Tank Chats

[@nonamesplease6288]

I nearly fell over. Tank Chats with David Fletcher is back! The world is righting itself!

[@bsolutions525]

Surprised he is still around!

[@KraziEyevin]

Nature is returning

[@SlavicCelery]

Complete with his pronunciation of words. Salad...IN.

[@tallandhandsome29]

Yay!!

[@rayjfroehlich84]

Ur ittiwsaayyy

[@richieb7692]

The Tank Lord has returned. All Hail his mighty mustache.!!!

[@Boric78]

The Armoured Walrus.

[@white0devil0]

Hail!

[@stanleygeorge7781]

WE'RE NOT WORTHY TO BE IN THE PRESENCE OF HIS GLORIOUS MUSTACHE!!!!

[@yank-tc8bz]

Give him a Knighthood for his services to Military History of Armour.

[@stanleygeorge7781]

@@yank-tc8bz exactly!!!!!!

[@aujay]

So sad to hear David is no longer making videos, and i can't see how he can be replaced to be completely honest, as he has a wonderful way he presents and his knowledge is top shelf and mixed with his unique humour makes for one of my favourite youtube presenters of any genre! ....I know he may not be interested in the idea, but he would be a great podcaster on the subject of Tanks !!

[@markgroothuis8569]

Really happy to see Mr. Fletcher again. Really missed him and his knowledge- humour. And that with the Saladin; build the Tamiya model and really loved it!

[@getcancer1542]

It was good well good by British standards witch isn’t saying much -David fletcher

[@charlieyerrell9146]

2nd royal tank regiment on exercise crescent moon .circa 1960. I drove a Saladin from the coast of lybya south to the border with Chad to the Tibesti mountains. And back again. A long hot journey.It performed very well. I still have some old black and white photos of that journey. The Saladin Saracen and ferret's did their job in the lybyian desert. Plug the kettle in under the commanders seat and make the tea.

[@papaaaaaaa2625]

MR. FLETCHER, the true treasure of the Tankmuseum! Forget the last running Tiger 1, just a ordinary prop compared to this Sir. Best wishes Mr Fletcher, stay healthy!

[@sammni]

Heaven forbid if anything happened to David Fletcher a statue should be erected in the tank museum. KZbin + David Fletcher = the man that's brought tanks to the masses

[@TheXLink]

How about a tank named after him? With a stylish moustache on it.

[@Paciat]

Stalin did it first.

[@PibrochPonder]

Lol I thought it was Hitler that brought tanks to the masses.

[@dougjb7848]

What do you mean, they should erect a statue? He *is* the statue. Just before the shutdown, they stood him up next to that Saladin with a couple tins of biscuits and a BV, and he just waited for things to quieten.

[@SMlFFY85]

Well, it would be more like a statuette.

[@brinx8634]

I wonder how many other boys had a Dinky Toy Saladin in the '50s. It looked just right and was beautiful to this ten year old. I'm very happy to see you back, David.

[@mojoden]

I had the Saracen, Saladin, numerous trucks, 25 pounders etc. .. but my pride and joy was a Centurion tank complete with Scammel tank transporter. Oh the joy.

[@gastonbell108]

Dear Tank Museum: Please make sure the Davids know how glad we are for their continued service. Mr. Fletcher in particular has a regular cheering section on every new video.

[@c.j.zographos3713]

David Fletcher -- the Man, the Legend, accept no substitute. Welcome back David!!

[@magecraft2]

You missed a bit :) the Man, the Legend, the Moustache, accept no substitute.

[@eagle_and_the_dragon]

I recently visited The Tank Museum, and it was a dream come true. Glad to support the Tank Museum, and i hope to visit again soon.

[@Jayneflakes]

Great to see the man back, awesome as always.

[@tassie7325]

What was that wives tale about the differential at the 8:58 mark. I never got taught anything like that on my drivers course nor did I ever experience any such issue when driving on roads. At one point my unit was based in Maresfield Sussex and we drove up to Warcop (and back) for a training exercise, a distance of about 330 miles, during which there was no requirement to pull over with one set of wheels on the curb.

[@28pbtkh23]

One of these passed me one day on the way to school, in the seventies I think. It made a hell of a noise: a big, deep rumble accompanied by a whine from the engine. And it seemed huge next to the cars of the era. Really impressive.

[@bayupriyawaskita2222]

We still have Saladins and Saracens in full running order here in Indonesia used by reserve army units 🙈

[@Starfireaw11]

Can you get me a new set of tyres for mine?

[@hadrianbuiltawall9531]

In a strategic sense they make sense. They're cheap to run and light enough to be carried on civilian ferry's.

[@GannicusMisteriosdeHonduras]

Same here in Honduras, main armor of cavalry units. I've been inside one

[@senddeee1451]

Gannicus-Cuentos Y Leyendas love Honduras 👌🏽

[@bayupriyawaskita2222]

Starfireaw11 you need to inquire the Army quartermaster i think they went for a local producer for the spare tires 😬

[@paralogregt]

To reduce wind up you ran along the grass verge at the side of the road, same as stalwart. The also did not have self centering steering so you had to return the wheels to center after turns. Same as ferret, saracen and stally. lack of castor causes this if i remember rightly from my training on this in 1976.

[@petercomb8635]

Thank You Mr David Fletcher MBE for your intelagent ,informative leactures

[@khammar6081]

Welcome back Mr. Fletcher... Nice you see you again!!

[@MikaelKKarlsson]

I had a figurative day in the mud and Mr Fletcher was just the motivational speaker I needed.

[@rpwood934]

Well that makes me feel old! I worked on the Saracen, the Armoured Personnel Carrier variant back in the '70s. I guess I'm a museum piece too now ... or so my grandkids tell me.💀💀💀

[@AndyTernay]

@Robert Wood; no sir. That makes you a Classic, just like the awesome vehicle!

[@rpwood934]

@@AndyTernay Thanks Andy, that's made my day 😎

[@paganphil100]

Robert Wood: Me too.....I drove both of them in the 70s. I loved the Saracen but hated the Saladin because it always felt like it was top-heavy and about to overturn if you went around a corner at high speed :-)

[@nancykoernke1514]

We have three of these in our militia mech unit here in michigan. They were bought in the early 1990's a $8,000.00 each and had just been part of a large rebuild project in england. We have about a dozen Sarasens and many Ferrets mk1 and mk2. All are great to drive and easy to work on. We've upgraded the armor and kevlar blanketed the inside. Very automotive and very quiet. Liberty1775

[@davidgoodnow269]

Interesting. Back when businesses made payroll in cash, I remember a couple of banks that used Ferrets and Saladins as armored cars to deliver payroll. But they sold those off years ago, I tried to talk my dad into buying one of the Ferrets for me as a first car! (Wasn't happening. He said I had to buy my own.)

[@karlbrundage7472]

One of my most vivid memories of the footage coming out of Kuwait during the invasion was that of a Kuwaiti Saladin valiantly battling Iraqi forces, it's main gun firing and turret swinging to engage targets in the city center. Though I don't know the fate of the vehicle or its crew, it seemed to me, at the time, to be symbolic of the spirit of the Kuwaiti people...............................

[@martinwarner1178]

Kuwait is part of Iraq, it was only divided off because that area contained a great deal of oil. Please fill who did the dividing. Peace be unto you.

[@karlbrundage7472]

@@martinwarner1178 I'm well-aware of the geopolitical chicanery that made the modern middle-east, but don't try to use past political decisions as an excuse for blatant land-grabs. Saddam was an imperialist bent on "reintegrating" a Mesopotamian Empire. He would not have stopped at the borders of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia had his gambit succeeded. Mesopotamia, like all of the world- with NO EXCEPTIONS is a land dominated by tribes and tribal customs, mores and laws. Regions are dominated by tribes and sub-sects and typically want to be left to rule themselves. Friction develops when a "government" that purports to have rule over those lands tries to impose its will. In the case of Saddam's Iraq, that led to the gassing of whole villages and tribes. So, martin warner, How far are you willing to go to make Kuwait an official part of Iraq?

[@TeddyBear-ii4yc]

​@@karlbrundage7472So the CIA enabled a local thug to take control and become a ruthless leader. That suited the Americans as he was their guy! America are currently fighting the Russians with Ukrainian Labour... that's a win/win in Langley. P. S. If I "commit suicide" tonight, tell me mum I love her... 🙂

[@06colkurtz]

Sadly can only hit like once. Welcome back Sir. Great to see you again

[@tharos]

David Fletcher back and in top form! Great video.

[@darwinpurnomo1843]

Good to see Mr. Flatcher, by the way, this Tank still used by the Indonesian Army, along with the other product from Alvis such as APC Saracen and Ferret scout panzer.

[@shredjoe1]

It's easily clobbered!! Brilliant, Glad to see you back Mr Fletcher ... a national treasure & so's the moustache!

[@MrHws5mp]

Nice one gents! One of my favorite vehicles. I did spot a minor mistake however. David describes the turret crew as "commander and loader". This is incorrect. The turret crew were a commander and a gunner: the commander (right) loaded the gun, and the gunner (left) doubled up as radio operator. This seems counter-intuitive and is different to most two-man turrets where the commander is also the gunner, however wartime experience had shown that it was quite difficult for the commander to maintain all-round situational awareness while spending quite a lot of his time peering through the narrow field of view of the gunnery optics. On the other hand, loading (at least in a recce vehicle) was an intermittent activity and he could spend a lot more time looking out of his periscopes as a result. This novel arrangment proved so successful in practice that it was carried over into the Scorpion and Scimitar vehicles, although the positions were reversed in those, with the gunner/radio-operator on the right and the commander/loader on the left.

[@Skorpychan]

Nice to see David Fletcher back and rambling to camera again. And about a vehicle I have an interest in, to boot!

[@sigurdivar4227]

Always had a soft spot for Saladin, a very interesting car. Thank you for the video!👍

[@richpurslow3283]

Another great presentation by Mr Fletcher. Always enjoyable and worth every second spent watching. The Attenborough of Armour.

[@Masada1911]

Truly marvelous to see Mr. Fletcher back in the saddle again:-) excellent morale booster!

[@ritchie799]

Again David does us proud with his brand of presentation and excellent knowledge of the Saladin. I never fail to just zone out and relax with these tank chats providing us with a little oasis of sanity during stressful times. Hat doffed to you David.

[@vanvan-oc4nj]

Ahh, David Fletcher is back again !!! Great ! Love your explanation on the wheelded vehicle !! Great !! Fletcher back is museum back !!!

[@Kingfisherk26]

Went back to work this week... just got home knackered to a new David Fletcher tank chat ....HOORAY

[@salfox1820]

David Fletcher MBE, For The Win!

[@chris5634C3PO]

Great Tank chat, I drove the Fox but my Commander only had good words to say about the Saladin. Also really good to see you back David Fletcher!

[@kenbrown2808]

"they said it could drive on any four wheels after blowing any two off, and that's not true. you had to choose which two you got blown off" words to live by.

[@WalkaCrookedLine]

I think it would work with any two non-adjacent wheels blown off, counting the two front or two rear as adjacent. With two adjacent wheels gone though you're going to get out and walk.

[@kenbrown2808]

@@WalkaCrookedLine exactly.

[@Feiora]

@@WalkaCrookedLine Or you take one wheel off from elsewhere to balance the vehicle out?

[@mattrickard3716]

"what a load of rubbish" LOL

[@peterdiaz3796]

This brings back memories. When my brother and I were kids we had a couple all metal matchbox Saladin toys. Guns had broken off and paint was chipped but after we stopped playing with them our dad got us an original just so we could see what it looked like. I think they were old toys our uncles used to play with in the 50s or 60s

[@chrissilsby4312]

Welcome back to Mr David Fletcher. I do enjoy what you bring to this Channel because it is always informative post

[@mattjenkins7216]

Great to see Mr Fletcher alive and well.

[@tombakabones274]

I'm really glad to see that David Fletcher is back and the channel is back up and running I've learned so much from this channel and look forward to learning more

[@martingardener90]

I regularly drove Stalwarts around workshops with the center wheels removed - drove OK but increased the turning circle by about three times! ( when suspended towing Stollies Saracens and Saladins you had to remove the center wheels and the sun gears from the rear hubs - the Bundeswehr took a dim view of towing with the front wheels flailing around in mid-air ! )

[@maynorsanchez1342]

Honduras is still using the saladin, currently we have 74 in working order and over 10 needing repair

[@russwoodward8251]

Thank you. Good to see David Fletcher!

[@landgod2001]

See the picture with this young man in it you immediately know it's going to be an amazing road of a story 😂 I could listen to him talk about paint drying

[@uha6477]

AT LAST! The one I've been waiting for from the very beginning, and it was totally worth the wait!

[@boltmonkey6869]

The world is now on the road to recovery! Mr. Fletcher is back! We know all will be right in the world! Thanks!!

[@Jacob-th1vv]

Bro david fletcher is the realest man I've ever seen with that mustache... Its crazy how all that knowledge is stored in there

[@ignaciasd1198]

To know that David Fletcher is fine and cheerful as always is a great relief in this trying times

[@halfcantan1208]

This is the sort of chap you'd love to meet in a country pub on a winters night , listening to the stories no one would ever dare print ,

[@ScottGenX]

fell asleep...ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[@martentrudeau6948]

There is no substitute for David Fletcher, it's good to see him. Saladin is a very handsome vehicle, it seems David likes the Saladin, so I like them. It's a shame Crossley Motors has ceased to exist.

[@CrusaderSports250]

My name unfortunately is the only connection that I have to the once great company, Crossleys also made quality carpets, but once again that is my only connection, a totally irrelevant post but it's been raining constantly all day and my keyboard finger was looking for something to do🌧️☔😊😊.

[@martentrudeau6948]

@@CrusaderSports250 ~ It's a shame the Studebaker Car Company is no more as well, but they could compete with Chrysler, Ford and GM. -- Post WW2 some many companies couldn't make it, and that's interesting to me.

[@charlesemerson6763]

Excellent presentation. Welcome back David.

[@jaykingsun7093]

Good to see David Fletcher back. I love his no nonsense approach. "Don't agree with me? No one cares, don't complain in the comments!"

[@1337flite]

He has an excellent grasp of social media - really doing the the old Patreon base a huge favour....

[@georgebottarini1788]

Thanks David. Great to see you back in action.

[@miklostoth7084]

Hail to the King! Delighted to see Mr. Fletcher again, brilliant chat as always.

[@timbo66]

Wonderful to see mr Fletcher back. Let the Fletcherisms commence!

[@bigdmac33]

Good to have informed presentation. I seem to recall seeing one of these in Belfast in the 70s during Op. Banner. But I could be mistaken.

[@Sebiesia]

Great to see mister Einstein of Tanks againn👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻🥳🥳🥳🥳

[@Kettenhund31]

Glad to see you back, David.

[@fortawesome1974]

Love your work guys, even though I'm an Infantryman from the Royal Australian Regiment I love to learn about military history and armor!! I got interested in it when I saw the Mephisto the only A7V left in existence that was recovered by Australians in WWI!! I'm so proud of the men who risked their lives in no mans land to recover this tank in the middle of the night!!

[@steve1315]

Great to see Mr Tank back where he belongs.

[@Musketeer009]

Welcome back Mr Fletcher.

[@gunraptor]

I'm not even kidding when I say that my girlfriend and I just discussed visiting the UK (a destination we've never much entertained for a vacation) explicitly to visit the Tank Museum and possibly meet Mr. Fletcher. This man is just such a glorious mix of knowledge and sincere dry wit that it's a small wonder that he's so loved for his tank chats. David Fletcher: Making tanks and museums as awesome as they should be.

[@andrewwmacfadyen6958]

Best looking armoured car ever, all the early post war British FV series looked the part from the Champ to the Antar, Ferret to Centurion.

[@richardklug822]

Thank you for your candor, Mr. Fletcher. Too easy to be misled by manufacturers' marketing hype. Please keep calling them as you see them!

[@wot1fan885]

Glad to see your ok . Thanks for more tanks.

[@tommyfred6180]

a tank museum = a good day a fletcher vid = a very good day :)

[@kriztov265]

As always Thank You Mr Fletcher.

[@swwy5]

Fletch returns!! Welcome back Mr Fletcher

[@μολὼνλαβέ-ψ5ξ]

Growing up in postwar Germany, I never saw one of these bad boys IRL. But I do still recall when I first saw one in The Avengers (Ep. 4.22 "What The Butler Saw") when John Steed arrived at the scene in an Alvis Saladin Series II FV601. As a young boy, I was thoroughly impressed by the design and therefor decided on the spot that this was exactly what my future self should have as a car. It got even better when an Alvis Saracen FV603 APC appeared in Ep. 5.24 ("Mission-Highly Improbable"). I still remember that the poor thing was hit with some kind of shrinking ray weapon and reduced to Matchbox size with Steed inside. Suffice to say, I was more concerned for the well-being of the Saracen.

[@Mishima505]

If you lived close to the border with the GDR you might have seen the BGS using these for border patrol.

[@tassie7325]

6:12 Minor correction: The crew consists of a Driver, a Crew Commander and a Gunner - the Crew Commander is the Loader.

[@yours_sincerely48]

I used to play with it around the army camp when I was young. It was left abandon....As a kid the armour car is small. Like a mini..

[@MARKSFINCHES]

Another fascinating video with our very own Sir David !!!!!!!

[@Andy-ub3ub]

Had this as a 1/32 Taimiya model when i was a kid Was always a favourite. happy days

[@ModellingforAdvantage]

Great to see this series back.

[@charlieyerrell9146]

Happy to see you putting photos of the 2 RTR on your program. All taken in lybya.

[@antonrudenham3259]

The tankies had these when I was infantry in Cyprus in late 80's. I know because we painted one of them pink when they weren't looking! I also think the Kuwaitis used them in action when Iraq invaded, I'm sure I saw footage of them fighting in Kuwait City..

[@kelleysimonds5945]

Excellent to see you doing these again.

[@Sturminfantrist]

Thx, Finally the Saladin and plz more Sixxer the Saracen or the four wheel Ferret, i was 2 years old when a 7 year old boy played in the backyard with Matchbox Saladin , Saracen and ferret cars i tried to play with him like the days before when we played with Cars but this time he told me no Michael your are too young thats nothing for you, i was really upset and it ignited my love for british sixxers, when i came into school i buyed all sixxer from Matchbox incl the stalwart and then we moved downtown near the street and every autumn during BAOR manvoures i had the oppurtunitiy to play in Tanks and arm. Cars and had much fun with the Tommys incl. Choclate and engl drop in a golden Can. Last time i saw a Saladin was in 72 or 73 but it was not a BOAR Vehicle it was a BGS germ. Borderguard unit driving thru my Village.

[@colbeausabre8842]

Like you, I had a Matchbox Saladin, Saracen and Ferret (could never figure which end was front) and a Stalwart tow truck but also a 20 pounder Centurion and a 5.5 inch gun/howitzer. Where my aunt and uncle found them in the US (they were Christmas presents) remains a mystery.

[@johnstevens1575]

I've always thought the Saladin was a great example of British light armor. The Scimitar and Scorpion tracked AFV's were other impressive examples developed during the Cold War.

[@robpowell8633]

Thanks, Ethan and Airfix. Bought as soon as it came out. Lovely kit, great subject. Great to see such a different and neglected subject done so well. How about a Saracen or a Saladin?

[@billyblagg4838]

RE. the wheels off: I remember my Dad taking me to Bov. in the summer (ab. 1968) and us going out to the ranges where there was a demo. "battle". A "Sallycan" drove behind a hillock "hit a mine", two wheels were blown 50 feet into the air, and it apparently (though with different number plates!) rolled out from behind the hill and carried on.

[@lcflcf1]

I saw it in the tank museum! Very advanced engineering.

[@average_peanut_fan3059]

I was quite interested in the video as I have a small model of a Saladin Armoured Car made by Corgi Toys during its service life

[@glennvogt1194]

Welcome back to David Fletcher and Tank Chats. You were truly missed.

[@peregrineflow7354]

Well done. This design has always been a favorite.

[@TheArchaos]

He explain. He expand. but most importantly The moustache is back!

[@Andrew-yl7lm]

Isn't this meme supposed to rhyme?

[@TheArchaos]

@@Andrew-yl7lm It was but I suck at ryhme's. You do it.

[@davidhanson8826]

Mr Fletcher. Thank you.

[@justinreilly6619]

Great to see David once again. 👌

[@paulkelly7896]

Missed this boyo, his commentary is brilliant. Loving the red trousers :-)

[@roganmuldoon3357]

The only thing he said that didn't compute was when he mentioned Swingfire missiles and needing luck for them to hit the target. I was a Swingfire controller. They were as effective at maximum range, which would be the same regardless of the vehicle platform, as they were up close. Accuracy wise, they were as accurate as the controller who guided them onto the target. Fire and forget missiles inevitably took over from the Vigilant and Swingfire et al, but on their day they were state of the art.

[@dogsnads5634]

Swingfire was easily the best of the early generation ATGM. The thought that went into its survivability in real world conditions was in a different league to other systems. In its SACLOS upgraded version it was superior to the TOW, at least until the TOW2 and its variants arrived, at that time Swingfire was in its last years of service.

[@LessAiredvanU]

A HESH round is as effective at any range - its penetration does not depend on velocity. The only reason that a Saladin might need for getting close is the inherent loss in accuracy of a short barrelled gun over distance, which combined with the subsequent low velocity of the round, means achieving hits at medium range is a problem.

[@Electronzap]

The storage bins wedged between the wheels are really cool :)

[@pacimo2008]

Good to see David Fletcher again.

[@daimlerferretscoutcar]

Very happy to see the Saladin featured in the awesome tank chats!

[@tonnywildweasel8138]

Now that's a good looking car! Very intresting vid again, appreciate it a lot. Greets from the Netherlands 🌷, T.

[@indyrock8148]

Mr Fletcher's tank chats are a rock in these times

[@dukeoftoast2420]

The man, the myth, the legend David Fletcher is back

[@loupiscanis9449]

Thank you , Mr Fletcher .

[@leeboy26]

Two dislikes are from Richard The Lionheart.

[@kristofferjohansson3768]

Lee or from wargaming...

[@Peter1986C]

@@kristofferjohansson3768 He makes a wordplay with historical reference, but I guess it wooshed you.

[@kristofferjohansson3768]

Peter Conen hehe, didn’t even reflect on the tank name...

[@bravo45]

Richard the Barbarian you mean