Track Adjusting Rod question

[67tank]

I have the early style springs on my M2- As you can see from the photos - it does not appear that my halftrack was ever equipped with the Track Adjusting Rod.  Is this true of all early style spring set-ups?  Was the track adjusting rod only installed on Halftracks equipped with the later style spring?  Steve and I walked around his halftrack yard and couldn't come to a definitive answer. 
Page 72 of TM 9-1710C clearly shows the correct setup.  However, my spring is bolted into the mounting point for the Track Adjusting Rod.

[yd328]

Pat,
Is the eyelet where the spring rod passes through threaded?

Gary

[spec4don]

Wow that is the original modification after the fixed idler. The bracket where the end of the spring rod goes through is the original adjustment od bracket!! The spring was an idler spring from a crawler tractor. This is a real piece of history there.

Don G.

[HenryVIII]

Yes the setup you have is correct as it should be. I have three parts tracks that had/have the same setup. The bracket is used as a guide to hold the end of the spring shaft. there are no threads in the bracket and the rod is kind of loose in it.  The tensioning bolt is on the looped end of the rod. There is also bushings that go in the spring on each end and into the bracket to center the spring. When they went to the large dual spring setup the bracket was recycled and mounted behind the idler and used for the bolt to limit the travel of the idler or to compress the spring.

There were also 2 types of threads used on the small early spring shaft. I have 2 with acme threads and brass nuts and one with regular fine threads and steel nuts. I can post pics of mine if anyone is interested, but the pictures already posted are the same as what I have.

Henry     

[67tank]

Henry  Perfect.  That's what I needed to know.  I'll pull it apart, check for cracks etc, clean it up and put it back together as is. 

Much appreciated. 

[HenryVIII]

I took some pictures of the early springs so you can see what I have to compare to. These seem to be more common than the double spring setup from what I have seen in my area. I have heard most people prefer the double springs because the single spring is too weak and you can have the track jump the teeth or jump off altogether if you get too crazy. I did not see it before but after looking at the pictures it almost looks like there were brackets mounted on the back at one time.

I also noticed that the bracket on mine is mounted at a slightly different angle than yours, which makes me wonder if this was done as a modification after delivery. However I looked at all 3 of my frames and they are all the same. None had brackets on the rear corners.

I do have some extra parts if you have problems.

Good luck
Henry


Here is how mine looks


RH side bracket on the frame. It is almost touching the bed mounting bracket


LH side bracket and spring in place. Here you can see the bushing or guide to center the spring


RH side again


Here is the spring rod with the acme threads and brass adjusting nuts. The rod is bent, it is suppose to be straight