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M.B.Wild & Co Nechells

  • Thread starter Thread starter O.C.
  • Start date Start date
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O.C.

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Could anyone tell me where M.B.Wild &Co was in Nechells about 1939-44 they made the Crusader Tanks with Nuffields at Washwood Heath
 
Thanks John, That was a street I never went down as it led nowhere allways went past it to get to the Rez
No 138 Argyle St received bomb damage in the Blitz
 
Crommie, my late father in law was works manager at Wilds during and after the war. They also made bren gun carriers. I think MIchael Wild is still in Argyle Street
 
I'll do that later today Crommie. O0

Talking to Brian my husband, he remembers going into Wilds during the war, and seeing The Bren gun Carriers being engineered. He tells me that when one was finished they would take it out on test. It went along Argyle Street, into Wharton Street, and down Cuckoo Road, completing the block. They were on caterpillars, so the noise must have been memorable.The whole factory was proud of the fact that the first order went out To El Alemain.
 
First one Brian says is his grandfather Will Poppitt's ARP badge
Second one would have been an identity number, during the time the factory was doing war work.
 
Wonderful Badges Di. and I bet not a lot of them are around as I have never seen those type before
Below are one of the Standard issue  types
 
Alf, I have a photo no writing or ID on but I think this is a Bren Gun Carrier ? and perhaps someone can tell me what the other tank is.
 
Dennis I don't really know, hope someone will tell us, I know that that photo is on a test ground so its somewere in the midlands if anyone knows I will show the Test Track with the tanks being tested (like the landrover testing ground)
 
Interesting to see the different badges Graham. I wonder why they had different latin inscriptions. Nulli Secundus - Second to none, and Honi Soit Qui Mal Y Pense - Shame upon him who thinks evil of.

Always another question isn't there.
 
Di. Here are a couple I have just scanned both were issued to War workers,The large one was issued to munition workers and they had their own number stamped on the back the round one was issued to a lot of people who did vital work like postmen coal miners etc.their is also one shaped like a triangle
The Latin comes from the Regiments motto
 
I had assumed that the Home Guard would have had one inscription, Crommie. But on reflection I guess they each belonged to a regiment.
 
Di Just caught up with this post, the Home Guard did not form regiments  but a lot of the Factories and areas had their own Home Guard, here is a cracking photo of the tanks being made, it could be Wilds but I am not sure, (I have a large format photo if you want a copy Di.)
 
Another pic of the tanks being made at Wild's
Note
(If these photos are not Wilds they are of Nuffields Mech.&Areo Ltd Washwood Heath (Morris Commercial Cars) as only these two factories made that tank
 
I missed the first photo Crommie, I'll show them both to Brian tomorrow. He knew Wilds very well. He will know if they are the factory. I've taken copies,hope that's ok.
 
Crommie, Brian says the vehicles are not bren gun carriers, they had open backs You did start off the post by saying they made Crusader tanks. Brian has no memory of them making them. He also says the factory is not Wilds. They had a mobile carne running along the gallery, and it seems a much bigger place. I guess it's Nuffields..
 
Di, Ya should have waited for the next train to come along these are Bren carriers.
So if they only made the Bren carrier at Wilds I guess Alton Douglas has got it wrong in his book but never mind, we got it right in the end
 
I have been looking at the history of military bridging and the Royal Engineer Museum website refers to "The Wild Assault Bridge was designed and produced entirely by MB Wild & Co Ltd of Birmingham". I was wondering if anyone has a photograph of the Wild Assault Bridge or knows anything else about it?


For interest, the full text from the RE website is:

"The Wild Assault Bridge was designed and produced entirely by MB Wild & Co Ltd of Birmingham. It was also designed for a clear span of 26' and launched from a Light Tank VIB. The bridge was contained in a skeleton framework attached to the top of the tank. At this stage the bridge was in its two halves, the front or leading section being stowed below the second or tail section. Using a system of steel wire ropes and a travelling jib, the front section was projected forward to the front edge of the support framework. The second section was then lowered down automatically locked onto the leading section. The launch then continued and the travelling jib lowered the complete bridge into place. Whilst a good idea, it never worked successfully and was abandoned in favour of the scissors bridge. Nevertheless the idea was not forgotten and was successfully utilised by the German army in the 1970s in their Biber Tank Bridge mounted on a Leopard tank."
 
Re Mb Wild

I new a mb wild and son, they had a place in mount st / argyle st a small
firm backed on to the cut, and was along side the park,nechells spine cop.
On the right hand side of the gat was a air raid shelter we played in as kids
 
M.B.Wild & Co

Thank you, that's the RE Musuem website where I came upon the reference and I have asked them for a picture, but to no avail. I was hoping that someone local may have recollections of the bridge being made by Wild & Co or even have some photographs of it.
 
Hi there, my hubbies grand father George Hammond was head store man at Nuffields at that time .Can any one recall him at all. regards Kim.
 
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