Canadas support for repowering the Commonwealth troops in the early days of WW-II 

DESCRIPTION
This fantastic and highly desirable Lot consist of a Class A restored 1940 Chevrolet Field Artillery Tractor (FAT) and its matching 1939 Limber.
But be aware: the also matching 1940 Quick Fire 25 Pounder Gun will be offered in this auction as a separate lot (Lot 0231).
And……. if you want to go ‘all the way’ finally a 17 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun (Lot 243) as being the whole grail of British gun design and never been on the market since the last 5 years will be a fantastic asset to complete this set!

The Field Artillery Tractor (FAT) was a four-wheel-drive towing vehicle used with the 25 Pounder Field Gun and the 17 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun during the Second World War. Under the vehicle is a very heavy winch for moving the gun or to winch the vehicle in bad terrain.
Ford and General Motors in Canada produced over 22,000 FATS during the war.
This FAT is a very rare survivor of the Chevrolet 8440/CGT series. To be exact, an early 1940 example Model 84-40 of the variant known as a FAT-1 with a 7A2 body and No.11 cab produced by The General Motors of Canada Limited, Oshawa Walkerville Regina Works Vehicle was delivered in TBRA Trim and paint F.C. 98. It was fully restored in a 4-year restoration period by a team of professionals.

The Artillery Trailer, or “Limber,” was used to carry ammunition and equipment for the gun. The Limber carried 32 rounds of ammunition for the 25 Pdr Field Gun or the 17 Pdr Anti-Tank Gun, along with extra fuses. The personal kit of the Gunners was under a tarp on the front of the trailer. The Limber was never that popular as it made backing up very difficult. A Limber had been required for centuries to bear the weight of the gun to allow horses to pull, but it was no longer necessary with vehicles. Therefore, use of Limbers ended after the 25 Pdr went out of service, thus also the end of an era! Since then, ammunition and stores have simply been carried in the towing vehicle.

HISTORY
In 1935, two years after the founding of the Third Reich in Germany, the British War Office entered into discussions with Canada as to that country’s potential for the production of war material. Initial talks only resulted in what have been termed ‘educational contracts’ relating to, for instance, Bren light machine guns and 25-pounder field guns. Canada’s automotive industry did not immediately benefit. However, Canada’s Ministry of Militia and Defense subsequently sought the aid of the auto manufacturers in designing vehicles for military service and what could now be termed the first Canadian Military Pattern (CMP) prototype emerged in 1937. Designed by Syd Swallow, an engineer employed by the Ford Motor Company of Canada, it was basically a ‘Canadianized’ version of a standard British 15cwt.

When the British were driven into the sea at Dunkirk in 1940, many vehicles remained behind in France. They were already in France and could no longer be brought back so quickly. It was therefore necessary to make up for these shortfalls as quickly as possible. The British and Commonwealth army grew explosively through the war and needed many vehicles. Canada was in a good position to help due to the presence of a large and modern auto industry. Even before the outbreak of war there was close cooperation between British and Canadian institutions and specifications for military vehicles had already been established. The use of existing American technology and extensive Canadian standards in construction offered opportunities to quickly produce large numbers of vehicles.
2.1 Canadian military vehicle design
At this distance it might seem odd that the Canadian authorities should contract manufacturers (General Motors of Canada also subsequently produced a 15cwt prototype) with U.S.-based parent companies to design a vehicle based on British standards.
However, the U.S. was not at war at that time and Canada, as a member of the Commonwealth, would be fighting alongside Britain and it was logical to adopt British standards. In retrospect, we may think differently. Anyway, in 1939 it became policy that the design of Canadian military vehicles should be based on that of the British Army, and the Ford Company of Canada and General Motors Canada were asked by the Canadian Ministry of National Defense to collaborate in the design and development of a series of MVS to British standards. Each company would retain its own powerplant, chassis and cooling system but would otherwise seek compatibility as far as possible.

Getting FAT
At first these vehicles were referred to as Department of National Defense (DND) Pattern, but as users other than the Canadian Army began to order in large quantities the blanket designation was altered to Canadian Military Pattern (CMP).
Production commenced in 1940 with fewer than 15,000 CMPs being manufactured in the first year, mainly for domestic use. However, the numbers rapidly increased as orders -particularly from Britain- flooded in.
Sources differ, but in the region of 400,000 CMPs had been produced by late 1945, a sizeable percentage of the total number of military vehicles produced in Canada during WW2 which, if you include Commercial and Modified Conventional types (i.e. militarized commercial designs) and armored vehicles, reached in excess of 850,000! A small number of CMP vehicles were produced in Australia, New Zealand, India, Egypt and England.

In accordance with CMP specifications, all vehicles were made with right-hand drive, although in Canada all vehicles were left-hand drive. The CMP specification proved to be versatile and formed the basis for a wide variety of different trucks and armored vehicles. However, there was one demand that the Canadians were not too happy about. The English demanded that the dashboard should be thirteen inches from the front axle. That was quite a switch, but in the end it was not so odd. This caused the engine to sit half in front of the cabin. This made it a compact vehicle with more cargo space available within the total length compared to the American vehicles.
Before we get pointlessly bogged down in production figures and design requirements it’s worth noting that, according to one reliable source, 22,891 of the total CMPs manufactured were 4×4 field artillery tractors (FAT). These were produced by Ford as the G2910/FGT and by General Motors as the Chevrolet 8440/CGT. To explain, CMP FATS were produced in six variants starting with the FAT-1 fitted with the (notoriously cramped) No.11 cab, and continuing via the slightly improved No.12 cab-equipped FAT-2 (1941) to the FATS 3 to 6, all of which had the distinctive No.13 cab (1943) with its reverse-sloped windscreen, CMP FATS were patterned on field artillery tractors made in Britain by most notably, Morris-Commercial but also Guy and Karrier which we tend to refer to as ‘Quads.
Sitting on a 101in wheelbase chassis, the Chevrolet 8440/CGT was powered by the company’s own 216 engine; a straight- six engine of 3,542cc (216 cubic inch) capacity. With a maximum of 85bhp on tap, power was transmitted to all of the rear wheels via a four-speed gearbox and two-speed transfer box.
Most importantly, a power winch was located above the rear axle. Of course, Ford’s version duplicated those specifications but instead utilized Ford’s ubiquitous flathead V8 which, with a few more cubic inches available, managed an extra 10bhp.

Extensive restoration
Relatively a very few FATs have survived since WW-II. During wartime they were hard worked. After the war, those that entered the civilian market through surplus auctions were again hard worked! Of many the rear body was removed and a jib, which had to work with the existing winch, or a cargo platform was installed. In these days an ex-army FAT made for a cheap, cheerful, and undeniably rugged (breakdown) truck.
So, although many FATs could find work in civilian applications, which would have ensured short-term survival, this ultimately resulted in many being scrapped.

The current owner purchased this FAT as a restorable project on 21-08-2002. One evening in 1999 he met Eddy Dieffenbach, the son of the famous Belgian collector Johan Dieffenbach. Eddy was in the process of selling his late father’s collection. The current owner was actually looking for a Dodge Command, but Eddy said: “If you’re really looking for something special, I have something really nice for you here, a Chevrolet HUP”. It clicked well with Eddy and eventually more vehicles from Johan’s collection ended up with the current owner after the HUP.

This was one of the last that the current owner managed to purchase from the Dieffenbach family. All vehicles that the current owner owns or has owned have been perfectly restored and ready to drive away. Actually, just like the old days with Johan Dieffenbach. However, that was not the case with this Chevrolet. Johan hadn’t got around to that anymore. Through documentation research, the current owner discovered that it is a special vehicle; a Chevrolet Field Artillery Tractor Cab 11. You can apparently see that it is a Cab 11 by the closed roof. In the Cab 12, the roof is covered with a hood that can be opened if it gets too hot in the cab.
The purchase also included the matching original Limber ammunition trailer and a 25-pounder gun which will be auctioned by Tracks & Trade as well.

Further investigation revealed that Johan had purchased the Chevrolet in England. They had already started the restoration, but not in the right way. The back of the body consisted of a few flat stable plates with the hatches on top. Without a hole underneath! The still original parts of the body were so rotten that they had to be replaced as part of the restoration.
The current owner was at a loss for words, but fortunately he had a good friend who was a professional sheet metal worker. He had a good idea: “Then we just make a 100% copy of the cabin”.
Easier said than done because the old cabin could no longer serve as a guideline, as there was nothing left in the back.

A lot of research was needed, looking at a many of old photos and especially a lot of visits to Mr Dirk Leeghwater (LwD Parts from Broek op Langedijk in the Netherlands). He also had such a cabin and is also a great connoisseur of Canadian vehicles. Fortunately, the old one was able to supply important hooks, brackets, and locks for the doors and therefore the new cab has become an exact copy of the old one, but then as it should be with all the shutters and the cupboards. At the same time, the rest was taken care of. Everything has been apart. All iron parts sandblasted and metallized.

This is the application of a thin layer of zinc by means of a flame sprayer. Then adhesive primer and a green lacquer (SCC 15).
The entire driveline has also been overhauled; axles, differentials, gearboxes, winch, engine, steering box, and so on. All seats were also reupholstered. In the end everything was put back together and finally completely repainted one more time.
The result is amazing, it’s just a brand-new vehicle! Only the tires that were under it looked nothing like it. They were too small compared to the large wheel arches. After a long search, the current owner found the right rim size with a NATO profile at a dealer, but they were also too small. Finally, he was able to exchange those tires for the right size and dimensions

Over 1.800 hrs. have been invested in the period 2002-2006. In that year the FAT was ready and received a Belgian road license.

Chevrolet’s straight-six: power to the people
Chevrolet’s straight-six engine entered the market in 1929 and was not completely withdrawn from U.S. production until 1990. In fact, the straight-six was the company’s only one until 1955, when a small-block V8 was introduced as an option. In this FAT still the original WW-II engine which was fully refurbished. Due to its condition a full overhaul was not necessary.

Limber
The Artillery Trailer, or “Limber,” was used to carry ammunition and equipment for the gun.
The Limber carried 32 rounds of ammunition for the 25 Pdr Field Gun or the 17 Pdr Anti-Tank Gun, along with extra fuses. The personal kit of the Gunners was under a tarp on the front of the trailer.
The Limber was not that popular as it made backing up very difficult. A Limber had been required for centuries to bear the weight of the gun to allow horses to pull, but it was no longer necessary with vehicles. The use of Limbers ended after the 25 Pdr went out of service. Since then, ammunition and supplies were simply carried in the towing vehicle.

This Limber is in great condition. It comes as indicated in the pictures accompanying this brochure.
On the left side all original ammo boxes are still there. On the right the ammo boxes are missing.

CMP Field Artillery Tractor (FAT)

Trailer Artillery or “Limber”

Lot-0229-02-TT-CAN-Chevy-FAT-No.-11-Cab-Limber-Rev-2.0

Brochure: Lot 0229-02 T&T CAN Chevy FAT No. 11 Cab + Limber Rev 2.0