Morris Commercial CDSW

The Morris Commercial CDSW light breakdown truck is a very rare military vehicle and is owed by Paul Edwards. After it was purchased it was decided that the Morris should go to Normandy for the 75th D Day anniversary.Before the trip it was discovered that there was a problem with the engine and Paul thought it wise to have it rebuild before the trip. Not being one to do things by half, the Morris was taken to Whitedell Engineering just north of Portsmouth where Barry set about sorting out the engine. The Morris was already booked on the ferry for Normandy at this point, so the pressure was on. Paul took the opportunity to give the truck a tidy up and repaint. Barry managed to complete the engine rebuild in sort time and the paint work was finished ready for Normandy, but at the last moment a problem arose, Barry very quickly diagnosed the problem as a sticky valve which was soon put right and off to Normandy the Morris went. The trip was a great success with the CDSW getting a lot of attention and winning the best British & Commonwealth soft skin award at the Maple Leaf group gathering held at the Longues-sur-Mer gun battery overlooking Gold beach. Paul took part in the vehicles on the beach at Arromanches on the 6th of June, which saw one of the best displays of WW2 vehicles for many years, it was nice to see so many British and Canadian vehicles there. The Morris was in attendance at the liberation parade, Port-en-Bessin which saw over 270 Military vehicles from WW2 taking part. A full report on this event can by found HERE  Paul said, although slow the Morris performed faultlessly throughout the trip.Paul took the CDSW to the Goodwood Revival, to take part in the 75th anniversary D Day parade and display. This is a very original vehicle including all of the equipment that it would have had during the war. In fact this Morris was used by the well known Morris restorer Rory Ballard who took templates and patterns to restore his own CDSW which he has since sold to a new owner. 

What does CDSW stand for some people ask, the C is for the model which was first introduced in 1933 it was designed to tow a field gun such as The 18 pounder or the 4.5 inch howitzer. The D stood for Double axle on the rear of the vehicle, S stood for the six cylinder engine and The W was for the winch.There were several versions produced, Paul’s being the light breakdown variant. The Artillery Tractor version of the CDSW was superseded in 1939 by the Morris QUAD 4 x 4. The CDSW Morris variants were with the BEF in France and many were lost during the Dunkirk evacuation. It has been said that after Dunkirk the German Army had more Morris Commercials than the British Army. They were also used in the North African campaigns.