RAF Rolls Royce Armoured Car

[06/24]

The Meng RR armoured car is something of a curate’s egg, with some lovely detail and not too difficult (so far) assembly, but it’s also a bit confused as to what it wants to be, offering wheels and paint schemes for early models which can’t be built from the kit parts. I suspect the prototype it most closely represents is the RAF Regiment replica of HMAC Ajax, rather than any historic example.

 

Untitled by Jon Gwinnett, on Flickr
 

Untitled by Jon Gwinnett, on Flickr

[06/24]

The RAF Regiment replica:

 

HMAC AJAX by Emergency_Vehicles, on Flickr

[06/24]

The kit doesn’t come with the correct wheels to model Ajax as is. However, it includes decals for HMAC Active, which did have the later “thick” wheels, but was also an earlier model car, with the driver vision slots at the same height and the lower sided early turret.

[06/24]

[06/24]

The two images above come from the Library of Congress, and are, I believe, public domain but will be removed on request.

[06/24]

The top image of the two is a possible prototype I might use, but I would need to fabricate the bullet splash strips (not sure of the correct terminology) on the bonnet.

[Courageous]

A good start Jon.

I suppose I need to ask is, what are you intending build as your title doesn't say? If your two b/w photos depict a prototype and production, their doesn't seem to be much visually between the two; the bonnet strakes, as you've already noted and the Vickers mounting and  guard.

 

Stuart

[06/24]

The lower image (HMAC Active in Palestine) shows the earlier (1914?) pattern turret (the side panels at the bottom of the slope sides are lower than the 1920 model supplied in the kit) and the parallel vision slots, the kit has offset vision slots and the later turret, which to some extent dictates what I build. I haven’t settled on a particular car to model yet, and may end up with something slightly fictional, but I’m trying to show a typical car from the late 1930s in RAF service, not the 11th Hussars as their cars showed further modifications. I’m as yet undecided whether it will be pre war Khaki or early war Light Stone, so much still to be decided.

[06/24]

This is one candidate:

 

This seems to match the kit configuration pretty closely (some work may be required on the Vickers mount, but much less than the ball mount seen earlier). However I have a suspicion this is a 1914 car. Finding a photo that matches the kit is pretty challenging, and I eventually decided to start building as otherwise I would be beset by analysis paralysis.

[06/24]

The fourth car in this line up is an even better match, but is barely visible

 

[06/24]

This is the closest yet, correct pattern turret to match the kit, can’t see the vision slots, “wide” wheels. In Khaki or something similar I guess.

 

[06/24]

More digging has found a photo of HMAC Vulture in the RAF Historical Society Journal #48 (Link) which is also a close match to the kit. I think there is both enough ambiguity and enough evidence of cars in the kit basic set-up that I can model one without too much fear of contradiction.
 

Paint seems less clear cut, I have read descriptions that say green, while khaki is also mentioned, and they in all probability became a stone/sand shade during the war. Again, in the absence of any real evidence I suspect I can pick a greenish-ish khaki shade without too much fear of contradiction.

[06/24]

Today’s progress. Unfortunately a lot of parts (storage boxes at rear in particular, but the armoured doors as well) have odd mould separation marks, so much filling and sanding has been required. In this respect the kit is a little disappointing, but the overall appearance is good. The Def models wheels can be seen to good advantage in the first photo.

 

1/35 Meng Rolls Royce by Jon Gwinnett, on Flickr

 

1/35 Meng Rolls Royce by Jon Gwinnett, on Flickr
 

1/35 Meng Rolls Royce by Jon Gwinnett, on Flickr
 

[06/24]

I suspect I may end up remaking the storage boxes from scratch, but haven’t decided yet. I may simply add a rim to the existing boxes and remake the hinge and latch detail.

[06/24]

Forgot to mention the huge knock out pin marks under the front wings, two each, which required filler and then wet and dry to clean up, as I fear they would be visible even with the wheels fitted. The ditch crossing boards should have been next to go on, but they also had huge ejector marks underneath and the filler is still drying. Unfortunately I’ve lost my workbench to revision for the evening, so probably won’t get much else done today.

[06/24]

This storage locker for the running board displays the problem that afflicts all the large lockers, mould join lines. On the rear lockers these occur on three sides, and are virtually impossible to remove, as they are shallow, uneven indents. At least on this one it’s a fractionally raised area, on one side only, so apart from some more tedious filing, the box could be used (I’ll leave it off for now to aid painting).

 

Meh-ng by Jon Gwinnett, on Flickr

[Courageous]

I reckon I'd scratch the lockers or enhance them like you've suggested. I like the front wheel offset, gives it that...something.

 

Stuart

[APA]

I like those wheels. Are they weighted? 

 

A

[06/24]

15 minutes ago, APA said:

I like those wheels. Are they weighted? 

 

A

Yes, but in a subtle way, not exaggerated. I’ve used Def wheels before and like them a lot.

[Bullbasket]

That's looking very nice. I built the Roden version some time ago, but looking at your build, I think I'll have to look out for the Meng offering.

 

John.

[06/24]

1 hour ago, Bullbasket said:

That's looking very nice. I built the Roden version some time ago, but looking at your build, I think I'll have to look out for the Meng offering.

 

John.

It’s not a bad kit, but could easily have been much better.

[06/24]

So today I bit the bullet and scratched two replacement storage lockers. They still need cleaned up and hinges/latches added but already look better than the misshapen kit parts. I’ve decided I can live with the running board box though.

 

Replacement boxes by Jon Gwinnett, on Flickr
 

Replacement boxes by Jon Gwinnett, on Flickr
 

[Kingsman]

Watching in as this is another of my stash projects, although in a different armament configuration for No2 Coy in N Africa before they converted to Otters in Tunisia.  I can't recommend too highly the book "In Every Place" which covers the RAF Armoured Car Companies in considerable detail. 

 

AJax is depicted as a vanilla 1920 pattern, which Meng goofed in their kit as they give wire wheels for the very rare 1918 Pattern.  However, like the Bovington RR it has been re-fitted with the flat-backed 1924 pattern mudguards and longer running boards which permitted the bridging boards to be carried above the running boards - as long as no stowage boxes were added!  RAF AC Coys had both 1914 and 1920 pattern cars, with the turret side height being the key identifier.  Wheels changed over time in service.  RAF did not have any 1918 pattern (only 3 or 6 built) or the 1924 pattern with the flat plate turret.  However, a 1918 Pattern fitted with later wheels would be very hard to tell apart from a 1920 Pattern and those few 18s built seem to have served in Palestine with the Army, so it is possible that the RAF might have inherited them.

 

I'm rather hoping that Meng will do the Fordson conversion, and that they get the chassis length right: there was only 1 short one.........

[Kingsman]

On 10/18/2020 at 7:46 PM, 06/24 said:

The two images above come from the Library of Congress, and are, I believe, public domain but will be removed on request.

At that age they will most probably be out of copyright.  The Library of Congress is very unlikely to be the owner of the original negatives and is probably therefore already re-publishing a third party's material.

 

At the time those photos were taken, general copyright in the UK was 50 years.  That has since been amended to 75 years but only backdated to 1963 (the year of the Beatles 1st album - I kid you not, that was the reason for 63 as the change came about largely because of pressure from the music industry!).   So anything before 1963 still has 50 years copyright and those photos were therefore probably out of copyright at least 35 years ago.  However, UK Crown Copyright is still 125 years so if they're official photos they're still protected until some time in the 2050s.  But the Crown doesn't by and large pursue royalties or consents for historic information that is already in the public domain.

[06/24]

The Library of Congress record gives no suggestion they are UK official, and they don’t seem to appear on either the IWM or RAFM websites, so I’m comfortable that they can be shared.