Conference vmsnet::hunting$note:hunting

561.0. "Supacat - the way to get to the hunt, and the easy way to pack the trophy back home..." by SAC::PHILPOTT_I (Col I F 'Tsingtao Dhum' Philpott) Tue Nov 28 1989 07:48

I originally posted this in the 4-wheel-drive conference, but thought I'd put
it here because it seems to me that the most obvious interest in this in the US 
would be from hunters and other outdoorsmen.

Enjoy.

 
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Note 982.0         Supacat - the ultimate wheeled off-roader?         No replies
SAC::PHILPOTT_I "Col I F 'Tsingtao Dhum' Philpott"   74 lines  28-NOV-1989 01:35
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I thought of putting this in the oddities note, but on reflection it isn't odd,
it's terribly practical.

A little history: the Supacat is one of two vehicles that owe their inspiration 
to the Falklands/Malvinas conflict. At that time the British troops had a 
problem - everything with wheels, including LandRovers - got bogged down in the
freezing marshland on which they were trying to move supplies and troops.

Two vehicles came from this [the other is the Esarco which is larger] and both 
have more than 4 wheels (the Esarco has either 6 or 8 depending on the model). 
The British Army put out an invitation to supply test vehicles for a contract
for specialty transports and the Supacat was one of the entries. At that time 
the vehicle was being built by Fairey Engineering, but when Esarco got the 
contract the designers carried through a management buy-out and went into 
business on their own (Fairey weren't, and indeed aren't, interested in the 
civilian specialty vehicle market). Recently the Army put out another 
specification and this time Supacat won. So far the Army have 15 of them which 
are being used by the SAS. More will follow. 

The spec was for an "All Terrain Mobile Platform" that would carry two soldiers 
plus half a ton of cargo, that could be air dropped (either conventional 
parachute or being "sled dropped" out of the back of a Hercules at 50') traverse
'military standard marshland' climb or descend or traverse a 60� slope...

So what is the Supacat: it comes in three basic body styles: the military 
platform has no windshield, no upper bodywork, for weak civilians they'll fit a
windshield and either a soft or hard top (though since they bolt on you can 
remove them). The vehicle is 10' long, 6' wide and 3' high and essentially flat 
decked: the crew of two sit in shallow 'saucers' at the front (the tops of the 
seat cushion is about level with the vehicle's hull), and there is a cargo well 
at the back with a drop down tailgate. The dash board raises slightly above the 
flat platform hull.

It has 6 wheels: Avon TredLite 31x15.5R15 low ground pressure tires are fitted 
to Land Rover axle/swivel assemblies. There is no spring suspension - the low 
pressure tires providing the "give" in the system (this should appeal to the 
macho types who argue for cart springs over coils - this suspension makes cart 
springs seem soft! :-). The underbody is protected by a full hull of 5mm thick 
military armor (which makes the vehicle proof against anti-personnel mines, so 
it should handle the occasional boulder or tree stump OK :-)

Power is currently a 1600 cc Volkswagen diesel, though a 1800 cc Ford diesel 
will replace it soon. 

Steering is "different" to say the least: firstly there is no steering wheel - 
instead there is a motor bike style handle-bar. Turning the bar turns the front 
four wheels in conventional Ackerman steering style. A footbrake controls the 
outboard disc brakes on all 6 wheels, and a heel operated throttle is provided 
for on road use (The vehicle has a three speed automatic transmission, and is 
rated as an agricultural vehicle for British licencing purposes). Off road there
is a hand throttle on the right hand hand-grip. Now the novelty: the wheels also
have inboard disc brakes and hand brake levers on the handle-bar allow skid 
steering, which also allows you to brake the wheels on one side if they are 
spinning and to "see-saw" the power from side to side to get grip in extreme 
situations. The result of this composite steering is that the vehicle will turn 
within its own length virtually (it can be turned round in a 15' square space 
for example).

It exceeded specs: it will carry 1 ton, tow 4 tons, it can climb or descend a 
75� slope and can be turned around or traverse on a 65� slope. (how are your 
nerves?). Whilst it doesn't float it can be driven through water that doesn't 
come over the 'gunwhales' of the hull - ie 3' deep, and possibly deeper 
(provided you don't drown the driver). This vehicle gives the lie to the old 
adage that you should spy out the land on foot before driving the difficult 
bits - this vehicle will drive places you wouldn't want to try and walk!

If anybody is interested I can try and find the maker's address. I guess this
would make the ultimate support vehicle for a hunting/fishing/camping trip in
the Rockies or the New England Woods.

/. Ian .\

PS: I'm hoping to get a test drive this weekend!