Not-Invented-Here: Successes and Missed Opportunities

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The Ford Trafford plant required some modification to the Rolls Royce drawings, to adapt the engine to improved production techniques. Stanley Hooker looked into it and found that it was good.

A lot of modifications. Back in 1971 a student teacher brought one of the larger full block drawings of the Merlin conversion to class & went over some the changes for thirty minutes. None major engineering alterations, just minor things to each part to adapt the motor to US standards. ie: thread pattern, bolt shank diameter, hex head size & pattern, standard bolt lengths, ... It was necessary to make hundreds of minor dimensional changes to be able to use stock US made bits vs setting up special production for British standard items. Btw the drawing was 1-1 scale :D Covered most of the blackboard.
 
While we're touching on automotive topics, consider the technical advances in the fifty prototype Tuckers: after the demise of that company at birth, many of those innovations didn't appear in production for quite some time to come (some, like the pivoting cyclops headlight, still haven't been adopted).

My Dad actually got to drive one when first introduced.
He said 'Almost like a Plymouth'

That wasn't a ringing endorsement, as Plymouth was Chrysler's entry level, low end Marque. The Tucker was over 1300 pounds heavier, with not much more power than the Deluxe 6

He was much more impressed with the Hudson Commodore, with its subframe construction, that started that whole 'Longer Lower and Wider'

2f6e2b16d18abb460faabfc75d1999ce.jpg

He liked the Hudson's handling better.

I asked 'What about the safety stuff' to which he said 'What about it? didn't really notice, nobody cared about that after the War' He figured that they already 'dodged the bullet' They wanted style and performance
 
A lot of modifications. Back in 1971 a student teacher brought one of the larger full block drawings of the Merlin conversion to class & went over some the changes for thirty minutes. None major engineering alterations, just minor things to each part to adapt the motor to US standards. ie: thread pattern, bolt shank diameter, hex head size & pattern, standard bolt lengths, ... It was necessary to make hundreds of minor dimensional changes to be able to use stock US made bits vs setting up special production for British standard items. Btw the drawing was 1-1 scale :D Covered most of the blackboard.

They were, most likely the Packard Merlin plans, not the Ford Merlin ones, which only required parts to be the same size, and fit together without filing.
 

Driftless

Donor
FWIW: There's a new Forgotten Weapons video review of the .276 Vickers-Pederson. Like most articles on the site, its firing range observational, rather than deeply analytical. (he's typically working with collector-grade weapons and variable ammunition)
 
My Dad actually got to drive one when first introduced.
He said 'Almost like a Plymouth'

That wasn't a ringing endorsement, as Plymouth was Chrysler's entry level, low end Marque. The Tucker was over 1300 pounds heavier, with not much more power than the Deluxe 6

He was much more impressed with the Hudson Commodore, with its subframe construction, that started that whole 'Longer Lower and Wider'

2f6e2b16d18abb460faabfc75d1999ce.jpg

He liked the Hudson's handling better.

I asked 'What about the safety stuff' to which he said 'What about it? didn't really notice, nobody cared about that after the War' He figured that they already 'dodged the bullet' They wanted style and performance

On that note, halogen headlights integrated with bodywork was illegal in the USA from 1940 to 1982 since the FMVSS required cars to use seal beam headlights. Thus you had cars such as the Citroen DS that were sleek and elegant in the rest of the world but were dowdy in US trim. Plus, it forced US cars to be chunky and unaerodynamic. Even after integrated headlights were legalized in 1982, we still had to use fuzzy and weak transverse filament bulbs until longitudinal filament bulbs were legalized in 1992. Thus whenever I buy a car made before 1993 I immediately look on eBay or local junkyards for "Euro" headlights to retrofit.
 
On that note, halogen headlights integrated with bodywork was illegal in the USA from 1940 to 1982 since the FMVSS required cars to use seal beam headlights.

Some States even banned separate High and Low beam headlights until 1958 or so
 
I probably saw you the other day on the 401.
Last highway run was Saturday June 11th, Beach(es) to Paris Rally http://www.cvmg.ca/ParisRally on QEW and up Hamilton mountain on the 403. Cruised beautifully at 120 kph (75 mph) with bursts of 130 kph (80 mph). Unfortunately ignition timing failed on way home and had to be towed. Now at mechanic having points, coils, auto advance, condensers, etc. checked over.

So, it wasn't me unfortunately :) Here's my bike.

IMG00385-20110403-13192.jpg
 
Last highway run was Saturday June 11th, Beach(es) to Paris Rally http://www.cvmg.ca/ParisRally on QEW and up Hamilton mountain on the 403. Cruised beautifully at 120 kph (75 mph) with bursts of 130 kph (80 mph). Unfortunately ignition timing failed on way home and had to be towed. Now at mechanic having points, coils, auto advance, condensers, etc. checked over.

So, it wasn't me unfortunately :) Here's my bike.

IMG00385-20110403-13192.jpg

Joe Lucas, Prince of Darkness strikes again. No, I saw a blue one, the other Triumph.
 

Driftless

Donor
Ordnance QF 6-pounder (57mm AT Gun) - another one of the exceptions to the NIH rule for the US.

A British designed, built, and used standard AT weapon for the duration of WW2, also built and used by the US from British specifications
U.S. production

The idea of manufacturing the 6 pounder in the U.S. was expressed by the U.S. Army Ordnance in February 1941. At that time the U.S. Army still favored the 37mm Gun M3 and production was planned solely for lend lease. The U.S. version, classified as substitute standard under the designation 57 mm Gun M1, was based on the 6 pounder Mk 2, two units of which were received from the UK. However, since there was sufficient lathe capacity the longer barrel could be produced from the start.[3] Production started early in 1942 and continued until 1945. The M1A1 variant used US "Combat" tyres and wheels. The M1A2 introduced the British practice of free traverse, i.e., the gun could be traversed by the crew pushing and pulling on the breech, instead of solely geared traverse, from September 1942. The M1 was made standard issue in the Spring of 1943.

A more stable carriage was developed but not introduced. Once the 57 mm entered US service a modified towing point design was introduced (the M1A3) but only for US use. Tractors for the M1 include the Dodge WC-63 11⁄2-Ton 6x6 and the White Half-Track.

Two-thirds of American production (10,000 pieces) went to US Army Divisions in Europe. About one-third of production (over 4,200 pieces) was delivered to the UK and 400 pieces were sent to Russia through Lend Lease. When the United States re-armed and re-equipped Free French forces for the Normandy landings, their Anti-Tank units received American-made M1s.

Like the British Army, the U.S. Army also experimented with a squeeze bore adaptor (57/40 mm T10), but the program was abandoned. American shell designs and production lagged behind the introduction of the gun once it was accepted for service and so at first only AP shot was available. The HE shell was not available until after the Normandy landings and UK stocks were procured to cover its absence.

Its use by regular US Army front-line units was discontinued in the 1950s.
 

Driftless

Donor
Spitfires in US Army Air Force & US Navy Service:

The Spitfire was one of only a few foreign aircraft to see service with the USAAF, equipping four groups in England and the Mediterranean. Spitfires were briefly flown by the US Navy after the Normandy landings to support cruisers and battleships bombarding land targets

United States Army Air Forces 4th Fighter Group
7th Photographic Reconnaissance Group
31st Fighter Group
52d Fighter Group
United States Navy
  • Cruiser Scouting Squadron Seven (VCS-7)
307thspitscv.jpg


Beaufighter's in US service:

With the P-61 Black Widow not expected to be operational in Europe until the end of 1944 to early 1945, a "reverse" Lend-Lease was arranged in which over 100 radar-equipped Bristol Beaufighters were transferred to the USAAF as they were more capable than the underpowered P-70s used in training.

beaufighter



Mosquito in US Service:
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) ordered 120 Mosquitos for photographic reconnaissance, but only 40 were delivered and given the U.S. designation F-8 (six Canadian-built B Mk VII and 34 B Mk XX). Only 16 reached Europe, where 11 were turned over to the RAF and five were sent to Italy. The RAF provided 145 PR Mk XVI aircraft to the Eighth Air Force between February 1944 and the end of the war. These were used for a variety of photographic and night reconnaissance missions.
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Cat meet Pigeons!?

The FAA teaching the USN how to land the F4U Corsair.
(This is more of a procedure than a physical change)

And all of the field modifications and suggestions Vought worked into the assembly line (Although some people will go to absurd lengths trying to say otherwise).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vought_F4U_Corsair#Enhancement_for_carrier_suitability

Vought never adopted the clipped wings, although this did improve the sink rate, but the bulged canopy, raising the pilots seat, the wing stall strip (Arguable?), wiring shut the cowl flaps and diverting the oil and hydraulic lines ....

... the definitely US modification was to the landing gear, improved oleo struts, cutting out the landing bounce.
 
Here is a fun game, try and think of an MoD weapons system procurement decision since WWII that has been delivered on time, on budget, and to specification.

Resolution class submarines (although you can argue that wasn't an MoD decision).
 
Ordnance QF 6-pounder (57mm AT Gun) - another one of the exceptions to the NIH rule for the US.

A British designed, built, and used standard AT weapon for the duration of WW2, also built and used by the US from British specifications

............................................................................

Ironically, many British 6 pounder guns were bored out to accept American 75 mm ammunition. These guns were installed in Comet and Churchill tanks.
Even more amusing, after the war the Dutch Army re-armed many of their (Canadian-built) Ram II tanks with British 75 mm guns, eliminating the biggest criticism that Ram tanks were under-gunned.
In defense of the Canadian Arms industry, Montreal Locomotive Works was too busy building Sexton SP guns on chassis similar to Ram and Sherman.

Speaking of SP guns, in August of 1944, disastrous infantry casualties forced the Canadian Army to convert a batch of (American-made) M-7 Priest SP guns to armoured personnel carriers. By August of 1944, the barrels on that batch of Priests was worn-out and they were laying idle in Normandy.
 
Kangaroo APCs were named after the unit/depot that converted those M-7s. Ram tanks converted to carry ammo were called Wallabies.
 
I believe that Ford decided not to import Australian Falcons into the US and pursue a vigorous export programme in the late 90s early 2000s
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in order to keep the Crown Victoria

Ford-Crown-Victoria-2000-Lt--Blue-Sedan-LX-Gasoline-V8-Rear-Wheel-Drive-Automatic-27707-0.jpg


which is a piece of shit in comparison.
 
Kangaroo APCs were named after the unit/depot that converted those M-7s. Ram tanks converted to carry ammo were called Wallabies.
An Australian depot was it?

in order to keep the Crown Victoria

which is a piece of shit in comparison.
The new-model Pinto isn't it? They also decided to shut down production in Australia, which IMO was rather daft given most cars can't really take Outback conditions as well as the Australian ones can.
 
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