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

[commissarmoody]

Nice, were did you get the gun from? I plane on making a few similar trucks. Utah National guard had a sizable arty component, and I could see them mounting up a few guns.

[Christian]

I love Toto and the gun truck! For your own (Black Army) trucks and tanks it's great to see bigger photos.

[Doc Twilight]

Thank you, folks, for the kind comments:) I'm glad you like the photos, Christian!

Moody - the gun is a Reverisco piece. And a very useful one at that. Do check out his armory. He is a nice fellow, with reasonable rates (I recall they aren't bad for International, either, but it's been a while since I've ordered his stuff from  overseas), and at any rate, he's one of the few doing separate armament type pieces, especially now that the London Warroom is dead and gone.

--
Lancia IZM Armored Car
(28mm. Source: Force of Arms)

The Lancia IZM was developed by the Italians in 1917 as a replacement for the very similar Lancia IZ armored car. The main modification included the removal of the secondary turret and the simplification of the vehicle's fender system. A large number of those vehicles produced were delivered in time to see fighting before the end of the war, and several of the earlier models were modified to IZM standard. Some from both batches were issued to American troops operating on the Italian Front in the final months of the fighting.  The Lancia Armored Car remained largely unchanged through the 1920s, and by 1930, it was still in operation throughout Italy's overseas territories. Such vehicles proved particularly useful in the campaigns of the 1920s, and were found to be a generally reliable vehicle for colonial service.

The social origins and diplomatic rammifications of Mussolini's relationship with Charles Lindbergh are discussed elsewhere, but for our purposes, they are important in that they provided a small number of Italian military advisors and "observers" who were given the freedom to travel with American forces in action and inform Il Duce about the state of the war against Communism in the United States. These advisors were, at least initially, lightly armed and  equipped, but they were provided with an escort of three Lancia IZM Armored Cars, which carried the head of the advisory mission, Colonel Giulio Barbino, and his staff safely to the front lines along side their gracious hosts in the United States Army, beginning in March of 1934. Barbino traveled with Patton during the latter's campaign in the Ohio River Valley, and his account of the action was a best seller in Italy.

The first Lancia IZM to see action during the Second American Civil War was Barbino's personal Lancia IZM, "Bella Bambina", which was attacked by Communist agitators outside Cincinnati as it toured American lines. Under Barbino's orders, the vehicle turned its turret on "an advancing mass of men", and "cut several down", according to Barbino's account. This is backed up by Patton's account of the chaotic first day of the siege of Cincinnati, which he says, "was marked by numerous Communist attempts to destabilize our forces, even while we attempted to negotiate a safe entry to the city." "During one of these incidents", his report continues, "Colonel Bambino and his staff were separated from us. Colonel Bambino's escort came under attack from CPUSA agitators, and was forced to defend itself. I apologized profusely, and explained that most Americans DO Understand the meaning of international law and neutrality, even if these hooligans did not."

Upon his departure for Rome in October, Bambino made a gift, on behalf of Mussolini, of his three armored cars, to the United States Army. These were evaluated and placed into service beginning in December, 1934, and at least two of the three saw combat in 1935; the third, Bambino's vehicle, was attached to President Lindberg's armored motorcade,  and remained in Italian colors as a tribute to America's "Italian friends". In fact, the crew of all three vehicles was Italian, though they were officially classified as "Foreign Volunteers" during the war. These were not the only foreign volunteers in the early years of the war, but they were certainly among the most notable. Eventually, the Italian government agreed to provide additional assistance to the Americans, and a dozen more Lancias and crews were delivered a year later, but Italian involvement in the war was not significant until 1936, and Mussolini's decision to take a larger role in the "international fight against Communism." The role of these forces will be discussed in future products.

The model here depicts General Bambino's personal vehicle, "Bella Bambina" while he was attached as an advisor to General Patton's Headquarters Company from April to August, 1934.


Front view of "Bella Bambina". The unique configuration of the headlight and fender system on the Lancia Autoblinda series can be seen here, as can the colors of the Italian Flag, faintly visible on the turret in the rear.


Driver's left side of the vehicle. The wear and tear on such a weapon under battlefield conditions is quite obvious, particularly in the hot and dry conditions of the Summer of 1934. "Bella" had a dual machine gun turret, which can also be seen in profile here.


Driver's right side of the vehicle. The spare tire carried by all Lancias can be seen here.


Rear of the vehicle. Bella's rear machine gun can be seen here.

(Note: Ok, yes, I painted this one for the Spanish Civil War and WW1, but I was so proud of the paint job that I've used a lot of excuses to put it out, even as scenery, in some of our battles. Mussoloni and Lindbergh were 'friends' during the 1930s, but in reality, Lindbergh was far more interested in National Socialism than he was in Fascism. That said, I do see at least some Italian advisors/volunteers coming in larger numbers, and the American public being far more friendly toward them than, say, German advisors, but most of them after the 1933-36 period of the first book. Your mileage may vary! At any rate, it seemed a shame not to show this one off. Just goes to show you what you can do with Interwar equipment and a bit of imagination.)

[Doc Twilight]

K1 "Daniel Boon" Tank
(28mm Source: Tobsen77)

The K1 "Daniel Boon" was the first production model, military grade armored vehicle produced in the United States intended for the exclusive use of an army opposed to the United States Military. In this case, the belligerent was the Kentucky Free State, which was desperately casting about for weapons technology that could be used to support its policies of armed neutrality.
At the time of the Kentucky Free State Declaration, Kentucky had seized control of Fort Knox, where it had hoped to take command of a large number of armored vehicles. Unfortunately, Douglas MacArthur, acting as Chief of Staff for the United States Army, had previously mobilized most of the armor at Fort Knox and ordered it out of the state for "internal security and police duties". Nearly 75% of the various vehicles stored at Fort Knox, therefore, had already been removed from the Fort, and the state, by the time Kentucky decided to proclaim it's sovereignty.

Kentuckian efforts soon came across a small time Czarist military engineer, living in the Soviet Union as a low grade employee of the Air Bureau, Aleksandr Porokhovschikov, who had developed a unique, mono-tracked light tank design for the Czarist Army, a design which Soviet propagandists had portrayed (Incorrectly) as the first "modern armored vehicle," known as the "Vezdekhod" ("The Man Who Can Go Anywhere")The vehicle's unique design had actually tested successfully, but, for unclear reasons, the prototype was abandoned for other designs. Porokovschikov denied any knowledge of the remaining blueprints, but a friendly former Menshevik contact living elsewhere in the world -did-, and agreed to sell the "license" for the vehicle to the Kentuckians in exchange for what was described as "a very reasonable fee".

The K1 "Daniel Boon" was essentially Kentucky's copy of the Vezdekhod, equipped with a more powerful engine and a stronger steering system and armed with a .30 caliber machine gun. Although this was originally intended to be the "Knoxville .30", Kentucky's copy of the Browning .30, there were supply problems in the first years of the war, and most of the weapons installed were of varying makes and models in or around .30. Performance was reportedly fairly good, and the improved steering system did help to improve some of the problems reported in Russian testing. The K1, which some have argued should be classified as a tankette, proved useful enough against infantry targets, but was lightly armored and did not perform well against heavier armor; in addition, teething problems with the engines in the first production batch of K1's meant that many K1 "Daniel Boon" tanks broke down, or required extensive maintenance to make them field worthy.

By 1936, Kentucky had built about 30 K1s - an impressive feat. They saw widespread use in the defense of Kentucky, but only limited deployment outside the state. At least one vehicle, however, seems to have traveled to Washington State, after being captured by Communist Insurgents in late 1935.

One of the first armored units formed by the new KDF, and equipped almost entirely with K1 "Daniel Boon" tanks was the "Abraham Lincoln Company of Cuirassiers", created at Knoxville, Kentucky, in November, 1933.  Although they trained with unarmed wooden prototypes, the Cuirassiers had been equipped with six of the vehicles by January, 1934, to a final total of nine vehicles, by March.
The Cuirassiers were involved in the Battle of Sterling's Still, Missouri, La Grange, and Schurmann's Farmstead. The unit had lost five of its nine vehicles by Louisville, and only a single vehicle survived that bloody engagement. The unit was reformed in early 1935, and equipped with five K1s and two Marmon-Herrington Tanks. All vehicles were subsequently destroyed at Second Cumberland Gap. The Lincoln Cuirassiers were re-formed a third time, with entirely new vehicles, as a Battalion in 1936, but never again used K1s.

This model depicts No.3 "Henry Clay" of the Abraham Lincoln Cuirassiers as it was known to have been painted during the Battle of Schurmann's Farmstead, Kentucky on July 13, 1934. "Henry Clay" was a relatively lucky vehicle, having survived Sterling's Still and La Grange. It continued to survive until Second Cumberland Gap - where its operator, Lieutenant Frank Stills, miraculously survived. The ruined hulk of the vehicle was retrieved from the battlefield and donated to the Kentucky State Museum at Frankfort. For years afterward, Kentuckian veterans would visit the relics and touch them for good luck.


No.3, shown from the front. Note the narrow vision slit. Lt. Stills would have driven the vehicle by using a driver's periscope which allowed a view from the narrow hatch located just above the track. The vehicle could also be driven by using the narrow viewslits in the turret.


No.3 from the operator's left. The title of the unit "Lincoln Cuirassiers" has been handpainted along the side of the vehicle. A typical Makhnovist slogan has been painted along the sides of the turret.


No.3 from the rear. The number and nickname of the vehicle, "Henry Clay" are located here. Kentucky's armored vehicles were often given personal names, relating to local figures or popular heroes. Henry Clay was a famous orator and Senator, known as "The Great Compromiser," widely regarded as one of the finest American Senators.

[commissarmoody]

Any Silver Legion tanl pics yet?

[Doc Twilight]

Chris -

Actually, I do have some. Waiting on the significant other to pass me along the camera, but I'll see what I can do to get 'em up soon.

-Alex

[commissarmoody]

me just being a pest, when are we going to see them pics from your better half?
I have a few ft-17s, PZ-1s and VK6-ton waiting for some insperation from Legion HQ