RL-35-A Signal Corps wire cart

[robinb]

47" of visible pipe.

[craig johnson]

Thank You

[Johan Willaert]

While scrolling thru the new Book on Market Garden

( http://www.d-day-publishing.com/operation-...of-the-day.html ),

I came across this picture showing a Reelcart from the 506th Parachute Infantry in Holland in the fall of 1944...

 

 

Picture with full caption is also on my site here:

http://www.theliberator.be/handcart.htm

[jonesy1275]

I've thoroughly enjoyed reading this thread. Since buying a M3A4 last week, I am well into carts.

[Johan Willaert]

I've thoroughly enjoyed reading this thread. Since buying a M3A4 last week, I am well into carts.

 

Well, it seems you're hooked

[Johan Willaert]

A friend has recently acquired RL35 (not A!!) cart #402, and it came with the following tow bar...

 

Any info on these???? Original??? Foreign???

 

 

[Johan Willaert]

It is also fitted with these unusual Firestone S3 red dot tires... Rather uncommon, n??

 

 

[dmv]

Just got a Reel Cart serial #1850.

The draw bar has a brass (painted o.d.) middle section and is marked EX6886 which doesn't look like an US number to me.

 

I am missing two parts so if anyone could help me locate one I would be very grateful!

- The GC-10-A brake (I can use two)

- The main axle ! (not the RL27 or draw bar) The axle of the RL-31 is too short. If someone could give me exact measurements I could try to make one...

[Johan Willaert]

The draw bar has a brass (painted o.d.) middle section and is marked EX6886 which doesn't look like an US number to me...

My 1944 cart came out of the Swiss Army with an identical drawbar... Could be a replacement part... Dimensions are exact as steel bars...

[2ad82recon]

Johan

 

is that a tandem trailer in that 101st A/B Holland picture of the Bantam trailer and Reel Cart combo ?

 

Regards

 

LLoyd

[Johan Willaert]

Yes, it looks that way.... Looking thru the Orange book and others MBT and T3 within the 101AB seem to have been generally equipped with the tandem hitch...

[2ad82recon]

Nice picture......I have a genuine tandem trailer a 1943 Bantam trailer with my jeep.... and that .may make for a very interesting conversation piece....when we do 101st A/B Holland impressions...were going in September but as 82nd (504th/505th) Grave and Nijmegen.....whats the going rate for an RL-35 Johan ?

 

Regards

 

Lloyd

[Johan Willaert]

Ive seen them incomplete with new tires at around 750 up to 1500Euro for an Ex-Swiss Army with only a coat of postwar paint with all accessories and WW2 tires...

[zippy144]

Nice picture......I have a genuine tandem trailer a 1943 Bantam trailer with my jeep.... and that .may make for a very interesting conversation piece....when we do 101st A/B Holland impressions...were going in September but as 82nd (504th/505th) Grave and Nijmegen.....whats the going rate for an RL-35 Johan ?

 

Regards

 

Lloyd

 

Hi

 

My RL-35 is for sale to good home if it is of interest.

 

Regards

 

Tom

[2ad82recon]

Tom

 

Please email me at lloydrichards36(at)btinternet.com

 

Many thanks

 

Lloyd

[Peter B]

 

 

 

Hello

 

This is a older topic but i hope you experts are still in to the RL-35-A !

 

There is a possibility that i can buy a rl-35-a, i havent seen it yet but i do know it missing some parts, the two handles to be precise.

In the picture of Johan i see that the handle has gc-15 marked on it, i can buy the handle that Frankie bought with the a3+ on it, in your opinion is this original ?

 

Thanks,

 

Peter.

 

 

 

 

 

[Johan Willaert]

No idea, Peter...

 

The one Frankie had is the only one I have ever seen marked like that... Still better than nothing..

[Peter B]

Johan i suppose your right, but it would be so nice if this handle is the real deal !!!

 

Reading back this discusion over Greek bronze parts on a reel trailer, i wil take a magnet with me when i am going to visit te one that is offered me. ( there is going to be no surprise on that subject thanks to this forum )

[robinb]

Back to the question about the A suffix on the data plate. I have no proof, but I suspect when the bracket for the braking rope was added to the cart the designation of the cart was updated to the A model. My 1944 Signal Corps catalog shows a picture of the RL-35 cart without the rope bracket.

[Johan Willaert]

Did all of these reelcarts come with an orange SC acceptance stamp on the right side above the dataplate?

 

If so, can someone post a nice detailed picture along with some measurements?

 

Thanks

 

Just bumping this to check if anyone has a picture of the SC stamp...

[Quest Master]

I wanted to add the WWII DR-4 Wire Reel to this thread that I just restored. When I found it in Bastogne about 20 years ago it was rusty and pitted. I have sandblasted it to bare metal, filled in the pitting, repainted, stenciled (I make these btw) and restored it to look like a freshly factory produced reel ready for shipment.

[Guest walkajoe]

Hi all,

tried to get on Handcartz website to register my  RL- 35-A, but the site doesn’t want to work for me, so I’ll post the serial number here, if that’s okay. S/N 1830, 1944, and is in NZ.

Just on the handle bar issue: mine has the bronze bracket on it with a EX number, the rest is steel.
It is said that this is post WW2. Still, using common sense, could this be an early one, since bronze/ brass became a strategic material during the war and probably still was long after. To me it doesn’t compute that items with a expected short life-span are made from durable and valuable materials....Also: a similar EX number appears on the tires: Firestone USA.

Sorry for bringing this up, as this might be a well researched topic, but I am relatively new to the cart-scene.......

Mike 

[Johan Willaert]

Hi Mike,

 

can your cart be traced back to having been used by a European nation after WW2? Greece or Switzerland?

[tractor]

I also got one home recently