Guards were in it but they had minor roles ...........



Haha.

Cheers, Lez.

_________________
'To grow old is mandatory, to grow up is optional'

Chief Cook & Bottle Washer
Larissa Vasilyevna Stepanova
Guards Serzhant

I saw Martin again on TV at the weekend; it was a programme called "Tank Overhaul" and he was at Bovinton Tank Museum dressed in black.

Glad to hear the T34 is on the road to health. it will make it all the more special when I see it running again.

_________________
Name: Robert Fillipovich Soodyarov
Rank: Yefreytor
Очын приатна - Эа вас !!
Drink Tea, Be Mellow !

nice one les

_________________
Name: Kirill Yefimovich Grigoriev
Rank. who knows ?
Stalin's personal assassin .
Holder of the order of Stalins Moustache .
barely sane .... i think .
ex-ptrd gunner

2nd Guards Rifle Division

Sounds like your've got your work cut out comrade tankman! Have you been in contact with Gary Howard with reference to the T34 transportation costs? PM me please.

As for a Serzhant Stepanova I saw you at Tilbury Fort in a skirt during our filming for the BBC back in 2003. Now where's that picture for the web site?

Guards Kapitan Roman Rodinovich Neman
2nd Guards Unit Commander

_________________
After Stalingrad the Red Army knew the Germans could be beaten but after Kursk, they knew they would win!

_________________
'To grow old is mandatory, to grow up is optional'

Chief Cook & Bottle Washer
Larissa Vasilyevna Stepanova
Guards Serzhant

2nd Guards rifle Division

The T34 is very important to our Military Odyssey public battle skirmish so hope things are going well.

Guards Kapitan Roman Rodinovich Neman
2nd Guards Unit Commander

_________________
After Stalingrad the Red Army knew the Germans could be beaten but after Kursk, they knew they would win!

So far I have managed to remove;
All the armour decking,
The rear cover and vains,
The left hand batteries,
The oil cooler,
The left hand Radiator,
The water conection pipes,
The fuel bowel,
The inlet and exhaust manifolds,
The rocker cover,
The cam shafts,
6 of the injectors,
and a load of skin of my knuckels !
On first inspection i belived the head was held down with 24 bolts pulling it down from underneith the inlet and exhaust manifolds. But now i know as well as the impossible to reach 24 bolts there are another 16 large nuts under the cam shafts.
On inspection i have found 4 of these large bolts were lose and one was undone.
That might be what the problem was, i will be removing the head to check just in case.

The head is now undone and ready for removel on my next trip to the farm !

Keep living the dream !!