Ferret parts availability

[Ajax MD]

I've been offered a Ferret and it's not too far away. The usual "ran when parked" nonsense. The owner had passed away and the daughter heard about me as a potential buyer.

I realize that these are British. Since they were built up until 1972-ish, parts may still be available.

How stupid of an idea is this?

 

[patracy]

Depends on the parts. There are a number of parts that are available. But there's also a number of parts that simply are not available for any amount of money there is. (Parking brake cables I know are non-existent, I ended up having to make replacements) Being in the US, you'll also have to deal with the delay of getting parts for it. And some of the sellers over in the UK have to report to the ministry of defense on the end use of the parts. Meaning you physically have to get them to mail you a letter, you sign it, and send it back to them, then you can order parts.

Seeing you own a HMMWV. Take the not fun of working on that engine in a "bucket" and multiply that by 2. Take the parts costs and multiply that as well. Take the geartrain noise and multiply that by 10. Take the comfort of the HMMWV and reduce that by 2. Take the blindspots of a HMMWV and multiply that by 4. Take some of the engineering design that makes you say "WHY?" of a HMMWV and multiply that by 6.

But then take the coolness of rolling around town in your HMMWV and multiply that by 50 for being in armor.

Best thing I can say, it's a love hate relationship.

 

[Mullaney]

I've been offered a Ferret and it's not too far away. The usual "ran when parked" nonsense. The owner had passed away and the daughter heard about me as a potential buyer.

I realize that these are British. Since they were built up until 1972-ish, parts may still be available.

How stupid of an idea is this?

.
REME Depot is a local group that has a few parts and skills to help you along in your quest.



I agree with @patracy on the engine compartment.
It is a Royal Pain in the backside for sure!
Nice comparison to the other points he had too...

Though it IS an awful lot of fun once it is rolling down the road.

 

[Ajax MD]

@patracy Your first paragraph dissuades me of this endeavor. Everything in the second paragraph endears me to it.
The first paragraph will probably win out. I will ask the seller if she's aware of a parts cache that the deceased may have had for this thing.

 

[wgtactical]

They make great lawn ornaments...

 

[teletech]

Depends on the parts. There are a number of parts that are available. But there's also a number of parts that simply are not available for any amount of money there is. (Parking brake cables I know are non-existent, I ended up having to make replacements) Being in the US, you'll also have to deal with the delay of getting parts for it. And some of the sellers over in the UK have to report to the ministry of defense on the end use of the parts. Meaning you physically have to get them to mail you a letter, you sign it, and send it back to them, then you can order parts.

Seeing you own a HMMWV. Take the not fun of working on that engine in a "bucket" and multiply that by 2. Take the parts costs and multiply that as well. Take the geartrain noise and multiply that by 10. Take the comfort of the HMMWV and reduce that by 2. Take the blindspots of a HMMWV and multiply that by 4. Take some of the engineering design that makes you say "WHY?" of a HMMWV and multiply that by 6.

But then take the coolness of rolling around town in your HMMWV and multiply that by 50 for being in armor.

Best thing I can say, it's a love hate relationship.

Funny, it all depends on where you are coming from. I was just thinking how light all the parts are and how easy most things are to get to when you compare it to even the lightest tracked-armor! Just four wheels and only a few removable armor panes to contend with.
I bought my Ferret from an estate as well and it was missing important parts (gearshifter for one). It wasn't easy or cheap, but I've found a number of vendors in the US and UK who helped me out. Some vendors get very fussy about what they will ship and others just shrug and post it. Still, it's no sedan that you will want to daily-drive. They are pretty quiet from the outside, but they are almost unimaginably loud on the inside. I usually have a lookout in the commander seat and often a spotter in the shop or parking lot and they never realize just how loud they have to yell for me to have any chance of hearing them.
A lot of the Ferrets in the USA came from Canada and so have upgraded from the two-speed generator, but make sure the one you are looking at has been upgraded before attempting to start it, as improper priming will kill the original unit in moments.

 

[Buck Wampum]

I've been offered a Ferret and it's not too far away. The usual "ran when parked" nonsense. The owner had passed away and the daughter heard about me as a potential buyer.

I realize that these are British. Since they were built up until 1972-ish, parts may still be available.

How stupid of an idea is this?

Ferret ownership has to be easier than owning a V-100

 

[teletech]

They make great lawn ornaments...View attachment 884410

No side bins, tools, or sand rails, converted to US marker lights, and a... turret on a pretty early Ferret, judging by the square side windows. Not nearly as far out as the TOYO Ferret. OK, I'll bite, where did that conversion come from?

 

[wgtactical]

No side bins, tools, or sand rails, converted to US marker lights, and a... turret on a pretty early Ferret, judging by the square side windows. Not nearly as far out as the TOYO Ferret. OK, I'll bite, where did that conversion come from?

The last owner wanted this Ferret for occasional parades and advertisement for his business so he had a gentleman fab up a fake turret using a turret bearing that was used on M26 and M27 cupolas. Easily removed if desired, but I will leave it alone until I either get around to it or sell it. Considering this vehicle is about 15 years older than a V100 I am restoring, I was able to find an early photo of this vehicle while in service (attached) but so far haven't been able to find any photos of the "Blood Sweat and Tears" V100 that spent time in Vietnam with the 504th MP from '69 through around '72

 

[teletech]

The last owner wanted this Ferret for occasional parades and advertisement for his business so he had a gentleman fab up a fake turret using a turret bearing that was used on M26 and M27 cupolas. Easily removed if desired, but I will leave it alone until I either get around to it or sell it. Considering this vehicle is about 15 years older than a V100 I am restoring, I was able to find an early photo of this vehicle while in service (attached) but so far haven't been able to find any photos of the "Blood Sweat and Tears" V100 that spent time in Vietnam with the 504th MP from '69 through around '72

A fake turret at least might be lighter in weight and so hurt performance less.
Seems like I saw a full set of side bins for sale not long ago for not a fortune. They are fun little vehicles for sure. The funny steering wheel tilt is fine going forward, but for some reason I think it's part of why backing up took some getting used to for me.
I agree it's really nice to find in in-service pic. I wish I could find one of my ferret, thought I was lucky enough to find one of one of my CVR(T) in Somalia as part of the UN mission there.

 

[Buck Wampum]

A local merchant 20 mins from my house has one out front. Every time I take my V-100 out around here, someone will inevitably tell me there is one just like mine on Rt. 309! All armored cars look alike I guess.

The owner is a great guy, has done sand blasting jobs for me and does nice work. He might sell it......

I also know of another one at a museum in NJ that is for sale. Looks pretty nice, is stored inside. I'd considered getting one as a "Mini Me" companion for my V-100, but the thought of a second logistics train for parts quashed that. While Ferret parts are likely easier to come by than finding V-100 parts, I'm guessing that finding Ferret parts is no walk in the park .

Instead, I'm considering getting a M151 Mutt as my "Mini Me" ride, for days when the V-100 might be too much. Got to love a vehicle that you can find any part for, without a lot of drama.....

 

[teletech]

A local merchant 20 mins from my house has one out front. Every time I take my V-100 out around here, someone will inevitably tell me there is one just like mine on Rt. 309! All armored cars look alike I guess.

The owner is a great guy, has done sand blasting jobs for me and does nice work. He might sell it......

I also know of another one at a museum in NJ that is for sale. Looks pretty nice, is stored inside. I'd considered getting one as a "Mini Me" companion for my V-100, but the thought of a second logistics train for parts quashed that. While Ferret parts are likely easier to come by than finding V-100 parts, I'm guessing that finding Ferret parts is no walk in the park .

Instead, I'm considering getting a M151 Mutt as my "Mini Me" ride, for days when the V-100 might be too much. Got to love a vehicle that you can find any part for, without a lot of drama.....



View attachment 889666

https://www.ferretspares.com/ It's not awful to get parts, if you don't mind paying for them.
I really amazes me how common these things seem to be, they are just everywhere.
His has the newer windows that do make it less scary to drive in town, and might be a real Mk.2 and so have the power brakes.
Around here, that's a $15K-$17K Ferret I feel. What's the market like out there?
Yes, to the everyman, all APCs are the same and most of them are tanks, certainly anything with armor and tracks is a tank to them!
You're only a couple states away from Neil Condo's yard out in Monticello, IN, so if you want to play with little tracked stuff, he's got a bunch for sale, so if you got two (or three) Spartans, you'd have a pretty good stash of spares.