Jump to content

BM-13-16 on G7107 Base (35595) 1:35


Mike

Recommended Posts

BM-13-16 on G7107 Base (35595)

1:35 ICM via Hannants

 

boxtop.jpg

 

The Chevrolet G506 truck formed the basis of a range of 4x4 load-carrying vehicles that were capable of carrying up to 1.5 tonnes of cargo or equipment.  They were initially made under the 4100 code, then moved to the 7100 range, and usually had a standard enclosed cab, with a 3.9L straight-6 engine under the bonnet, and a four-speed “crash” (non-syncromesh) gearbox putting down a little over 80hp through all four wheels.  It rapidly became the Allies’ standard light truck, and served in substantial quantities with the Allies in the West, the Soviets in the East, and the forces fighting Japan in the Far East.  There were a lot of variants, some in US Army service, others in USAAF service, with almost 50,000 of two specific types, the G7107 and G7117 sent over to the Soviets under the Lend/Lease program.

 

The Soviets modified a number of the chassis and cab units to carry Katyusha rockets on a stripped-down flatbed.  The rockets were a huge worry for the Nazis as they were forced to withdraw from their former conquests, and although their accuracy wasn’t renowned, they put the wind up anyone in the general target area, who couldn’t tell whether the rockets would fall on them or someone 100m away.  Their distinctive howling roar was another psychological weapon, giving the Germans an indication that there were a torrent of lethal rockets heading for them.  The stripped-down chassis of this particular installation gave the vehicle a rather lashed-together, Mad Max look.

 

 

The Kit

This is a reboxing with additional parts of a brand-new tooling from ICM, and is the latest kit of a range that is inbound to your favourite model shop very soon.  It’s an ICM kit, and a full interior kit too, with engine cab and load area all included along with some very nice moulding and detail, particularly in the chunky tyres.  It arrives in one of ICM’s medium-sized top-opening boxes with the usual captive inner flap, and inside are ten sprues in grey styrene, a clear sprue, tiny decal sheet and glossy instruction booklet with colour (well, mostly green) profiles on the rear pages.

 

sprue1.jpg

 

sprue2.jpg

 

sprue3.jpg

 

clear.jpg

 

wot03.jpg

 

wot05.jpg

 

sprue1.jpg

 

Construction begins with the new ladder chassis, which has leaf-springs fore and aft, cross-braces and rear towing eye fitted to create the structure, then has the rear bumper irons, fuel tank, transfer casing and front axle installed, before the engine is built up based on the straight six-cylinder block, with carburettor, dynamo and transmission added, plus the pulleys and fan at the front, and a short drive-shaft at the rear that links to the transfer box in the middle of the chassis.  The rear axle is made up and fitted with another drive-shaft, while the front axle gets the steering arm installed, which keeps the twin ball-jointed hubs pointing in the same direction, providing you’ve not been over-enthusiastic with the glue. The exhaust and its manifold slip into the underside of the chassis from below, and the battery box attaches to the outside of the ladder chassis next to a pair of tread-plated steps, then from the left of the engine, the air box and intake are attached to finish it off.

 

The crew cab is next, beginning with the dashboard that inserts in the front bulkhead along with an overhead panel, then is joined with the cab floor and decked out with a pair of levers, gear stick and hand-brake on the floor, three foot pedals and the steering wheel on a long column that slides through a hole in the diagonal floor section in front of the pedals. The driver and co-driver share a bench seat that is made up from back, cushion and a C-shaped spacer surrounding the bottom that fits into the rear of the cab and has the back wall with small ovalised window, then the roof is fitted, after which the doors are made up with handles, winders and glazing, fitting within the frame in the open or closed position.  On the front of the firewall a vent is glued to the scuttle panel, and two reservoirs are attached, then the cab is mated to the chassis along with a couple of additional engine ancillaries and linkages to the front axle.  The radiator is laminated from core, surround and tin-work, with a bezel fitted to the front and the assembly is then applied to the front of the engine, attaching to the chassis and input/outlet hoses that are already there.  The cowling sides and front fenders are installed to permit the front grille to be attached, plus the bonnet and a large front bumper iron that runs full width, and is quite literally a girder.  Behind the cab a spare tyre is placed on a bracket near the exhaust, and It’s time for the wheels to be made up, with singles at the front, each made from two halves each, and twin wheels at the rear axle, put together with two two-part wheels each, and two hub parts added to the finished pair.  Each wheel slips over its respective axle, and is secured in place by a central cap.  The windscreen is glued in place and door handles with external hinges are attached to the exterior, with more work done later in the build.

 

On the original kit the truck bed would now be made up (and some of the parts for it are left on the sprues), for this boxing though the rocket launching rails and their elevating apparatus are constructed. The eight rails are built up from three parts each and are then threaded together on three cross members. The modeller will need to line up the spacing of these, and luckily ICM provide a jig for this so you can fix their positions with a little glue.  After the rails are sorted the fairly complex support gear is put together, this can be in either the raised or lowered position by exchanging short supports for longer parts. 16 rockets can then be added to the rails (8 on the upper side, and 8 on the lower). The base for the launching system is then built up from three large parts that includes a small degree of rotation capability for fine-tuning the aiming of this blunderbuss of a weapon. It is attached to the back of the truck with a choice of two styles of rear fenders before the ancillary parts and launch rails can then be added on.

 

Various parts are added behind the cab, including power take-off for the rotation mechanism, and a central boss is fixed to the support plate along with more brackets and hinges for the launch frame, then two ground stabilisers are then added to the chassis rear.  The launch rails and their frame are put in position on the rear of the chassis, and an optional set of armour panels are made up and fixed over the crew cab to protect them from heat damage during launch.  The frame is fixed in place with a rod and clamps, then to finish off the vehicle lights are added behind the protective frames, with a rear-view mirror on a long stalk.  Manual adjustment controls are glued to the left side of the vehicle before you can relax and reach for the Russian Green paint.

 

 

Markings

There are two decal options on the small sheet, which differ only by a pair of stencils on the doors.  From the box you can build one of the following:

 

  • 84th Red Banner Novozybkovsky Guards Mortar Regiment, November 1943
  • Unknown Guards Mortar Regiment, 1943

 

profiles.jpg

 

decals.jpg

 

The decals are printed by ICM’s usual partners, and are crisp and clear, with no registration to speak about other than on the instrument dials, which are nicely done.

 

 

Conclusion

A cool-looking lend/lease home-grown lash-up Katyusha with a full compliment of noisy and dangerous rockets.  Super detail and a choice of green, green or green for the paint job.

 

Highly recommended.

 

Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd.

bin.jpg

 

Review sample courtesy of

logo.gif

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...