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Hi guys, this is the final reveal for this very old re boxed kit. I think it was kitted originally by Lindberg, back in the mist of time, and re booted by Round 2 model company, with a few improvements I guess I should have bare metal foiled the chrome trims, but instead used Molotow chrome, brushed freehand. This was quick, but not the sharpest of lines, but I can live with it. Overall not too bad of a build, I detailed up the engine bay with some chrome parts from my spares box, just to give it a bit of life, not really a show car, I wanted it to look a bit used. I had a can of sign writers white enamel paint on my shelf so I used it to paint the white wall tyres; also scratch built the twin aerials on the back of the car using some nylon bristles from an old sweeping brush. The beach boys wrote a song about this car "My 409". Well I better go and polish that chrome, bye for now.

Happy New Year everyone, I started this kit just after completing the 66 T-Bird build, but shelved it for a while due to getting the Lamborghini build finished by the end of last year. Anyway I have dusted the box off the shelf and hope to crack on with it over the next few weeks, I found a red example on YouTube that I like the look of, so that's what I hope the finished model will look like give or take a few details. More updates soon.

Finished the CMP at last, (delayed by moving house half way through the build). Depicted as part of the 2nd Bn, Royal Ulster Rifles, France 1944. On now to do the figures, then the diorama. Apologies if the photos are a bit naff; combination of a cheap camera phone and half a glass of scotch.

The BM-13 'Katyusha' multiple rocket launcher was first deployed by the Red Army during the German invasion ('Operation Barbarossa') during WW2. Mounted on trucks, these highly mobile rocket batteries made up for their inherent inaccuracy with their capacity to deliver a saturation bombardment of an enemy position, before rapidly relocating to avoid retaliatory strikes. Particularly effective as a psychological weapon, the howling noise made as they were fired en masse earned them a fearsome reputation with the Germans. In June 1938, the first prototype multiple rocket launcher was developed in Chelyabinsk, Russia, firing modified 132mm M-132 rockets broadside from ZiS-5 trucks. These proved unstable, however one of the engineers, a man by the name of Galkovskiy, proposed mounting the launch rails longitudinally, firing forward over the cab. The result was the BM-13 (BM = Boyevaya Mashina, or 'combat vehicle' for M-13 rockets). The design was relatively simple, consisting of racks of parallel rails on which rockets were mounted, with a folding frame to raise the rails to the desired trajectory. Each truck had 14 to 48 launchers. The M-13 rocket of the BM-13 system was 142cm (55.9in) long, 13.2cm (5.2in) in diameter and weighed 42kg (93lb). The first large-scale testing of the rocket launchers took place at the end of 1938, when rounds of various types were used. A salvo of rockets could completely straddle a target at a range of 5,500 metres (3.4 mi); the artillery branch, however, were not particularly impressed with the results. It took the best part of an hour to load and fire 24 rockets, while a conventional howitzer could fire 95 to 150 shells in the same time. Further tests with various rockets were conducted throughout 1940, and the BM-13-16 with launch rails for sixteen rockets was authorized for production. Unfortunately, only forty launchers were built before Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941. Initially, secrecy concerns prevented the military designation of the launchers from being known even by the soldiers who operated them. They were called by various code names, including 'Kostikov guns', 'Guards Mortars', and 'flutes'. The name BM-13 was only allowed into secret documents in 1942, and remained classified until after the end of WW2. Because they were marked with the letter K (for Voronezh Komintern Factory), Red Army troops adopted a nickname from Mikhail Isakovsky's popular wartime song, "Katyusha", about a girl longing for her boyfriend, who is on military service (Katyusha is the Russian equivalent of Katie, an endearing diminutive form of the name Katherine). As an aside, here's the actual song - you might have already heard the tune without necessarily knowing what it was called or what it was about: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SLvtP6KMUM German troops coined the term Stalinorgel ("Stalin's organ"), after Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, due to the launch array resembling a pipe organ. As a result of their success in the first month of the invasion - most notably during the defence of Smolensk in July 1941 - mass production was ordered and the development of other models proceeded. The Katyusha was relatively inexpensive and could be manufactured in light industrial installations which did not have the heavy equipment to build conventional artillery gun barrels. By the end of 1942, more than 3000 Katyusha launchers of all types had been built; by the end of the war total production is believed to have reached in excess of 10000 units. The truck-mounted Katyushas were initially installed on ZiS-6 6×4 trucks, as well as the two-axle ZiS-5 and ZiS-5V. In 1941, a small number of BM-13 launchers were mounted on STZ-5 artillery tractors. A few were also tried on KV tank chassis as the KV-1K, but this was abandoned as a needless waste of heavy armour. From 1942, with the advent of Lend-Lease, they were also mounted on various British, Canadian and U.S. trucks; in this case they were sometimes referred to as BM-13S. The cross-country performance of the Studebaker US6 2½ ton truck was so good that it became the standard mounting in 1943, with the designation BM-13N ('Normalizovanniy', or 'standardized'). More than 1800 of this version were manufactured by the end of WW2. After the end of WW2, BM-13s were based on Soviet-built ZiL-151 trucks. A battery of BM-13-16 launchers comprised four firing vehicles, two reload trucks and two technical support trucks, with each firing vehicle having a crew of six. Firing was initiated by way of an electric primer provided by the truck's own battery system. Reloading was executed in 3–4 minutes, although the standard procedure was to switch to a new position some 10 km away due to the ease with which the battery's location could be identified by the enemy. Where possible the firing vehicles travelled to their new firing location with the lower rack already loaded. Four BM-13 launchers could fire a salvo in 7–10 seconds that delivered 4.35 tons of high explosives over a 400,000-square-metre (4,300,000 sq ft) area, making its power roughly equivalent to that of 72 conventional artillery guns. ************************* I enjoyed this kit more than I initially feared I would, despite the challenges put in my way by the kit makers PST. Certainly the relatively small scale (1:72) contributed to the 'fun', but at least the moulding quality was for the most part pretty good. The instructions could do with a bit more clarity though, and a couple of reasonably detailed figures would have been a welcome inclusion. The WIP thread is here should you wish to peruse it. Anyway, without further ado, here are a small (large!) collection of photos of the finished article, hope you enjoy them - comments and criticisms all welcome, as ever! Thanks to all who followed the build with comments and suggestions, all very much appreciated

A few shots of the current WIP; the 1/35 scale Chevrolet 15CWT by Italeri. The tarpaulin is scratch built as I didn't like the stock part. Still very far from finished; haven't even started weathering the cab area yet, but happy so far.

So working away on the Italeri 1/35 Chevrolet 15CWT truck as part of a diorama. Bit of a pig of a kit to be honest, and it needs all the help I can give it. Decided to complete the cab interior out of sequence as it'd be impossible to paint once assembled. Here are a few pics of the project.

Pics thanks to Dave.

Chevrolet C60S Petrol Tank IBG Models 1:35 History The Canadian Military Pattern (CMP) truck was a class of military truck - of various forms - made in large numbers in Canada during World War II to British Army specifications for use in the armies of the British Commonwealth allies. Standard designs were drawn up just before the beginning of the war. Early in 1937, the Ford Motor Company of Canada and R. S. McLaughlin of General Motors of Canada Ltd were each invited by the Canadian Department of National Defence to produce a Canadian prototype of a 15-hundredweight light infantry truck that had then been recently adopted by the British War Office. By 1938, Canadian military authorities had shifted their interest to heavier 4x4 and 6x4 designs. In that year, Ford and General Motors of Canada Limited were invited to produce prototypes of a 6x4 medium artillery tractor derived from the British 6x4 Scammell Pioneer. By 1939, plans had been prepared for the mass production in Canada of a range of military vehicles based on fairly strict CMP British specifications. These trucks were originally designated "Department of National Defence (DND) Pattern"; however, when production volumes increased and it became clear that the Canadian-built vehicles were to serve widely in the forces of other countries, the class of trucks was redesignated "Canadian Military Pattern (CMP)". At the outbreak of World War II, Canada's large and modern automobile industry was shifted over to the production of military vehicles out-producing Germany. While the Dunkirk evacuation in the spring of 1940 succeeded in rescuing close to 340,000 Allied soldiers who had been encircled by the invading German army, the British Expeditionary Force had been required to abandon most of its military vehicles in France. It then became an urgent need to replace those losses and to provide new vehicles to equip the rapidly expanding armed forces of the Commonwealth. Canadian military truck production included both modified civilian designs as well as purely military designs based on the CMP specification, in roughly equal numbers. Truck production was focussed on a broad range of medium-capacity vehicles; Jeeps and trucks larger than 3 tons in capacity required by the Canadian Army were purchased suppliers. Most CMP trucks were manufactured by the Chevrolet division of General Motors of Canada Ltd and by the Ford Motor Company of Canada. The vehicle manufacturers were able to rapidly ramp up their production because of an unusual degree of inter-company collaboration in Canada, the use of interchangeable parts, and because of the large amount of idle production capacity that was a lingering result of the Great Depression. A smaller number of CMP trucks were assembled from Canadian-made chassis and parts in Britain, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa (2,600), India (9,500) and Egypt. Following British convention, CMP trucks had right-hand drive even though most of them were built in Canada, which primarily used left-hand drive vehicles. The CMP specification proved versatile, and it formed the basis of a wide variety of different truck types and armoured vehicles. In Australian service (almost always with the No. 13 cab) these vehicles were known as the "Chev Blitz" or the "Ford Blitz". Just over 500,000 CMP trucks were manufactured in Canada, accounting for roughly two-thirds of the 815,729 military vehicles made in Canada during World War II. The most prevalent type was the 4x4 3-ton truck (including models C60S, C60L, F60S and F60L), with just over 209,000 vehicles made. In addition, roughly 9,500 4x4 CMP chassis were made, mainly to be used to build armoured cars and other vehicles in Allied countries. CMP truck production in Canada exceeded the total military truck production of Nazi Germany. The British History of the Second World War (the official history of the war) argues that the production of soft-skinned trucks, including the CMP truck class, was Canada's most important contribution to the eventual Allied victory. The Ford and Chevrolet trucks shared a standard cab design, which evolved over the years of production. The first (designed at Ford by Sid Swallow), second and third cab designs were called No. 11, 12 and 13, respectively. The first two types were similar, the main difference being a two-part radiator grille in No.12 cab (its upper part was opened with a bonnet, which was known as the "Alligator cab"). The final No. 13 cab, an entirely Canadian design made from late 1941 until the end of the war, had the two flat panes of the windscreen angled slightly downward to minimize the glare from the sun and to avoid causing strong reflections that would be observable from aircraft. All the CMP cab designs had a short, "cab forward" configuration that gave CMP trucks their distinctive pug-nosed profile. This design was required to meet the original British specifications for a compact truck design that would be more efficient to transport by ship. The specifications also demanded right-hand drive. Internally the cab had to accommodate the comparatively large North American engines and it was generally cramped. The standard cabs were then matched up with a variety of standard chassis, drive trains and body designs. Chevrolet-built vehicles could be recognised by the radiator grille mesh being of a diamond pattern, whereas Ford-built ones had grilles formed of a square mesh. The production of CMP truck bodies in Canada was subcontracted out to smaller companies in Ontario and Manitoba, organized into the wartime Steel Body Manufacturers Association by the Department of Munitions and Supply. The wide variety of truck body designs included general service (GS), water tanker, fuel tanker, (the subject of this kit), vehicle recovery (tow truck), dental clinic, mobile laundry, wireless house, machinery (machine shop), folding boat transport, and anti-tank gun portee. The Model The kit comes in a glossy top opening box, with, what looks like a colourful Mirror Models style top. On opening even the sprues are reminiscent of Mirror Models kits. The box is stuffed full of parts and once you have had the sprues out for a bit of fondling you will find them very difficult to get back in so that the lid fits flat. There are sixteen sprues of blue-grey styrene, one sprue of clear styrene, two small sheets of etched brass and a smallish decal sheet. Have had a good look at the parts, I can tell you that the moulding is superb, with very crisp details, no sign of flash or other imperfections and only a very few moulding pips. Some parts do have quite a few sprue gates, but they are commendably small, so should take more than a couple of swipes of a sanding sponge to clean up. Since this is a variation of the other Chevrolet trucks IBG have, or are due to release there are a number of parts included that won’t be required for the fuel tanker, especially parts such as the two different types of chassis rails, half the parts off one sprue, plus a couple of parts from several other sprues. The build process is quite complex with lots of detail in and around the chassis, as for most truck models, so this won’t be a quick and easy build, but one that will need time, patience, and care to assemble, certainly not for a beginner. The instructions are very clear and easy to read, but not always logical particularly with the way the sub-assemblies are used, although they use the CAD/Photo style of drawings that I know some people don’t like, each to their own. Construction begins with a load of sub assemblies. Firstly the styrene wheels are assembled, each provided in two halves, which may require some careful sanding of the seam, along with the rear cross member spring unit, which includes the tow hook, associated clamps and the anti-swing bars. The access steps are next, with the option of styles for either the Cab 12, or Cab 13 with its extra storage box on one of the steps. The two fuel tanks are made up from five parts, the lower section includes the ends, the top section, filler cap/pipe and the two supports. The next three steps involve the bending of PE parts to shape. The transfer box support is easy enough, with the end being folded to 90’, as is the panel that will be fitted beneath the radiator grille. The grille itself is a little more awkward in that the sides of both the upper and lower sections need to be bent to 28’ whilst the outer frame need to be flat, so it would be handy to have a folding tool to hand. With those done, its onto the drive-train with the transfer box made up from four parts, the front axle/differential made up from eleven parts and the rear axle from six parts. The front bumper is then fitted out with the guard supports and towing eyes. The build proper begins with the assembly of the very nicely detailed engine. The two block halves are glued together, and then fitted with the sump, cylinder head, front, which includes the auxiliary drive points and rear, which includes the bell housing. The drive belt is a single piece moulding onto which the PE fan is attached, with the intake manifold, air filter unit, alternator and fuel pump finishing it off. The cab or cabs are next with the option to produce a type 12 or 13, so make sure you know what vehicle you wish to build and use the correct parts, as there are quite a few that are similar. Each uses a different floor pan which is then fitted with the respective scuttle, gearbox/engine cover, bonnet, wheel arches, windscreen, instrument binnacle, front end, grille and bonnet side panels. The common parts are the four part seats, gear sticks, pedals and fire extinguisher. Each cab also has the choice of having a plain roof or one with a roof hatch fitted. With the cab/s assembled the fuel tank construction begins. This is made up of a separate ladder frame, the outer rails of which have fitted with the separate top panels and three tank supports. The controls are contained in a large box mounted to the rear of the tank and contains the pumps, dials and pipework required to fill and empty the tank, all included in the kit and with the rear doors, which can be posed open or closed. The tank itself is made up form upper and lower halves, closed off at one end and fitted with two hatches, a vent plug and four hand rails. The open end is glued to the pump housing before being fitted to the support frame. On each side of the tank there are two walkways, each fitted at the forward end with three two part storage boxes, and the two rear mudguards, plus their respective support arms. Finally we get to the chassis, which is normally one of the first things assembled in a truck kit. Each of the chassis rails is fitted with the single leaf springs and their supports at the front, whilst at the rear there are double leaf springs fitted, along with the tow bumper beams and their brackets. Each rail is then joined together by the front bumper, five cross members and the rear end beam with tow hook assembled earlier. With the chassis assembled, all the sub assemblies can now be fitted to it, the engine, with four piece exhaust, the wheels, with alternative central hubs, the front and rear differentials, transfer box, all joined together by the various drive shafts, truck fuel tanks, main fuel tank, cab and access steps, which at this point you should have a completed model. IBG Models have also included some useful items to give a bit of life to the vehicle in the shape of four rifles and a couple of Jerry cans. Decals The small decal sheet provides decals for two different trucks, one with a type 12 cab and one with a type 13 along with various placards for around the truck, plain stars for the cab doors and a large star with segmented circle for the cab roof. The decals have been printed by Techmod and appear to be very well printed, with good opacity and very thin carrier film. The Type 12 truck is from the 4th Canadian Armoured Brigade Company, Royal Canadian Army Service Corps of the 4th Canadian Armoured Division, Normandy, France, August 1944 The Type 13 truck is from the 5th Canadian Infantry Brigade Company, Royal Canadian Army Service Corps of the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division, Normandy, France, August 1944 Conclusion It’s great to see this rather unusual version of the well recognised CMP truck released as an injection moulded kit. Whilst it is certainly not for the beginner, with care, patience and a bit of skill the average modeller should be able to produce a great looking model. Being the first IBG model I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing, I have been pleasantly surprised by the quality of the mouldings and will certainly be looking at their back catalogue. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of