Landships II

Hmmm . . . I haven't heard that before - do you have a source?  I had read that it was to push mud down through the mud chutes.

PDA wrote:

---

jellytwig is correct about the material it is made from but it is not a track cleaner. It is just a cover for the tracks so that when the tank is moving, light glinting off the tracks doesn't attract the attention of enemy reconnaissance planes.

---

I was more than a bit dubious of this, largely due to the relative newness at the time of both tanks and planes, but also expecting that the cover would extend several inches beyond the outside edge of the track if this was indeed the intent; however, it does not even fully cover the track.

I decided to investigate more deeply online, and in the process have discovered what I think might be considered the mother lode of Whippet documentation, essentially a walk-around with annotated photos from a survivor in South Africa and that at Bovington.   Note that the text I copied from the online document has introduced some formatting oddities that I have not been able to suss out and resolve.

This text is at the front of the i-book:

"This document may be freely distributed, on the following conditions:

that no changes or modifications are made to the document in any way;

and that no profit is made off the distribution.

Regarding the issue at hand, author Jakko Westerbeke reinforces the info I have previously seen:

"Although no mudguards were fitted, a canvas track cover could be installed over each track, hanging from angle iron brackets at the front and rear of the tank by means of coil springs with hooks.

Photographs of these covers in use are rare, however."

Photos 24 and 30 show the front and rear mounts, while the text at the latter discusses material and mounting details.

Rectalgia wrote:

---

This would be the i-Book then - gurth.home.xs4all.nl/afv/pdfs/whippet2.pdf

Incidentally, jellytwig's earlier "anonymous" post unhidden.

---

Yes, I had included the link, but it must have been deleted while I tried to sort out the formatting issues.  Has there ever been a paper book published on the Whippet?

On your second comment, I see that my initial response to PDA is marked as Anonymous, but I don't know what causes that; I would have thought the Forum wouldn't let you post unless signed in.

Don't know what "unhidden" means, as I had seen it - perhaps "attributed" ?

Gurth mentions that the springs were only on the rear and a "reinforcing slat" at the "short ends" of the canvas, but based on the photos there must have also been one in the middle, as otherwise the canvas would have sagged onto the tracks.  The shape in the photos indicates that it does not have a natural fabric drape there.