No 32 - No 71 MKI Sight

[Warren]

Peter:
Check out the optical sight for the Wombat...It is a 71 in the Ozzie manual..
I got the info along with a scope from Ozz many years ago. It was part of a EO manual on the Wombat.
I would love to find out what the paint is as I have never removed a harder to remove paint in life.
I have all the chemical "good stuff" for splitting lenses from Methylene Chloride to MEK and they barely touched the silver finish.
The last 71's I converted were a sliver finish and not white.
Before I forget, you were going to share to us "great white unwashed", the secret to removing a rusted turret detent in a Mk.3 scope tube.
If there are more ways than time and rust remover we/I would appreciate it.
I have been reasonably successful in removing them due to some root canal training 60 plus years ago, and access to the equipment.
However, if there is an easier and better way, always willing to learn
Heard from TAFT lately??? He has disappeared off the face of CYMR

[Peter Laidler]

The Wombat idea must be an Aust method of sighting Warren. The Mobat and Wombat were both of my era, here and Australia. As I recall it now, the Mobat used as the sighting medium, a side mounted Bren gun with a slight adjustment for the trajectory of the .303 and the 120mm round. The L4/7.62 trajectory wasn't as close as the old 303 and for many years the old 303 Bren remained with the Mobat and earliest Wombats. Until the .50" M8C came in. That changed things and accurate hits were the order of the day. Just 3 flashes from the spotter rounds and it was goodnight for the tank. Which we thought was good............... Until we saw our first MILAN. We thought that was the end of tank warfare. That was until we saw the Javelin and N-law

To get into the rusted solid clicker detent plungers of the Mk3, this is what I was taught......
Remove the 10BA grubscrew from the anti-backlash nut and remove it together with the plunger and springs. Using your own good judgement, ascertain the angle at which the jammed plunger hole continues (downwards ?). Follow this down and.....
You will fairly accurately identify the point IN THE THREAD, INTO WHICH THE NUT OS-36384 SCREWS, where, if followed through, the clicker plunger and spring would emerge.

Set the tube up and use a centre drill to mark that point. You MUST use a centre drill because you're drilling into a brass thread at a n awkward and easy to slip angle! Point marked, then follow up with the smallest drill that you can get away with. You won't need to go far until you break through. That done. fill with oil and next morning push jammed plunger out with suitable sized drift

It is impossible to make a threaded bush with pilot hole to act as a guide for several reasons....., accessibility for a start. I have never failed - yet!

What do you do about the hole between the nut and the clicker plunger hole. Nothing! Thereis graphite grease between the new plunger and spring AND in the nut threads. The nut threads are effectively sealed by the nut. The difficult bit is setting up the tube in order to accurately drill the small hole. Where this can look like a disaster is when bubba has made an effort to do the same, from the outside and burred the plunger hole. This way you can push the plunger out with a fee well judged taps with a small (toffee) hammer. Clean the burrs up and that's it.

Sorry it's taken so lone to mention this but I just need prompting every so often. And nope, haven't heard from Taff