Re: [MV] Importing M29c Weasel from Canada to US

From: Colin Macgregor Stevens (seaforth72@hotmail.com)
Date: Fri Aug 31 2001 - 21:44:33 PDT


I have never done it so have no experience, however there are a few points
to be prepared for. If you are asked by US authorities if it is LEND LEASE,
tell them NO. They don't like Lend Lease stuff returning to the USA I
understand. Canada BOUGHT her military vehicles from the USA in WWII. In
fact Canada had its own foreign aid program during the war where we too gave
away vehicles, ammunition etc. We even gave some to our southern
neighbours - the USA. If you check the history on the fighting in the
Philippines in 1942, you will find that the US military was using some
Canadian built army vehicles that had apparently been diverted while enroute
to the Canadian troops at Hong Kong when Hong Kong was captured by the
Japanese in late December 1941.

Do specify that the M20C is NON-ARMOURED in spite of what I have
occasionally seen in print about the M29C! They are soft skins!

I have evidence of M29C Water Weasels in Canadian military service if you
need that proof. For example two were used on Exercise Muskox in the arctic
in 1946 (I have photos). My father-in-law commanded a Canadian Armoured
Snowmobile Mk. I (one of about 15 converted to a "Penguin" with an enclosed
cab) on that lengthy cross-arctic expedition - vehicle # 8. Some M29C were
sold surplus here after the DEW Line closed down. The Canadian Army also
used some Weasels and Water Weasels in Holland in 1944-45. There is an M29C
in the Canadian War Museum at their Vimy House facility in Ottawa, Ontario.

Remember, the M29 is a Studebaker SNOWMOBILE and was originally developed
for the joint US-Canadian First Special Service Force. :-)

If you cannot get an answer from the list, contact me off list at
seaforth72@hotmail.com and I will give you the phone number of a local MV
collector who has shipped a number of ex-MVs to collectors in the USA.

Colin Macgregor Stevens
**** My e-mail system lost 34 messages 2001 July 28, and another 20 or so on
Aug 1/2.. If you wrote then and have had no reply, please send again. ****
NEW E-MAIL ADDRESS to try to avoid lost messages: seaforth72@hotmail.com
Can still reach me at old one: colin@pacdat.net
MVPA Member 954 (since 1977)
Editor: "Maple Leaf Up!" newsletter & Webmaster
of Western Command Military Vehicle Historical Society
(Established 1977) http://www.westerncommand.com
Pitt Meadows (East of Vancouver but not beyond Hope)
British Columbia, CANADA
Owner of:
1944 Willys MB jeep (ex-Norway)
http://bcoy1cpb.pacdat.net/colin_stevens'_1944_willys_mb_photos.htm
1942 BSA airborne bicycle
http://bcoy1cpb.pacdat.net/bsa_airborne_bicycles_(aka_parabike).htm
1943 Ford GPA amphibious jeep http://bcoy1cpb.pacdat.net/gpa.htm

Personal web site: http://bcoy1cpb.pacdat.net

----- Original Message -----
From: "islander" <islander@midmaine.com>
To: "Military Vehicles Mailing List" <mil-veh@mil-veh.org>
Sent: Friday, August 31, 2001 9:40 PM
Subject: [MV] Importing M29c Weasel from Canada to US

> Hi all,
>
> Anybody had recent experience with importing a WWII era non-armored US
> Army vehicle from Canada to the US? I am looking at bringing Weasel #9
> home from our neighbors to the north. It is in a very sorry state, but
> cheap enough that it is worth it for me to import for parts. Heck... I
> might take another one the guy has if I can figure out how to transport
> both in one go.
>
> I plan on having it transported by truck to a nearby border crossing
> where I can pick it up with my own truck. So here are my questions:
>
> 1. Do I need any paperwork before hand? (Form6?)
> 2. If so, is it actually possible to get it? (Form6 problems?)
> 3. Should I pick it up on the Canadian side or the US side of the border?
> 4. With NAFTA in place, do I need to pay anything for moving it over The
> Line?
> 5. Anything else worthy of consideration here?
>
> Thanks!!!
>
> Steve
>
> ===Mil-Veh is a member-supported mailing list===
> To unsubscribe, send e-mail to: <mil-veh-off@mil-veh.org>
> To switch to the DIGEST mode, send e-mail to <mil-veh-digest@mil-veh.org>
> To reach a human, contact <ack@mil-veh.org>
>



This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Sun Sep 02 2001 - 11:15:42 PDT