Hello everybody!
I would like, one day, to build a fuel tanker from the Vietnam war. Researching (I like this job!) I’ve found a nice reference photo of a truck from Vietnam, this one:
But then I took another look and said: Are you joking? Why does it say on the side: “Flammable” and under that in small letters “Potable water”?
Could somebody explain that to me? I don’t like modelling things I don’t understand, at least a little bit… Thanks in advance for all your help and have a nice day
I don’t understand it either but I think I’d model it as it’s shown and keep a copy of the pic to fend off the inevitable questions
Edit: from a quick Google “potable water can be flammable if it contains methane gas. Methane is a naturally occurring gas that can seep into wells, especially when the ground is disturbed by drilling or earthquakes. When water with dissolved methane comes into contact with air, the methane escapes and can ignite if lit. This can create a fireball and pose a significant fire and explosion hazard”
It actually makes sense because the phonetic, “FLAMMABLE” isn’t a word in the English language. The word we are all thinking of is actually, “Inflammable”
Just a suggestion, touch base with the US Army Quartermaster Museum, they might be able to shed some light on this. They have a web site and were very helpful when I had some questions regarding WWII rations. That tanker is a puzzle to me, somewhere in my (very old) memory, I think I recall trucks with 2 separate tanks, but they were for gasoline and diesel, I can’t imagine water and gas on the same vehicle.
I think you should just build it as shown in the photo, good conversation starter.
The Wikipedia article on Tank Truck contains an interesting statement.
Some tank trucks are able to carry multiple products at once due to compartmentalization of the tank into 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or, in some rare cases, more tank compartments. This allows for an increased number of delivery options. These trucks are commonly used to carry different grades of gasoline to service stations to carry all products needed in one trip.
Is it possible the tank on that truck has more than one compartment and can therefore carry fuel and water at the same time?
If a fuel and water truck is hit in combat, perhaps the water naturally douses or reduces the destructive potential of the fuel load. Is that a thing?
Yes, but you don’t usually carry fuel and water together (on the same vehicle) so there is less of a chance of cross contamination or using the wrong product in a vehicle or piece of equipment. Drinking fuel would be bad, as would putting water into a vehicle fuel tank.
If both fuel and water trucks look identical then perhaps the warning is to ensure there are no mishaps- just in case someone thinks it was safe to light up since it’s only a water truck. A big ‘Flammable’ warning would ensure no mistakes!
Hello everybody!
Thanks a lot for your comments!
I’m so glad this discussion got so rich and so interesting.
In Gino’s thread he told about an idea, that a water tanker might get converted into a fuel truck after it got contaminated. I’m not so sure about that, but wars know weirder stories, right? It sure is hard to tell a fuel tanker from a water tanker on a photo like this.
Camouflaging a water tanker as a fuel tanker would be like writing “shoot at me”, right?
@Frenchy - firewater is an idea that appeals to me, too! @PzAufkl - thanks for the link, very interesting, I will surely use it! @SFCJJC - good idea, I’ll see if they have something for me, thanks! @Damraska - even if they weren’t afraid of fuel contamination, like Gino wrote, the water wouldn’d be potable after unloading… @Karl187 - that’s an interesting hypothesis!
And to all that say “build it” - I say that’s how I feel it too!
I’ll do some more research and if someboady has more ideas pleas do post them here. And when I get to building this, I will definitely post the build on this forum!
Hello!
I just got an answer from the Quartermaster Museum. They write they can’t help me, but directed me to the Fort Eustis Transportation Museum, they also sent me some links, where I can continue my reserach, which I intend to do…
It actually makes sense because the phonetic, “FLAMMABLE” isn’t a word in the English language. The word we are all thinking of is actually, “Inflammable” 
