Spare Tires

Richard Lehr  29 August 2014 23:22:21

My Gama Goat came with six wheels. Mounted. No spares. Unbelievable how hard it can be to get some nice spare tires for this truck.

I got two from a Goat owner in Berlin just to have something for MOT. But what about the next tire. The Goat was not designed to stay around. After months of driving mile by mile you will need new tires. For brand new tires the US company Coker Tire is an option. But 372 bucks for just one tire? You will need six 11.00-18 for a whole Gama Goat. Plus shipping to the harbor, plus shipping costs across the Atlantic Ocean. Plus custom fees and VAT, plus shipping costs within Germany. For six wheels you can buy a used Gama Goat.

Looking for used tires. Some weeks ago there has been an ad in Germany on Army Inserate. 260 Euros for one tire in a used condition. What can be more expensive than gold?

Suddenly an ad came up offering the Goat tires for less than the above price including rims. Got some pictures from the seller, rented a car and a huge trailer and have been on tour. This is the result ... tires like new.



Here you can click to see a little video of the source.
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The Brakes - Harm Balance

Richard Lehr  15 May 2014 17:55:22

Parts needed to repair the Brakes

4 left and right helical spring (brake shoe return)
4 show pin guide
2 extension spring
1 tube assembly
6 hydraulic brake cylinders (for all six wheels)
6 key washer
2 adjustment screw

and new brake linings for all six wheels.
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The Brakes - Front Right - 2nd Continuation

Richard Lehr  14 May 2014 22:18:00

The problem with the brakes - Act Eight

Last but not least the inside of the brake on the front right side. Without words.




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The Brakes - Front Left - Continuation

Richard Lehr  14 May 2014 20:39:00

The problem with the brakes - Act Seven

The inside of the drum is like a dry lake.



 A return spring is broken.





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The Brakes - Left Middle - Continuation

Richard Lehr  14 May 2014 19:22:00

The problem with the brakes - Act Six

The inside of the "oil pan" is like new ...









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The Brakes - Front Right - Continuation

Richard Lehr  3 May 2014 19:26:00

The problem with the brakes - Act Five

After having no luck in getting off the brake drum from the wheel hub, we decided to cut the six rivets. And we had luck, the brake drum went off. But no chance to get off the brake drum assembly hub from the shaft ...





Until using the strongest tool in the shop ...


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The Brakes - Front Right

Richard Lehr  23 April 2014 18:58:00

The problem with the brakes - Act Four

It was not possible to get off the drum on the front axle's right side. Got a nice endoscope from a M151 driver in Hanover and had a first look.

What you see is the housing at the bottom right and the bracke backing plate at the upper left. And there is something in between which shouldn't be there ...


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The Brakes - Front Left

Richard Lehr  19 April 2014 16:16:00

The problem with the brakes - Act Three

Drum on the first axle on the right side:

A nightmare. Looked like somebody has forgotten to close the holes in the drum - RTFM.

What I found inside was brickearth and a broken return spring.





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The Brakes - Rear Left

Richard Lehr  19 April 2014 15:55:00

The problem with the brakes - Act Two

Drum on the third axle on the left side:

Just a little bit of oil.


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The Brakes - Left Middle

Richard Lehr  19 April 2014 15:03:00

The problem with the brakes - Act One

Half way on my way home from the freight forwarder's yard I lost brake pressure. Wow, what a nice situation having no brakes on a 3.5 ton truck. As I wrote before the Goat's brake drums are filled with overpressure and the air is coming from ... the engine. The engineers have forgotten to put an oil separator in the vent line coming from the engine and going to the wheels. Known issue ...

First I opened the drum of the second axle on the left side:

It looked like an oil pan after draining.the oil. Excellent rust-proofing.





Looked like new ...


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First review

Richard Lehr  18 April 2014 14:53:58

What is Original ?

The Gama Goat was private owned in first hand since 1996. Nevertheless there are some parts which are not even original. Looking for a replacement ...

The rear mirrors are Made in England.
Also the wipers and blades.
The top and doors of the tractor are (well made) after market. Same for the carrier.
The front bumber and the shackles are not original, too.

Last but not least a riddle. Was the exhaust system modified? See the unused bracket and empty hole on top of the picture which is used for the exhaust tail pipe. Here the exhaust points to the wheel and shock right now. There were no A1 or A2 series ever for the Gama Goat, but the M561 has differences like
- the exhaust system (funny that the bracket and the whole already exists (see picture below)
- the engine hood (either steel or aluminium)
- the lights on the front fender, either the newer M-series style or the older version


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Picking up the Goat from the freight forwarder’s yard

Richard Lehr  15 April 2014 11:00:00

Welcome to Germany

We picked-up the Gama Goat at the freight forwarder's yard. Many thanks to Spedition Toebbe in Stuhr for their excellent services bringing the vehicle from England to Germany.

On the way home I had some brake issues. First thing to check will be the brake system. While it is a semi-amphibious vehicle there are air lines from the engine to the brake drums to prevent them from dust, dirt and water. And here the problem normally starts, oil from the engine is coming thru the air lines to the brake drums. Why did the engineers pass on an oil separator?





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