New vehicles - thoughts, ideas, suggestions...

[Antenociti]

Slowly moving away form the sci-fi stuff for a bit of a break atm and currently doing some background work on some "pulp" vehicles that i am considering doing..

Rather than trying to dig through everything online I thought I would pick the collective mind here on a few things:

I'm including some VERY estimate prices just to help show where I am aiming for with regard to price.


Rolls Royce Armoured Car - I've been commissioned to build one of these for a client for 28mm. I've seen a few others out there that look pretty good - any reason/need/want for us to turn this into a production vehicle or are there plenty out there already? (est price around £12)

Whippet tank - WWI light tank "famous" for raiding behind the lines at Amiens(?) near the war's end. I've only seen a 1/72 and 1/35th kit for these and couldn't find any 28mm versions - so assuming that this might be something that folks might want as there is a gap in the market? (est price around £12)

Mack Truck - 28mm 1920/30s open backed mack truck. Just a truck that I thought would make a nice model - again no idea if it's already done although I know Lledo and Matchbox make them so useful or not ?(est price around a tenner whereas you can get a Lledo one for around £5 easily)

Model A ford van - another lledo and matchbox job but was thinking, as with the mack above, to make a normal version plus/or a "suped-up-pulp" version  (again around a tenner or so so competing with the lledo stuff)

Citroen traction 11cv - couldn't see anything for this classic car other than the 1/48 kit which is too small (imo) for 28mm - obviously can be used interwar and WWII for French or German forces - REALLY classic car and a lovely looking one. (est price around £12)

French armoured car/light tank (doh forgotten the name but its this one http://www.chars-francais.net/images/archives/schneider_amc_p16/p16_m29_030.jpg
)
another really classic "weird looking" design that I just fancied doing - probably £12-15. Haven't seen any 28mm models of this at all.

"League of Gentlemen" Rolls Royce - something big, suped and rather ugly similar to the Roller in The League of Gentlemen - something "pulpy" in other words. ~ £12

- - -

All of those are very, very early thoughts atm, so if they are already covered or there's no interest then its no big deal. Also always open to suggestions not mentioned above, especially if its a model that is not available elsewhere and isn't  among the Lledo/Matchbox stuff (or Sloppy Jalopy for that matter - no point doing what they already do well)

[Plynkes]

Brigade sell a 28mm Whippet, and Copplestone and others a Rolls Royce. So I'm not sure there would be much call for competing versions unless they are obviously superior models. Might be better to do stuff nobody else is doing.

I'm not trying to put down your ideas, I'd love to see you move into this historical area. It's just that those particular ones have already been done.

How about Talbot cars? (flat bed trucks with a small arty piece in the back.) They could be used in conjunction with Rollers for some T.E. Lawrence railway-busting fun.

[Antenociti]

Brigade sell a 28mm Whippet, and Copplestone and others a Rolls Royce. So I'm not sure there would be much call for competing versions unless they are obviously superior models. Might be better to do stuff nobody else is doing.

I'm not trying to put down your ideas, I'd love to see you move into this historical area. It's just that those particular ones have already been done.

How about Talbot cars? (flat bed trucks with a small arty piece in the back.) They could be used in conjunction with Rollers for some T.E. Lawrence railway-busting fun.

no worries, that's exactly what I need to know, especially re what other companies are doing.

i'll take a gander at the whippet and see what it's like (and its rather jolly good so scratch that one) ... then go look up Talbot stuff!

[Skrapwelder]

Just looking for Talbot cars I found this site which has a lot of nice ideas. Some have been done like the Rolls. I really like the Crossley and the Lanchester

http://mailer.fsu.edu/~akirk/tanks/GreatBritain/British-OtherVehicles.html

[Gundamentalist 5.56]

Mack Truck - 28mm 1920/30s open backed mack truck. Just a truck that I thought would make a nice model - again no idea if it's already done although I know Lledo and Matchbox make them so useful or not?

Lledo already do a Mack truck but its a little on the small side - I'm guessing maybe 1/64, or 1/66 scale, so a proper 1/56 scale truck would be appreciated, at least by me.

(est price around a tenner whereas you can get a Lledo one for around £5 easily)

More like a £1 on eBay   OK, so there's postage on top of that but you should be able to get what you want for £3 or less. However I'm willing to pay more than that if its good and available nowhere else.

Model A ford van - another lledo and matchbox job but was thinking, as with the mack above, to make a normal version plus/or a "suped-up-pulp" version  (again around a tenner or so so competing with the lledo stuff)

Again you nailed it, Lledo do a perfectly serviceable 1/53 Model A van, stake truck, coupe and open top variations. What they do not do, and what I'd really like to see is a pick-up version and a sedan/saloon version (i.e. hard top and four doors).

Whilst we're on the subject of Pulp vehicles I'd like to see a few other makes other than Ford - Packard, Chevrolet, etc. as well.

Citroen traction 11cv - couldn't see anything for this classic car other than the 1/48 kit which is too small (imo) for 28mm - obviously can be used interwar and WWII for French or German forces - REALLY classic car and a lovely looking one. (est price around £12)

I don't know if you've seen this (bottom of the page)?

Siku 1/55 Citroen traction 11cv

"League of Gentlemen" Rolls Royce - something big, suped and rather ugly similar to the Roller in The League of Gentlemen - something "pulpy" in other words. ~ £12

I'm always looking for a big fat bad guy's limo  ::

[redzed]

1931 MERCEDES BENZ 770


Matchbox do this but it's way too big.
The car was used as a state car for the Nazi & Japanese, it was also used by the mega rich.

[dominic]

I would like to see a Rolls Royce Armoured Car in true 1/56 scale.  The Copplestone one is too small measuring in at 1/64th.

I would also LOVE to see a 1/56 scale Ford A Pick Up like this:

[dominic]

BTW - I would probably buy 2-3 Rollers and 3 Ford A Pick Ups.

If you're doing a Lanchester, I'd like to see the 1939 version with 6 wheels.  These were used by 2nd Battalion Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders in Malaya 1941-42.  There are good plans for the Lanchester in the excellent book "Moon Over Malaya", which I can scan and send to you.

Best regards,

[Antenociti]

Ooo the crossley and lanchester armoured cars are nice!!!  especially the crossley!!

I don't know if you've seen this (bottom of the page)?

any idea if its a "suitable" size though? there's a german diecast at around 1/60 also but its waaaay too big... 'scales' are so far off at times.

 - -

Ford-A pickup looks interesting - when was it used? i.e. how many genres/periods might it apply to?

Redzed - certainly a nice vehicle, do you know if anybody else does it?

Ref the roller - well I've got to do one, so I might as well put the little bit extra into making a kit of it. The client wants one that "looks right with based 28mm figures" so i assume they know of the other models out there and didn't like them for whatever scale reasons.

- - -

as a general question, with the obvious exception of open-top vehicles and trucks is there any pressing need to have accessible interiors or are solid vehicles fine? (with metal detailing, maybe brass-etch where needed obviously)

[dominic]

Just for the record, here's a pic of a real Roller next to real people:



Here's my Copplestone Roller next to 28mm people:

[dominic]

Re the Ford A Pick Up, here's what David Fletcher says:

"...the Palestine Emergency had interrupted training of what was known as the Mobile Force, based at Mersa Matruh.  As a mixed cavalry and RTC formation, it was held up as an example to those in Britain who were resisting the inevitable creation of a Royal Armoured Corps.  In mid-1938, this was followed by the creation of a Mobild Division consisting of 1st and 6th Battalions RTC and a brigade of 3 cavalry regiments equipped with light tanks, armoured cars, and for the time being, some Ford pick up trucks.  It was commanded by Gen Hobart whose expertise and energy laid the foundation of what was to become 7th Armoured Division; described by Gen O'Connor as the best trained division I have ever seen...
...The Sudan Defence Force had a motor machine gun section as early as 1926.  It began with Ford T light patrol cars and graduated to Model A Fords mounting Vickers MGs..."

The caption to the photo of the Ford A Pick Up above reads:

"Fords, especially American ones, have always been popular in the desert.  These V8 armed pick up trucks were operated by 8th Hussars in Egypt and Palestine and although regarded as a poor substitute to armoured cars, were in fact direct and worthy descendents of the Ford T Light Patrol Cars of the First World War."

In gaming terms, I could see them being used in any 1930s desert, Africa, India, NW Frontier, Iraq or Central Asia game.  To me, they look like the ideal Back of Beyond form of transport!

[Antenociti]

OK Ford A is looking like a good'un  :love:

I see what you mean about the roller - considerably smaller.

[dominic]

Cool!!  Can't wait to see them in production.

Here's something on the Lanchester 6x4 Armoured Car.  In addition to Malaya 1941/42, they could also be used to support Home Guard units, as well as to protect British VIP convoys (think Churchill)!  From their 1930s deployment history, they look like they could be used to support the Ford A pick ups as well.

"In January 1929 the first Lanchesters (along with Rolls-Royce Armoured Cars) were received by the 11th Hussars regiment. Because of slow rate of delivery, it took until 1934 to fully equip the unit. In November the regiment was relocated to Egypt to relieve the 12th Royal Lancers, which returned to Britain and took over the cars. In January-February 1935 a provisional D squadron of the 12th Lancers with eight armoured cars served as a peacekeeping force in the Saar region. On 31 December B and C squadrons were sent again to Egypt with 29 armoured cars as a response to Italian invasion of Abyssinia and strengthening garrisons in Libya. They were used in patrolling the western frontier. By the end of the year the squadrons were returned to Britain, where the regiment was reequipped with Morris armoured cars.

By 1939, most Lanchesters (13 Mk I, 1 Mk Ia, 5 Mk II, 3 Mk IIA) were sent to the Far East and assigned to the Selangor and Perak battalions of Federal Malay States Volunteer Force, the Singapore Volunteer Corps, Strait Settlements Volunteer Force and the 2nd battalion of Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders in Malaya. Some of these took part in the Malayan Campaign (December 1941 - 15 February 1942) against Japan.

About 10 Lanchesters were given to the Territorial Army (23rd London Armoured Car Company and 1st Derbyshire Yeomanry). In 1940 one was converted for use by cabinet ministers and other VIPs. In 1941 two were given to the 1st Belgian Armoured Cars squadron."

[Prof.Witchheimer]

Dominic, don't forget, the Copplestone brits are huge ones, the rest of the 28mm historical world is a bit smaller. I know not small enough for that little car but you must not take these brits to comparison.

[Antenociti]

thx Prof - still a bit undersized though.

does anybody else make one closer to actual size?