Brothers restore vehicles, memories

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This article was published 16/09/2018 (2041 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

On a rural property just outside Steinbach, two brothers have quietly spent nearly two decades restoring a unique collection of Second World War vehicles they see as an enduring reminder of their country’s sacrifice on battlefields the world over.

While Rob and Tony Fast’s keen interest in military history wasn’t kindled by a family history of military service, a series of childhood experiences instilled in them an appreciation for soldiers’ sacrifices.

“I’ve always been fascinated with military history,” Rob Fast said as he stood beside his collection last Friday.

He recalled how his father, Clarence, took him and Tony to airshows in Manitoba and North Dakota, stopping at army surplus stores along the way to rummage for interesting finds.

Steinbach artist John Henry Friesen also inspired the brothers with military scenes featuring meticulous airbrush work.

In their teenage years, the Fasts delved into scale modelling with friends. But while their peers glued together muscle cars, Rob and Tony were drawn to tanks and warbirds.

Books on military history came next.

“I’m a Battle of Britain fanatic,” Rob said.

At age 14, a rare opportunity arrived: a reunion of Allied pilots, including Royal Air Force ace Douglas Bader, was held in Winnipeg. Luftwaffe general Adolf Galland was also invited.

Rob made sure to bring his autograph book when he met the legless Bader, whose career in uniform was chronicled in the 1956 film Reach for the Sky.

When the Fasts eventually decided to begin collecting and restoring military vehicles, they quickly settled on a niche: Canadian Military Pattern right-hand drive trucks built in Canada by Ford and General Motors for export to other Commonwealth countries during the Second World War.

“We do it to honour the history of Canadian military vehicles, and we do it to honour the veterans, and to teach kids and the public,” Rob, a former pilot and longtime greens superintendent at the Steinbach Fly-In Golf Club, explained.

After the war ended, the vehicles often fell into the hands of farmers, who prized their durable construction and four-wheel drive capability.

Manitoban collectors—many of whom, like the Fasts, belong to Prairie Command, a group dedicated to restoring and preserving military vehicles—also benefit from their proximity to Station Macdonald, a now-defunct Royal Canadian Air Force base near Portage la Prairie, where surplus Second World War vehicles were deposited.

Still, some original parts require a special effort to find, such as an artillery sight Rob tracked down in England.

“Artillery parts are hard to source in Canada,” he explained.

The Fasts also participate in online restorer communities, which have chapters in virtually every country where military vehicles were abandoned after conflicts ended, from Holland to New Zealand to India.

When the brothers acquire a new vehicle, Rob researches, sources parts, and paints, while Tony welds and pulls wrenches. The restorations are thorough—“sandblasted, bearings, brakes”—and even the tires are original.

Tony noted engines were often a weak spot in unarmoured vehicles, and require special attention.

The Fasts’ attention to detail also extends to accessories. They scour flea markets and internet forums to find period-specific canteens, rifles, ammunition boxes, gas cans, and canvas tents and gas-mask bags.

“That’s the fun part—well, it’s all fun,” Rob admitted.

Today, the Fasts’ collection includes four vehicles and two artillery guns.

There’s a 1942 GM heavy utility wireless truck complete with antennas and a radio. The Fasts dubbed it Nipper, after the dog in the RCA electronics logo.

A 1943 GM field artillery tractor would have carried a six-person crew plus 32 rounds of ammunition, Rob said.

It would also have towed a limber, or two-wheeled artillery trailer, a more recent acquisition that will serve as the brothers’ winter project.

A 1940 Chevrolet C8, driven by Tony in last month’s Pioneer Days parade, was the smallest and lightest truck Canada produced during the war. It features sand tires and a tan paint job for deployment in North Africa.

The brothers’ first vehicle, a 1942 light anti-aircraft tractor, features a 40-millimetre machine gun that would have fired 75 rounds per minute.

There’s also an unrestored RCAF staff car Rob said will stay in its current state.

He declined to estimate the value of a collection that’s difficult to appraise.

When he retires, Rob said he would like to offer educational tours to schoolchildren.

“I want people to stop and think on June 6 and November 11,” he said.

While the Fasts’ collection isn’t open to the public, select items were on display Saturday at the Steinbach Flying Club’s annual open house.