As requested, some ACW2 vehicle close ups. (Pic Heavy!)

[Doc Twilight]

As requested, I'll post some close ups of my ACW2 vehicle collection here over the next few days. Comments and questions are welcome.


Ehrhardt E/V-4 Armored Car, Model 1917, "General Lew Wallace"
(28mm. Source: Black Army Productions)

"General Lew Wallace" was manufactured in Germany, likely around 1917. Its' precise identification number in German Army service is not known, but fragmentary records indicate that it may have been damaged during the war and placed in strategic reserve, essentially forgotten about until the 1920s, when it was used by the German police force. In 1933, it was purchased by the Ohio branch American Silver Legion, militia branch of the American Legion, initially as a "museum display piece" but was actually used as a strikebreaking vehicle under the name, "Senator Robert Taft" (attempts to name her after the former President, William Howard Taft, were dismissed immediately.)

In early 1934, "Senator Robert Taft" was used in the abortive Silvershirt coup in Indianapolis, where it was struck by a round fired by members of an Indiana National Guard 37mm anti-tank crew, and subsequently abandoned by the crew. The vehicle was salvaged by the National Guard and "leased" to Indiana Lodge #1, Sons of Liberty, and henceforth found itself assigned to service with the militia branch of that organization, the 19th (Indiana) Minutemen and renamed after Indiana hero Lew Wallace, author of Ben Hur and savior of Washington DC during the First American Civil War (1861-1865).

"General Lew Wallace" was subsequently involved in fighting around Martinsville in May, where it was involved in the inconclusive attempt to crush the Klu Klux Klan base of operations there. Subsequently, "General  Lew" was engaged in anti-partisan duties until July, when it was swiftly dispatched with three companies of the Indiana State Minutemen to assist in the defense against General Patton's Ohio River Valley Offensive. On July 11th, "General Lew" was heavily engaged in the Battle of La Grange, Kentucky, where Indiana and US Army troops assisted the KDF against a mixed force of Naval Brigade, Silver Shirts, and US Army forces. It was again damaged, this time severely, and as a result missed the battle of Louisville (though another Constitutionalist Ehrhardt, "Oliver P. Morton", was destroyed in the fighting there.) Upon repair, the Lew Wallace was involved in the Battles of Middlesboro (1934) and Frankfort (1935) in Kentucky before being destroyed in the failed Constitutionalist attempt to capture Cincinnatti in the Spring of 1936.
E/V-4 Ehrhardt Armored Car
"General Lew Wallace"

Profile View, from driver's left.


Prominently noticeable here is the "Torch of Liberty", prominent symbol on the Indiana State Flag. The markings of the Indiana Minutemen can also be seen.

Profile view, from driver's right.


The name of the vehicle, "General Lew Wallace", can be seen on the driver's right side engine cover. So too can a skull and crossbones motif with the phrase "Liberty or Death". In the 1960s, an attempt was made to argue that the insignia had originally been a cracked Liberty Bell, which had been incorrectly interpreted by engineers repairing the vehicle after La Grange. However, documents have subsequently surfaced referring to the "skull and crossbones" motif being painted by the vehicle's commander, Minuteman-Captain Andrew A. Bagosy, who had seen a similar symbol in use during the Hungarian Civil War of the 1920s.

Profile view, from rear.


Once again, political slogans are visible here. In this case "Down with Lindbergh." Charles Lindbergh, American hero, was controversial in his role. first as General Secretary of the United States (1933-1935) and later as President of the United States (1936-1937).

(More coming soon.)

-Doc

[Doc Twilight]

Filatov Armored Car, Model 1917, "Makhno"
(28mm. Source: Black Army Productions)

One of the thirty Filatovs manufactured by the Czarist government prior to the end of hostilities, Filatov #27 was built near Moscow and was apparently used as a training vehicle before being captured during the October Revolution and subsequently "disappearing" into a rear area security unit.

Filatov #27 appeared in the state of Kentucky in late 1933, smuggled through Canada, into Indiana, and then subsequently into Kentucky. Soviet records still claim that Filatov #27 was "scrapped for parts" in 1928, so the precise origin of this Filatov is unknown, particularly given that Stalin was no fan of the Kentucky Anarcho-Socialist Party, which claimed ownership of the vehicle for the duration of its service. Under KASP service, the Filatov was designated #1, "Makhno", named for Anarcho-Socialist hero and philosopher, Nestor Makhno.

In 1934, Frankfort passed the the Militia Registration Act, which officially recognized the right of political groups in the Kentucky Free State to maintain their own Militias, which could be armed if officially registered and made available for state service in the case of national emergencies. As a result, with the subsequent Ohio River Valley Campaign of that summer, "Makhno" was pressed into service along with most of the civilian members of the KASP, who were quite happy to lend their hand to resisting the Nationalist invasion. Filatov #1 served at La Grange, Lousville, and at Middlesboro, where it was destroyed by anti-tank fire of US Army elements loyal to Washington. All members of the crew were killed. The remains of the vehicle were recovered, and now form the centerpiece of the memorial at Frankfort, Kentucky, commemorating Kentucky's war dead.



Profile view, driver's left side. The red and black star symbolic of the Anarcho-Socialist movement has been handpainted here.
One half of Makhno's famous saying, "Land to the Farmers, Factories to the Workers" has been painted on the left rear plate.
"No. 1" has also been painted on the front plate. Kentucky armored vehicles frequently used a style of numbering first adopted by European powers in the late 19th century, "No. #", as a stylistic choice.


Profile view, driver's right side. Here we see the other half of Makhno's famous battle cry, along with the same red/black star and No.1. This is the side struck by the anti-tank round at Middlesboro. The memorial has preserved the penetrated rear plate, along with other portions of the vehicle.


Rear view, clearly showing the dual 7.62m machine guns which were one of two standard armament variations of the Filatov. The Kentuckians, like the Russians before them, tried, and failed, to produce a stable anti-tank gun variant. Kentucky later built a small number of Filatov copies. Most were armed with dual machine guns. 7.62mm guns, as in the originals, were favored where acquired due to the relatively cheap cost of ammunition and weaponry, but at least one variant was built with Model 1894 Colt Machine Guns donated by the United Sons of the Spanish American War!

[leadfool]

will these be in the Kublacon game?

[Doc Twilight]

That's the plan, aye.

-Doc

[former user]

I think I recognize a fellow "tank nutjob" in You 
impressive collection You have here

looks like Makhno has made it to the US after all...

[commissarmoody]

Pretty kool, damn school for stoping my contrabustions to the southwest 2ACW. 

[Doc Twilight]

Thanks for the comments. And yes, I am a tank nut;)
Without further ado, some more stuff.
-------------------------------------

Vickers MkIIA Medium Tank "Hercules"
(28mm Source: Copplestone Castings)

"Hercules" was built in 1926 by the Vickers firm in Great Britain. One of the original 100 production models, Hercules is noted in British records at the time as being production model #97,and spent most of a rather unremarkable career in the Home Islands. Between 1931 and 1933, the United States Navy expressed an interest in experimenting with larger armored vehicles, and #97 was placed on "long term lease" for that purpose, along with five other MkII vehicles of various configurations, which were converted to MkIIA standard as part of the arrangement.

At the outbreak of hostilities, those elements of the United States Navy remaining loyal to Washington found themselves short of surface vessels, but with a surplus of manpower, and the four Naval Infantry Brigades, whose history is more extensively covered elsewhere, were created. These Naval Infantry Brigades were intended to be assault formations, but the Navy had only a minority of the roughly 900 or so armored vehicles officially in United States Military inventories as of 1933, and most of these were in the hands of the Marine Corps; this was unacceptable to the commanders of the Naval Infantry Brigades, who lobbied for some sort of mechanized support. Those few armored vehicles directly under Navy control were, as a result, placed directly into Armored Companies intended for the Naval Infantry Brigades, and attempts were made to purchase or produce additional vehicles. Number #97 and its five sister vehicles were among the initial USN vehicles assigned for this purpose. The Vickers MkII was found to be an excellent, serviceable design by its Navy crews, and soon  proved very popular.

#97, nicknamed "Hercules" by its first crew, was assigned to the Armored Company of the 4th "McCulloch" Naval Infantry Brigade in 1934, not long before the commencement of the Ohio River Valley Campaign, in which the Naval Infantry Brigades were intended to play an important role. 4th Brigade was held in reserve during the initial phases of the battle of Cincinnati, and the disastrous savaging of its sister 3rd Brigade, later deployed during the second phase, but was not directly involved in any major combat. Because of the losses incurred by 3rd Brigade, 4th Brigade was chosen as the spearhead for the drive through Kentucky. At La Grange, 4th Naval Infantry Brigade and its supporting Armor Company were "stuck in" and heavily engaged. "Hercules" accounted for the destruction of at least three Constitutionalist vehicles, and had, by the end of the engagement, essentially exhausted its ammunition supply, as well as available reserves. When the 4th was shifted north into Indiana, Hercules went along, and was involved in several of the major engagements in that state, including the failed offensive effort aimed at Indianapolis. Because of extensive casualties, 4th Brigade was pulled from the line after Indianapolis, and did not see further action during the 1933-1936 period. Hercules continued to see extensive service following the "reorganization" of the Naval Infantry Brigades, and survived the war. Hercules is currently awaiting restoration at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland.


Vickers MkIIA medium tank #97 "Hercules" seen from the Driver's left. The symbol of 4th Naval Infantry Brigade, a white 4 painted against a dark blue triangle, can just be seen, hand-painted above the armored driver's compartment. The extensive ventilation grids provided by British designers after the overheating and discomfort of previous models can also be seen here. The name of the vehicle "Hercules", can just be made out beneath the prominent armored ventilation cowling typical of MkIIA variants.


A rather poor quality photograph from the perspective of the driver's right. The most prominent features here are two of the three Vickers Machine Guns provided for anti-infantry support. U.S.N. has been stenciled on the turret, and the edge of these markings can also be seen with some effort. The driver's vision slit can also be seen here, above the ventilator provided specifically for the comfort of the driver, one of many features that endeared the Mk II to her crews. The word "NAVY" has been painted over 4th Naval Infantry Brigade symbol on the armored driver's compartment.


Rear view of "Hercules". The entry hatch for crew access can be clearly seen here, to the right of the rear armor plate. Some graffiti has been scrawled here in dark navy blue paint. The slogan "Unity, Honor, Patriotism", was common amongst supporters of the Nationalist Cause.

[commissarmoody]

Oh nice, I dig the 6-ton. Are we going to see any M1 combat cars or M2 light tanks?

[Doc Twilight]

Oh nice, I dig the 6-ton. Are we going to see any M1 combat cars or M2 light tanks?

Probably not in this lot. At the moment, nobody makes them (though that may be something Black Army covers eventually), and at any rate, they post date the 1934-1936 period of the first book:)

-Doc

[commissarmoody]

Oh bother and drat! I guess I will be stuck with old national guard FT-17s and some kit bashed armored cars for the start of the war

[Doc Twilight]

Model 1933 Armored Tractor No.2304 "Emily"
(28MM. Source: Black Army Productions M36 Euzkadi)

At the end of 1932, the United States Army purchased a dozen Landesa tractors from the Spanish Republic for use in low cost tracked vehicle experiments. Originally designated as gun tractors, they never received an official "M" designation, and were instead referred to as "Armored Tractors" throughout their service in the United States. It was, perhaps, because of this innocuous classification that they were left behind during Douglas MacArthur's call up of the US Army's armored formations in the Fall of 1933, following the Battle of Pine Camp. Through whatever agency of chance, ten of the twelve armored tractors fell into the hands of pro-Constitutionalist elements in the United States Army. Two remaining vehicles, which had been in use at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds, fell into Nationalist hands.

Given the shortage of available armored units, the Constitutionalists soon fell upon the idea of "modernizing" obsolete vehicles in inventory, revisiting designs of the 1920s, and converting likely test beds for future armored vehicle projects. The Landesa, which was already being used as a test bed for light tank technology in Spain, was eagerly seized upon as a potential weapon. As a result of this, and with the quiet technical assistance of the Spanish Republic, an armored hull and turret were armed with Browning machine guns and built around the mechanically reliable Landesa chassis, and the vehicle was classified as "Armored Tractor Model 1933." Unfortunately, this new combination proved to place a great deal of strain on the Landesa engine, which led directly to the instillation of a high powered ventilation system to provide cooling for the overworked engine; this solution saved the Model 1933 from constant breakdowns, but at the cost of crew fatigue, which was greatly exacerbated by the massive fan system. In addition, limited means of access to the vehicle meant that crews could not, as a general rule, "bail out" without some forewarning of the conditions necessitating this. The 1933s, therefore, were neither completely successful nor particularly popular with their crews, but at the time, as the need for armored vehicles was acute, they were judged "good enough."

Upon completion, No.2304 "Emily" was assigned with four other M1933s to the 11th United States Cavalry Regiment, based at Monterey California in February, 1934. The 11th Cavalry's subsequent deployment to Missouri and the Ohio River Theatre saw that the five Model 1933s were directly involved in defending against the Nationalist Ohio River Valley Offensive in the spring and summer months of that year. On June 30th, the 11th was ordered into Illinois, with forward elements deployed along the southern border. On July 5th, the 11th conducted counter-partisan operations in southern Illinois and Indiana, during which "Emily" saw her first action against a detachment of Silvershirts. On July the 10th, the 11th Cavalry was less than two miles north of the Kentucky/Indiana border when orders came through for advance elements to assist the KDF in repelling an advancing Nationalist column. No.2304 was subsequently involved in the Battle of La Grange.  Although the 11th Cavalry served with great distinction during throughout the war, their Model 1933 Armored Tractors were not particularly fortunate, all five being destroyed or abandoned by their crews. Two, No.2304 ("Emily"), and No.2309 ("Justice Taft") were captured by the Nationalists and pressed into service by the American Silver Legion; Emily, after being "tracked" by a Nationalist anti-tank round at La Grange. Emily ultimately met her fate in New York, destroyed by a Communist anti-tank gun not far from the site of the Battle of Pine Camp.

These images reconstruct Emily's appearance at La Grange. In keeping with US Army practice at the time, Emily's markings are relatively simple, having much in common with the markings employed by American tankers during the Great War.


This image depicts "Emily" from the front, the driver's left side angled toward the viewer. She is painted in standard US Army Dark Green, commonly used by many of the belligerents during the war. Markings include her hand painted "US" insignia and her official identification number, #2304. A black Spade, the symbol of Emily's armored company (2nd) is also visible here along her rear side and turret side armor plates. Note that there are no slogans depicted here - the United States Army was in a state of great confusion at the time, and La Grange was actually the first battle in which elements from the United States Military would find themselves officially exchanging hostile fire. At no time does it appear "Emily's" name was actually painted on the vehicle. Armament consisted of two .30 machine guns, mounted inside gun tubes on the forward hull plate and in the small, one man turret. Typical crew was three, but up to four could be accommodated.


A rear view, showing the prominent ventilation grid to the rear of Emily's engine. This made the internal temperature of the tank tolerable for crew and engine, but the noise generated by the cooling fan caused a great deal of crew fatigue. "US" can also be seen here, stenciled on the rear of the turret.

[Christian]

It's good to see some clearer, bigger and more detailed photos of your vehicles, they look really cool 

[Doc Twilight]

It's good to see some clearer, bigger and more detailed photos of your vehicles, they look really cool 

Thank you.

Alas, if only the voters of the Lead Painter's League shared that sentiment..

-Doc

[Blackwolf]

Thank you.

Alas, if only the voters of the Lead Painter's League shared that sentiment..

-Doc

  I do Doc,ever since K Knispel.

[Doc Twilight]

  I do Doc,ever since K Knispel.

Much appreciated, Wolf. Now, if only I'd had my better camera when I photographed Kurt!

-Doc