My '44 Flying Control Dodge

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On Saturday evening, the museum provided a meal for all the re-enactors and vehicle owners and opened up the Sun Inn pub for everyone.



During public hours, re-enactors and vehicle owners aren't allowed to drink or enter the pub.





This was our last evening around the log burner, as we'd all be packing up on Sunday evening.

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Beamish "Dig for Victory" Day 4 - Sunday September 3rd

The Moon was setting over my camp as we began the last day at Beamish.



We set off for the colliery, wanting to get the most out of the day before we had to start packing up the camp. By this time, we'd already packed much of the bedding into the Jeep trailer out of the way, before it got too hot.



We spent some time there, with others from our group coming and going, along with other vehicles.



By late morning, we'd moved on to coffee corner. Last year, we had coffee corner to ourselves, but this year, other vehicle owners have caught on to its strategic position near the bakery, cafe and toilets. A few times, we had to drive on by because the spot was occupied.

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My daughter was in a different dress on Sunday, so we took a few more photos here. On Saturday, I missed out on a morning sausage roll from the bakery, as they'd sold out, but on Sunday, we managed to get some still hot from the oven.



By early afternoon, we were back at camp for some more photos and to pack a few more thngs. We couldn't bring the car and flatbed trailer in to the show field until after 4pm, so we weren't in a major hurry to drop the tents.



Lynne and my daughter then went to have a look at the 1940s and 1950s farm and I finished off my look around the dioramas and re-enactor displays. This year, there were displays spread all over the second show field and it must have been the largest show yet.

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I took the Dodge out with a friend for another lap later in the afternoon, stopping at the colliery and coffee corner for a while. Derek, Andy and Lynne joined me with the Jeeps for one last trip around the site late in the afternoon, before we finished packing up. In the background is the new 1950s town. One street is complete and the framework of the cinema can be seen behind the terraces.



We finally had everything packed up and were ready to roll by 7:30pm, the last of the "Hedgehog Heroes" off the site.



We arrived home at 8:10pm as the sun was setting, but it was another couple of hours before everything was unloaded and the vehicles and trailers were away. We were all very tired, but it had been a great five days.





Many more pictures can be found on my vehicle event gallery pages.....

Set Up
https://www.sacarr.co.uk/mymvs/events/2 ... mish_1.htm

Thursday
https://www.sacarr.co.uk/mymvs/events/2 ... mish_2.htm

Friday
https://www.sacarr.co.uk/mymvs/events/2 ... mish_3.htm

Saturday
https://www.sacarr.co.uk/mymvs/events/2 ... mish_4.htm

Sunday
https://www.sacarr.co.uk/mymvs/events/2 ... mish_5.htm

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Tanfield Railway 1940s Weekend - September 23rd/24th

We went to Tanfield in the normal car on Friday morning to get the tent set up. It was forecast for heavy rain in the late afternoon. Sure enough, not long after we set off in the Dodge and Jeep, the rain started hammering down. With the sleeping bags in the top of the trailer, I was hoping the canvas was still waterproof! When we got there, everything was thrown through the tent door as fast as possible.



Saturday started with a little drizzle, but it got out dry with some bright spells across the day. The locos were already steamed up by breakfast and starting to assemble the trains for the day. Two locos were running for the weekend; Sir Cecil Cochrane and Horden.

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There weren't too many vehicles and displays this year. I think the weather forecast and another clashing '40s event reduced numbers attending. The Field Kitchen and NAAFI were there, along with the "Hand Me Down Gang", Home Guard and a couple of other groups with a Jeeps and weapons on show.



I set up the Jeep and Dodge with the Jeep undergoing maintenance under the Dodge crane, with tools set out on make shift tables made from ammo and ration crate boxes.

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Our display peaked at five vehicles on Saturday. Late in the day, three of us made the three mile trip down the road to East Tanfield Station for coffee.



Last year, there were a number of normal cars along the fence, but it was mostly empty this year, allowing me to get some pictures of the Jeep with 0-6-0 tank "Horden" along side.

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Saturday night was blowing itself inside out, with gales of 40+mph forecast. I didn't sleep much due to the noise of the wind and tent rattling.



Sunday was dry until early afternoon, so we were able to get the tent down dry. Most of the camping gear was packed into the trailer, so we didn't need to dismantle the display until later in the afternoon.

A band was playing in the carriage shed, while singers performed at Andrews House and East Tanfield stations.



As the weather front got closer, the crates were packed in the Dodge and the tent into the back of the Jeep.

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Colin was having some starting problems with his Austin. He was one of the singers, performing at East Tanfield station, so Andy took him down in his Jeep while the rest of us tinkered with the engine. After much fiddling and giving the battery a full charge, we got it running again by the time he finished singing.



It was another wet drive on the way home, but had stopped by the time we got back, so were able to pack away without getting wet.



It was another very tiring, but enjoyable green weekend. It was my tenth and penultimate event for the 2023 season, 'though the vehicles have made an equal number of non-show outings.

More pictures here - https://www.sacarr.co.uk/mymvs/events/2023/tanfield.htm

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National Museum of the Royal Navy ( Hartlepool ) - Sept 30th/Oct 1st

The show at the National Museum of the Royal Navy is likely to be my last public show of 2023. While only 16 miles from home, I didn't want to spend a fortune on fuel at the end of the season, so decided to take the Dodge the first day and the Jeep the second.



I took the Dodge on the first day because of possible rain during the afternoon, so that I had some cover to hide in. Andy was there with his Jeep, so we set up a maintenance diorama with the Dodge and his Jeep.

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A number of the usual local groups were set up around the historic quay with HMS Trincomalee as the backdrop. This was the first 1940s event held by the museum.



The Trincomalee is one of two surviving British Leda-class sailing frigate, built shortly after the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Work on the Trincomalee began in May 1816 and was launched on 12 October 1817. Trincomalee holds the distinction of being the oldest British warship still afloat, as although HMS Victory is 52 years older, the Victory is displayed in dry dock.

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The Royal Navy Bomb Disposal display, demonstrated disarming a parachute mine during the show and the Wizz Bangs gave a talk and firing display of various weapons once each day. The rain held off until mid afternoon, so I got wet on the trip home and while packing the Dodge away into the garage.



I took Jessie the Jeep for the second day and was joined by several other vehicles that weren't there on day one. Most of the re-enactor displays were the same, although a couple had gone, to be replaced by the Seatones singers. It was mostly sunny today and quite a bit warmer than Saturday.

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Photos for both days were a combination of DSLR and phone images. High shots of the vehicles were taken on my phone on a selfie stick, using the timer on the shutter release.



This appears to be our last event of the year, ending the season at Hartlepool, very close to Heugh Battery, where we started the 2023 season.



More pictures here - https://www.sacarr.co.uk/mymvs/events/2 ... alnavy.htm

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September 29th - Dodge Rear Canvas

I got a second hand rear canvas for the Dodge earlier in the season. It is meant to be attached to the bow by a spiral of rope, wrapped around the top of the bow. On a normal Dodge, having it permanently fitted isn't a problem. On mine, having the crane fitted and having to dismantle the roof bows to get it in the garage, makes the standard way of attachment a problem. So far this year, I only fitted it if it looked like it was going to rain overnight. I wanted a quicker way of attaching it than threading the rope around the bows and through all the canvas eyelets.

The wires that support the crane usually hang a little way below the bow, stopping the canvas from rolling down from the top as on a standard Dodge. When the tailgate is closed, that will support the crane, so the lifting cables can be given a bit of slack. A small chain was added to the bow, to hold the cables up out of the way of the canvas, allowing it to hang below.



So after a bit of messing around with ideas, I came up with a new way of attaching the canvas. Small lengths of rope were cut and fed through pairs of eyelets in the canvas, knotted on the outside. They now hook over small dowels on the inside of the bow, without any need for being tied or wrapped around the bow. It is a quick job to unfasten the sides and unhook the ropes from the dowels to remove it. If I need to see out the back to move the truck while at a show, I can just unhook the tops and the whole canvas can drop down to the truck bed, without removing the side ropes.



Longer lengths of rope are attached to each side, which do wrap around the sides of the bow to pull it out at the edges. It is now a quick job to fit or remove and the crane lifting wires don't cause a problem. It's quite thin material and could do with painting in a waterproof fabric seal like Nikwax to help keep the rain out.

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2023 Season Review

As we head into mid December, it's time for my annual season review. With salt on the roads and a hacking cough ( a plague brought home from school by my daughter ), I'm probably not going to be out in my green vehicles during the remaining couple of weeks of the year.

Normally I post a composition of one or two pictures from each event, but this year I've put them all into a short Youtube video. We've done ten public events, nine local runs and the Dodge has done nine sessions of moving materials around the garden for my landscaping and garden railway feature. We also did a couple of weeks around the Normandy beaches and museums in the Summer, but sadly without the vehicles.

https://youtu.be/9bgo8yAykRM?si=cNw6RTLm508oZUGL