Castle Nut Quantities

[Stephen White]

In the Craftsman's Market section, Lawrence asked about numbers of castle nuts on the Pz III.

To reply to Lawrence:

I've only been able to look at my photos, so what follows may not be complete.

Pz III castle nut locations:

All cone head bolts used castle nuts on the inside.

Sprocket ring retainng bolts - 12 off each sprocket ring, so 24 per sprocket, 48 in total

Front and rear bump stop mounting bolts - 2 off each stop, 8 in total

Vorpanzer hull - 15 off (larger size?)
Vorpanzer turret if fitted - 16 off)

Lower bracket joining hull upper and lower units. These came in two types, the early scalloped version which was welded to the hull and a later, straight bracket which came with the later production hull without the side escape hatches. These simplified brackets were bolted to the lower hull. I think there are 10 off per side but I haven't got access to the Jentz and Doyle drawings. Someone might check this.

Return roller mounts - 3 off per mounting, 18 in total

Hull lifting hooks - 2 off per hook, 12 in total

Tracket adjuster mounting brackets - 6 off per bracket, 12 in total

Domed cover on the rear lower hull plate - 4 off.

Shock absorber upper mountings - 4 off per mounting, 16 in total

I haven't counted that lot up, but it must come to well over a 100.

Hope that helps. I'll post this on the Pz III section as well.

Regards

Stephen