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Help with possible Jeep conversion...


Courageous

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Hi All,

I recently acquired a 1/72 Jeep as part of a Mustang kit that was in North Africa, 1942.

I fancy using the jeep as an airfield vehicle used alongside F86 Sabres in Korea.

Can I use the said jeep? If so, how and into what?

 

Stuart

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Here's my two Jeeps. One is a "Follow Me" Jeep, the other "Station Photo", part of the base Photo Lab unit. Both are in WW2 markings, but I've no doubt that Jeeps were used in similar roles into the Korean War and beyond. Colours would vary depending on role and probably how close to the front lines they were. I've seen 1950's airfield vehicles in bright yellow for those that would be on the active side of an airfield.

 

tanfield4.jpg

 

A while back I also found this Dodge WC51 or WC52, modified as a Flying Control vehicle.

 

fc_dodge.jpg

 

I've seen a Jeep belonging to the base padre with "Chaplin" stncilled across the front of the screen. There's probably lots or options to look at.

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I'd like to keep to the 'active side' as I already have a converted tow tractor in yellow. This tow tractor had to be converted from a WW2 vintage to cater for heavier aircraft but what about the common old jeep. I have seen the 'follow me' jeeps but would they be standard WW2 jeeps or were their changes? What colour as I've seen a number of schemes including yellow?

 

Stuart

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The Willys MB and Ford GPW Jeep would also have been supported by the newer M38 Jeeps, and probably M38A1 Jeeps. Yellow seems to have been a common colour for "Air Side" vehicles. There were no set designs for Follow Me vehicles, so pretty much anything goes. In WW2, there seems to have been all sorts of combinations for Follow Me vehicles. Black and white checkers, red and white checkers, black and yellow checkers, yellow and olive drab checkers, all yellow, orange! anything bright really! 

 

I seem to recall that in the 1950's film "Strategic Air Command", that all air side vehicles were yellow, from Jeeps to refuelling tankers, so yellow is probably a safe colour to go with.  This is an interesting picture from the film ( from this website - http://film-cinema.it/strategic-air-command-m46074 ). Note how the tanker is yellow, but the tractor pulling it is USAF blue. The pickup further to the right also seems to be USAF blue.

 

http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/rrgv4V4UD5vd9C8sxG0cAYjCE4z.jpg

Edited by Army_Air_Force
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Follow Me vehicles could be anything from as simple as a painted sign on the back, to fitted out with radios, and having elaborate light boxes on the back with illuminated instructions/arrows. I've seen Jeeps that have what looks like a GMC headlight mounted on the back pointing rearward and slightly down. I can only imagine this is to illuminate the taxiway behind the Jeep for an aircraft following in the dark or poor visibility. Jeeps with radios would either have some sort of enclosure built on the back of the Jeep to keep the weather off the radios, or have the radios built into wooden crates to give some degree of weather protection. So with radios, you'd have an assortment of aerials, and and I've seen some unusual masts and wires attached to Jeeps. In WW2, vehicles on the air side of a base also had a red flag flying mounted somewhere on the vehicle as a warning. I don't know if this practice continued post war.

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Something else that has come to mind is that airfield vehicles often didn't carry a spare wheel. There was no need for it. During WW2, after D-Day, there was a shortage of Bar-Grip tyres too, and many airfield vehicles donated their Bar-Grip tyres to Europe, and can be seen with normal road tyres instead. I don't know whether the same situation occured in Korea, and normal tyres were used there too.

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2 hours ago, Army_Air_Force said:

Something else that has come to mind is that airfield vehicles often didn't carry a spare wheel. There was no need for it. During WW2, after D-Day, there was a shortage of Bar-Grip tyres too, and many airfield vehicles donated their Bar-Grip tyres to Europe, and can be seen with normal road tyres instead. I don't know whether the same situation occured in Korea, and normal tyres were used there too.

Could be very useful, thanks.

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