WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY: Splitting an ORIGINAL WWII StuG III transmission for our RESTORATION project!

[@chartreux1532]

As a German i'm really happy to see a lot of our Historic Pieces like this being obviously in such good Hands! Keep up the great Work and i'll definitely visit the Museum once i visit Australia later this Year! Prost & Cheers from Berchtesgaden in the Bavarian Alps

[@NandiCollector]

*German ingenuity!*

[@fredfinks]

i was there a few weeks ago, i dont know how this place compares to european tank museums but for an australian collection, its insane. Puts the government museums to shame. The hanger is enormous and just contains tank after tank. i assume not many living people have seen a T34. While i was there one was driving outside. not just a static museum piece!

[@dickdegraaff5455]

Wow that’s a beautiful region

[@rickytrezise4674]

G'day mate, Aussie here, we would love to see you here down under, we love German engineering, my woman is of German descent, hard working blond! Love her too! All the best,Rick

[@darreng745]

@@fredfinks Seen several T34's both the 76mm turret and the 85mm turret version but sadly as static exhibits and you see how roughly they are constructed on the turret facings compared to the Panzers which show far better finishing. Also nice to see Nick and Phil given the credit they are due for all of their hard work while previously a fat shouty man took up all of the camera time and belittled their requests for authentic parts to complete the vehicles that said fat shouty man then sold for huge sums of money.

[@MWL4466]

I've been a machinist for 30 years and i can really appreciate the complexity of creating that transmission ! What a job !!

[@davidhollenshead4892]

But smashing the treads with hammers without bothering to put an expendable nut on first??? Realy??? WTF???

[@BenJamInn-q3o]

Don't expect less than perfection from Germans... Hell they invented welding for armor and held 98% of the world's patents..

[@pcka12]

​@@BenJamInn-q3oby publishing patents you tell the world, so state secrets were not published in other nations!

[@garyslayton8340]

​@@BenJamInn-q3o The stug was fine Great vehicles but your really kicking EVERYTHING else they did armorwise under the rug

[@bimmjim]

Ya, been there done that. I'll waste a lot of time watching this.

[@DaHaiZhu]

Its just so much easier to rebuild engines and transmission when you can video record everything so you know where it all goes back together again!

[@markchorlton60]

Was thinking the same thing.

[@bruceinoz8002]

Paint-pens are your friend, too!

[@busterdee8228]

In my day, it would have had to be Polaroids, and I wouldn't have had enough wrist left to turn the wrenches. As expected, there were blasphemous re-assemblies.

[@keithhaycraft3765]

Exactly what I was thinking.

[@oldfarthacks]

It's also really wise to bag and tag every last part, with the labeled bags then being nested in bigger labeled bags, until you get the whole thing into a box that is labeled with the name of the project.

[@Th.G.M.]

What a beauty, all those gears that haven’t seen the light of day since early WWII! Gentlemen, thank you for doing such an amazing job! You preserve historical artefacts for us to see today, long after those had been built or in action. Cheers from southern Germany!

[@seapy2398]

What a wonderful demonstration of teamwork, patience, light hearted banter and joyful cooperation, a joy to watch. Having stripped many challenging and unfamiliar machines myself, that would have had me stumped on my own, yet a team each bring personal expertise and little ideas to bear, so the job gets done without screwing anything up. Think this has been the best Aus Armour edition yet, despite missing the crucial final split! Can't wait for the re-assembly... Hours to dismantle, days to re-assemble. Those lineages, my goodness and the shimming. It HAD to come apart.

[@bigredc222]

I was thinking of all the things I worked on when I was very young with minimal tools, no impact tools, not even a propane torch. I broke a lot of stuff learning. Imagine having a brother that's right there with you every step of the way, with the same enthusiasm and skill, those twins are lucky to have each other.

[@quentinstacy35]

Just a beautiful film. Thanks Kurt, Beau and the combat twins.

[@warbirdwf]

I'm always amazed at the intelligence of the engineers back in the 1930's and 1940's. No computers to help design. The factory engineers who designed the tooling and machinery to manufacture these transmissions. No fancy CNC machines to make these parts. Just amazing.

[@ancliuin2459]

Waaaay back in the 1980s, I pulled apart my motorcycle's engine & gearbox to fix a problem with gear shifting (later found out that the problem was an easily accessible spring and I had done it all unnecessarily). My parents did not believe that I would ever get it together again, lots and lots of parts were nicely lined up in an old bookshelf in the cellar. It was just a motorcycle, and any decent workshop could have fixed it if I had fucked it up (I did not). Pulling apart this StuG's gearbox is a whole 10 levels above what I did, but the feeling is coming back to me when watching this. Fascinating and fascinatinger, many many thanks for this!

[@bsimpson6204]

I did the same with a BMW gearbox oil seal, took the box apart when I should have just prised it out

[@JensAndree]

I've just re-watched all the StuG III videos the last two days and was worried about the recent lack of updates on this subject - and only two hours after the last StuG III video you casually dropped a 25 minute video!!! Awesome! Now I'm going to watch an exciting transmission disassembly and I truly hope everything's in order despite the water-infused emulsified oil you discovered when you got it... Many thanks for taking the time and effort in both saving history and documenting it for everyone to see here on youtube! Sunny greetings from Sweden! Edit: Now I've watched the video and WHAT A TREAT!!! Apart from the dodgy oil and a wee bit of rust on the outside - the inside looks like it's in a very good quality with regards to its 80 years age and somewhat damage by the environment. This'll be a runner after being cleaned and having new bolts fabricated where needed. Your StuG III will soon be a runner and almost a complete one apart from the missing Maybach HL120... I'm sure you'll eventually get your hands on one that can be restored. Until then it'll be fine with a different engine so you can drive this mechanical wonder! I can never say too many times a huge thanks to all of you who are saving history for future generations! Most museums wouldn't attempt a restoration like this because the lack of matching numbers parts... You Aussies have a fantastic mentality when it comes to mending stuff - often with upcycling scrap transformed into usable parts! We all love what you're doing and we're eagerly following along, week by week, all your restorations and progress and it has to be said that the video production is equally important to the work done on the restorations. Simply awesome!!! Yet again, thanks!!! ♥

[@Laxpowertoo]

I worked on a German Jumo V12 aero engine and that had no gaskets anywhere. Just sealant similar to Wellseal. That way it doesn't interfere with machined tolerances. Some think the thicker the cornflake box they use, the better it will seal which causes so much damage, even cracked casings. If you need to guarantee a seal, apply the sealant then run a piece of cotton thread around the machined face. It will compress to nothing and create an oil tight seal. They used this method on prewar Alfa Romeo race engines like the 8c and it really does work.

[@paulmanson253]

What, like sewing thread ? That small ?

[@Laxpowertoo]

Yes. Cotton or synthetic thread

[@paulmanson253]

@@Laxpowertoo Son of a gun.

[@RichardCasto]

I believe that silk thread is still used on some piston aircraft engines. I dont think it acts as a gasket itself, but rather prevents the sealant from being completely squeezed out when tightened.

[@paralogregt]

Chieftain tanks had a similiar sealing system, using silk thread.

[@kenanderson3859]

Absolutely incredible the patience and perseverance.The Twins and Bo have done an almost impossible task.

[@Laxpowertoo]

Thank you Mr Wenzday!

[@kevinchamberlain7928]

It's pronounced "Wenzzzzzzzzdayyyyyyyyyy!"

[@paulsilva3346]

It is. I Think his his very best intro yet...

[@MoosePissUK]

Always love watching Kurt and Beau

[@shedwork]

Love the amazing spanner work from the team in this film. The engineering and craftsmanship encapsulated in this transmission astounds me. After the split I had to stop the film and stare in awe at the gearing. This is the Mona Lisa of the tank restorers art guys. Thank you!

[@Lumpy15120]

Very nice job!! This transmission was manufactured by Zahnradfabirk Friedrichshafen, according to the ‚drb‘ code, cast into the housing. Greetings from Germany 🇩🇪

[@sampsonsunny6298]

Another overcomplicated ZF heap.😅

[@Nick-kn5lb]

Fortunate to catch up with Nick and Phil last Wednesday for a chat, nice blokes and a wealth of knowledge. Thanks to all the crew that put in such a great effort over AusArmourFest, we were thilled to have met you and will be back.

[@Wasa9191]

German engineering was something to be amazed at. I used to work on German build calculators in the 60's and they were made with such precise workmanship. Can't wait to see next weeks video.

[@Catluke96]

Ohhh yeah! Finally a new StuG Video!

[@cfantastic1]

I've never built or rebuilt a transmission in my life, but I love watching these videos. The team really takes the time to understand the complexity of the problems at hand, and do their best to solve em. Hats off to yas. Please keep creating these videos. I love watching the progress on all of the projects.

[@VanFlausch]

Nice too see the Twins again and sharing their knowlegde

[@paulsilva3346]

YOUR VERY BEST Workshop Wednesday Kurt..!.! 23:33

[@MaxTSanches]

25 Minutes of watching three guys take apart a transmittion. Well worth the time. :)

[@eno.5796]

As a Brit it's great to see the twins working alongside you guys,goes to show how the specialist knowledge pool to work on the engineering marvels is so small,what a masterpiece of human endeavour that gearbox is,sad that all that skill used to such destructive ends.Great to see the whole team standing round marvelling at it.Great video and thanks ,keep them coming!

[@gustavgustav2670]

Steve sneaking in for a look at the end there!

[@jamienevill1768]

It's so good to see the legendary Nick and Phil from Axis Track Services helping out with this. I really miss Combat Dealers since it disappeared from UK television. I'm really looking forward to seeing the StuG being finished in all its working glory.

[@markchorlton60]

I am always left in awe of everybody's skill and perseverance in these videos. So good to see and watch.

[@ray.shoesmith]

Kurt Fromausarmour rocking the Wolverine look

[@brucefelger4015]

Even the crank case on the VW Beetle was two halves bolted together, no gasket, just perfectly machined surfaces. Amazing engineering.

[@iDuckman]

I could easily have watched another hour of this job. Well, with a brief break to refill my coffee. Simply fascinating.

[@clintbonnett3449]

I could have watched this even if it was 8 hours long. What a team and what a piece of engineering. These videos need to be longer.....

[@lauramildon-clews7850]

I have been a Marine Engineer for forty eight years before i retired. All of my training and university studies were in Germany,so I really appreciate quality engineering and machining

[@Ralph94967]

WHAT a fantastic peice of engineering in every way from the craftwork to making it to assembly then strip down well done folks

[@VegasCyclingFreak]

As a mechanical engineer type, I found this *very interesting!* The craftsmanship of all the parts and the design of that gear box really is a sight to behold. It's in AMAZINGLY good condition inside too.

[@johnsullivan7633]

A fellow soldier and I were the first Craftsmen in RAEME to work on the Leopards at the Pucka workshops. Under the guidance of the German technicians we under took warranty work. It was my first experience with German engineering and I was so impressed. We also had a drive of the tank on the Range and again, so impressed. I know own a 1950’s German Deckel milling machine and the quality of design and build is the same. You can’t help but admire the engineering heritage that went into the Leopard tank.

[@richardlivijn4231]

It is fantastic what you do to these machines! True workmanship! Hats off here from me in Sweden!

[@kg2995]

Wow a work of handcrafted art. Never to be realized again from great time period.

[@andrewsteele7663]

That was a riveting episode, my hand & arm went numb from holding my head as I watched. I cannot wait for the next episode. Cheers

[@Cadfael007]

As a skilled German machinist and metal worker (we leaqrn 3.5 years) I am proud whar German engineers and workers did 80-85 years ago!

[@gargoyle7863]

...and their slave workers.

[@johnkauffman6347]

Awesome totally awesome. First time viewer love it already!!!

[@paulday-lh5mx]

What an amazing piece of equipment. As mentioned no cad design, all by hand. Very exciting seeing that come apart. Looking forward to next Wednesday and of course fix it Friday and maintenance Monday. Awesome.e work.

[@davidkendall1614]

It’s ridiculous how much I enjoyed that.

[@whatwouldyoudo64]

Wonderfully amazing, the Germans are the master engineers!

[@KevinMeeds]

Fabulous! I'm genuinely excited to see the refurbished unit in all it's glory!

[@PresidentCamacho24]

Excellent episode! The twins are rockstars!

[@ThomasRaffs]

Great episode - magnificent to see the disassembly in such detail - wise decision to take it apart. Already anxious to see clean-up, etc. and assembly in due course - WOW!!!

[@luvtruckin]

The knowledge of how these machines were built and how they work is astounding. Ryan is so much fun to watch doing his magic. Looking at the craftsmanship it’s true that the Germans were masters but it hindered them in quantity and being able to field repair the machines.

[@getoffenit7827]

I love this channel,ive seen tanks in history books,movies,museums seen the insides of turrets and driving compartments etc. But never thought i would get to see inside a gearbox and see it reconditioned...what an amazing piece of machine work all the gears! I just want to touch one gear or bearing surface and stare at it so i can marvel at the skill it took to make them

[@BarnacleBilltheSailor]

I was amazed by the complexity of that transmission! I was also blown away by the condition of it, after 75+ years. As always...watching with much interest!

[@goodpplz123]

The things I have witnessed you guys fixing has made me realize almost nothing is unfixable. You guys are mechanical wizards. I’m so glad that you are preserving world history with these various machines. My only issue is that your videos aren’t long enough. 😀I could watch a live feed daily and it would never get old.

[@travisturbeville1341]

Amazing engineering that went into transmission. Very impressive once the case halves were split.

[@andylees2940]

What a fantastic piece of work by the team! and indeed isnt it mind boggling that that thing was designed on paper and machined by hand to such tolerances. Really quite incredible! Look forward to the clean up, rebuild, fitting and running of the tank !

[@davidashworth5740]

At last the twins star in the greatest show yet, workshop wenzzzday! great collab, great work guys!

[@LyleHatch]

What a gold mine this gearbox/transmission is, considering its age and comparing it to the condition of first one! Luckily, the twins were well versed on the disassembly process as well. The interior was wonderfully preserved and looks very minty! This StuG build has been a hard road to get to the end, but I'm sure it'll be worth all the effort. Keep up the wonderful work & videos!

[@briananderson5634]

Such incredible complexity in this transmission! Made to last by very clever engineers.

[@SMGJohn]

Hence why they lost the war, complexity like this has no place in a machine of war, in war you throw as many machines at the enemy until either you run out or they run out.

[@davidkavanagh189]

@@SMGJohn The reasons for the outcome of the war were far more complex than that. Sure US and British tech was incredibly complex in places, especially aircraft. The main allied technical strength was in sheer weight of numbers, standardisation and production capacity largely out of range of German or Japanese attack.

[@SMGJohn]

@@davidkavanagh189 Modern war is war of economics, its that simple, even in the US civil war it was all about economics, who had most artillery or the most ships etc. Remember the Franco-Prussian wars of late 19th century? The Germans won just because they had superior number of artillery. This was is largely forgotten but shockingly they had machine guns and trenches, even armoured cars. This was almost 3 decades before WW1

[@davidkavanagh189]

@@SMGJohn Yes, that essentially what I said. You said Germany lost the war because of complex engineering. I was pointing out that was not really the case since the allies had plenty of complex tech too. There are some examples of tech the Germans spent ridiculous money and effort on per unit, such as their heavy tanks, but a much more decisive factor was actually the incredible, and largely untouchable, massive manufacturing capability the allies developed very rapidly.

[@SMGJohn]

@@davidkavanagh189 I think you missed the point, if you want to understand what I meant, you need to look at the designs of the T-34 versus something like even a StuG, you could get 2 T-34 for price of a StuG, should tell you something why its so important when in war, you have designs that are good enough, cheap and simple to produce. Another example is how the Germans failed to produce substantial number of automatic firearms, then the Soviets made PPS43, a SMG that was cheaper to make than a bolt action rifle, the factory that developed that gun was literally under artillery bombardments. Allied shipping too, the liberty ships were pinnacle in simplicity. Solely designed to be as quick to build as humanly possible.

[@MGB-learning]

Great video. Good idea to rebuild the entire unit.

[@bobferranti5222]

The intricate designs of this transmission are amazing to see, so much thought had to go into the making of just this one component. It's impressive!

[@andrewzanto8591]

Incredible to see the complexity of this piece, and the whole team come together to appreciate it at the end. Truly one of the most fascinating episodes.

[@shaneblack4862]

That scene where you pull the "brisket" of grungy oil out of the diff really needs a bit of music from a John Carpenter film dubbed onto it! But on a serious note, I love these videos. Where else can I see such workmanship and loving attention paid to AFV's in my own home state? Outstanding work fellas!

[@chuckcribbs3398]

Unbelievable. What a complex piece of work and art.

[@meisterrumspuckl3965]

Love the passion you put into your work!!!!!! That is really great to see working men on a peace of technic from the times of WW2!! Greetings from Austria!!!

[@bsimpson6204]

I've looked forward to this, it's like engineering archaeology 👍👍👍

[@charleskuder3968]

That Transmission is a true work of art!!!

[@clayp6415]

What a beautiful piece of machinery that transmission is.

[@karensavarese5684]

What a amazing piece of pre-war/ war time tech. Looks to be in near perfect condition. Splitting the cases was absolutely the right call. Dubs is jealous, he really would of loved to work on this, and has the skills. Great vid1, Love,,Dubs.

[@robertmcsorley4001]

Outstanding effort by you guys. The Stug is a fascinating piece of armor and the work that you've done to restore it is phenomenal.

[@mikef.1000]

It's beauty is undeniable, indeed. Those rows of bearing races that hold the gear shafts are like the arches in a cathedral! Sheer engineering art, glorious.

[@Javdoc]

Awesome stuff. That gearbox is a work of engineering art. Amazing.

[@lukefriesenhahn8186]

Very glad to have a StuG update! That transmission is very cool. This made my Wednesday.

[@richardedkins8856]

Brilliant. That was a great video to watch. I'm in awe of what gets done at Aus A and A. Well done to all.

[@SonnyFastSpeed]

The Wonder Twins and Beau and Kurt! Amazing Job! 👏👍

[@americanpatriot2422]

Great video

[@gg86]

Just mind blowing to see such a well designed and crafted gearbox what was drawd by hand nearly 100 years ago. The quality of some parts look better then today.

[@Maiko100876]

Wow, that’s awesome and it appears no corrosive water damage inside. Great work guys. My favorite show of the week!!

[@jaconoppers4156]

As a pumpmechanic. This would be my dream to work on. The insane quality and amount of engineering that went in the gearbox is just simply lovely

[@pvtmadmike]

WOW! From across the world from a volunteer at the Canadian Tank Museum, Great job gentleman I love a good restoration project Just like you we have a few on the go as well. Keep up the good work.

[@SuperDarkSamurai1]

Truly an amazing piece of engineering and even more amazing knowing that the inside of it was all machined by hand.

[@johnbradshaw354]

Great and interesting Video Kurt. Very complex Transmission and beautifully engineered. Thank you for sharing.

[@Rudi-Mhz]

...the band of brothers standing around the desk with the Transmission, like standing around the christmas tree, but with much more work to do😀👍🍀

[@radamus210]

The engineering and machining of this period considering the tools available and the design by pencil and ruler are incredible. Looking at a Stug you'd think it a pretty simple chassis but wow!

[@themaskedgrappler]

Best episode of Workshop Wednesday in a while, loving the Twins knowledge and banter

[@madpeddler8263]

As a former patternmaker I marvel at the hundreds of parts which were cast from wooden patterns. Without the skill of the German patternmakers tank production would never have become as amazing as these videos illustrate.

[@holgerwittmann8419]

Wow, what a crazy piece of machinery, especially for its time.

[@silver3323]

Really interesting video guys. Thank you. One reason for flaring a stud at both ends is that, when the nuts are tightened, the centre part stretches more than it would if it was all the same thickness. This is often done to ensure the nuts don’t come loose with vibration. Or maybe it’s because there was an oil way around the stud. Either way, it really, really needs to go back where it came from. ( But you all knew that). All the best, Bill

[@Buck1954]

I have been anxiously awaiting this. At least we got to see the case opened up. What a lot of work to split a case!

[@sniddley]

Thanks Kurt, Beau and all, excellent presentation I look forward to seeing this Stug 3 complete and running, cheers from Minneapolis.

[@Agratefulfan-rk8gx]

Yes! More Nick and Phil working with the crew at AusArmour..love the teamwork!

[@davidkimmel5153]

Wonderful video. Unbelievable the workmanship

[@pcka12]

Complex piece of machinery, but the principle is the same as other automotive bits & pieces magnified. Interesting work!

[@paulvanappeven3340]

Fantastic Thanks for keeping history alive. Greetings from Belgium. Your museum is the first on my list when i come down under. 🇦🇺 👍🏻 super guys. Thanks for the video’s.

[@jeremysaunders9916]

Amazing job all. I heard the closing music and thought you were going to tease us with opening the gearbox next week but you didn't ,thank you !😊. Loving the engineering of this gearbox and the characters preserving it.❤

[@FransHegge]

finally another stug video!

[@Xx_uchihaclan_xX]

Finally I’ve been waiting for this for so long! Love the vids mate can’t wait for more

[@laurinortmanns5237]

Thanks for keeping history alive Youre doing an awesome job!!!!!

[@davidlawrencebanks4610]

Awesome fantastic 👍👊not often that will be seen again. Thanks guys

[@edwardbrophy9749]

Faithfull old geschutz 😊 This & Jagdpanther are my favourite German WW2 vehicles 👍 Really good to see again coverage of this vehicle Mechanical poetry 😊

[@buijs1967]

After a hard days work it is so relaxing to watch these movies. Well done.

[@Beowulf395]

That’s clean………I bet the boys had big smiles when they started to open up every thing

[@Butch71]

Its just amazing what they were able to create decades before the first computers and drafting programs/cnc machines were made. Crazy to think these were designed and built with all hand/steam tools.

[@Wardads1]

The knowledge bank these craftmen possess is immense .

[@SmaulPart-pb5hm]

That was amazing. I have never seen anything like that. Thanks guys.