Cashuat, the "Battle Horse" of El Salvador 1/35 scratch

[Marco1965]

Thank you, guys.  Close to finish this years-long project!

 

marco

Edited April 1, 2019 by Marco1965

[Marco1965]

Quite a while without posting, but I hope that you like the advances.  I don´t know whether this is at this stage a "scratch-built" or a "diorama" or "figures", thing is I will continue in this thread.  I worked on the figures in and around the vehicle, painting them in the standard woodland camo used by the El Salvador´s Army back in 1989.  All exposed skin was painted using artist oils, all clothing and equipment using diverse modelists paints.

This is the vehicle commander figure.

Gunners.

Gunners figures. 

 

Infantry

 

After finding a concept that I liked for the diorama, I started working on the base, pine wood, easy, covered with Faller landscape putty. 

A portion of the sidewalk was represented on the upper right corner.

 

Some potholes, painted dark gray.  Texture was already added to the sidewalk and small lawn area.

 

And some signs of vehicles using this road.

 

Now just like this, it seemed dull… During the war, specifically during the intense combats of November 1989, the guerrilla blocked several streets to vehicle transit issuing barriers using whatever was at hand: dirt, rocks, bricks, wood, whatever.  From solid barricades, to pretty small ones.  And there is at least one story about an armoured vehicle running over one of those to demolish it.  That was the Cashuat story I wanted to represent.   

 

So this was my first "proof of concept" of the diorama: A Cashuat has run over a brick barricade, destroyed it, enjoying a lull in combat, when the right gunner points at something.  I liked it, balanced, interesting, true.

 

I issued the bricks using all purpose spackling paste, white allows for painting in whatever color I want.

There they are, clay bricks very typical in El Salvador.  I painted them all using water colors (left over from my children…).

 

I used tome imagination to position the bricks on the street, some broken, some still complete, some crushed or thrown away by the vehicle running over them, etc.  And of course some broken wood beams.

 

Still work in process but the effect I was looking for is there!  

Something like this will be the end-product, of course there is still plenty of things to do, more debris on the street, the figures are not finished, the Cashuat is still missing some things.  But the main elements of the diorama are there, I think.

And the weapons taken from the guerrilla, not glued yet, only to show where they will be positioned, to balance the interest area to the "front" part of the diorama.

 

Aaaand that is what I have done between work and family.  One step away from finishing this interesting vehicle.

 

Marco

[Phil1960]

Great and fine work, Marco. I love this unusual subject. Best compliments.

Ciao

Filippo 

[Soeren]

This is going to be an amazing Dio. Your model and the stuff that you made for it are a fantastic and unique unit.

[Bullbasket]

Great work all round. Impressive figures.

 

John.

[flashlight]

Fantastic work there!

 

Have a nice day

Nick

[Marco1965]

Ok, last steps!  I had to fix the hinges of the doors and engine hood, I had broken some of them during assembly and still wanted them to work (there is a complete scratch-built engine in there that I still want to show!) So patiently I cleaned, trimmed, relocated the hinges made of syringe needles, glued them with CA and after confirming that they work, I put some tape to keep them closed while I continued working on the vehicle.

 

With that solved, I continued to build the radio antenna with steel wire and some copper wire to simulate the coil on the base.  The antenna could be carried extended or bent down onto the vehicle, which is the position I chose for my Cashuat.

 

And painted.  Notice the working door hinges issued using syringe needles.

 

To add some realism and "action-feel", I issued some spent cartridge cases simply by cutting brass wire.  Quite convincing at this scale, and glued them randomly on the floor of the vehicle and on the street.  Quite a battle!

 

 

The M-60s were added, they swivel and turn freely, a big help to match them to the gunner hands.  Both gunners were glued in place.

 

Undersides checked, nothing else to add.

 

Stop lights were painted using Tamiya clear red.  Some additional weathering was added to corner and edges using graphite pencil (still needs some more!).

 

And then the nicest part started: finishing the diorama.  I glued the figures as planned, then the vehicle and all the "junk" on the street, representing bricks, plastic, empty ammo boxes, cans, trash in general, as typically seen in such scenes.

 

The Cashuat has rammed a guerrilla brick barricade, capturing the position and armament from the terrorists.

 

 

 

But beware!  One of the Cashuat gunners has spotted danger and alerted the others!  Two foot- soldiers are cautiously looking for any remaining guerrilla threat, while the vehicle commander is paying attention from a safe position near the driver’s door.

 

 

The PRC-77 radio and some grenades, ammo cases, etc can be seen inside of the vehicle. 

 

   Well and this is my contribution to the brief story of Armored Fighting Vehicles of El Salvador; Cashuats will never be issued as a kit I guess, so maybe this is the only 1/35 one you are going to see for a while.  Cashuats are currently still operative in El Salvador, more than 30 years after the first ones were built.  I had the chance to see them in action during those difficult times, had the chance to see them several times again on parade, much happier occasions!  Will post some better pictures of the finished diorama on the section of finished armor one of these days.  I hope that you like this project at least the 1/100th part of as much as I did.

 

Picture of a Cashuat during combats in San Salvador, around November 1989 (picture courtesy of Douglas Cornejo).

 

 

 

Marco

Edited July 11, 2019 by Marco1965

[flashlight]

Unbelievable! I'm speechless, this is brilliant!

 

Have a nice day

Nick

[Silenoz]

Very nice conversion and splendid result.. 

[vaoinas]

Very nice scene and model indeed.

If I may suggest, adding some pigment dust to rubble areas would blend the rubble more to the base and it would look more natural. 

[Adam Poultney]

I don't do anything really in the way of ground vehicles, but this looks really good

[Bullbasket]

Superb Marco.

 

John.

[Hamden]

 

Superb, absolutely stunning result a real show stopper!

 

   Roger

[Marco1965]

Thank you, guys.  According to my files, I actually started working on the model (after I don´t know how much research) in November 2006, with this:

      

   Scaled down blueprints in hand, cut the chassis of the Italeri 1/35 WC-51 to lengthen it accordingly, and thus is begun… Of course this has not been my only project during these 12 years and something, The Cashuat was left aside several times, with plenty of interruptions, sometimes as long as 2 years (like when the &/=)(/&/%E driver´s figure wouldn´t fit in and ended up breaking some parts…).  It proves to me that I keep on enjoying this wonderful hobby, no pressure, if I am in the mood, great, if I am not, great as well, I´ll find something else to do, HA!

 

Marco

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

 Top tier work here. 

[adphill]

How did you cut the syringe needles? I have been trying to find very small metal tubes for some time, and the syringe idea is fantastic. 

[Marco1965]

2 hours ago, adphill said:

How did you cut the syringe needles? I have been trying to find very small metal tubes for some time, and the syringe idea is fantastic. 

I use the Dremel cutting disk, very easy with that.  

 

Marco

[adphill]

That makes sense! Thank you!

[Carius]

A very interesting and unusual version. excellent scratch. A masterpiece indeed.