1924 Model Rolls Royce Armoured Car - 11th Hussars modifications 1940

[AMC1965]

Hi there,

 

I am considering doing a small vignette of the 11th Hussars in the Western desert depicting both the Rolls Royce armoured car they started the campaign with on the Libyan / Egyptian border and the Humber that they ended it with in Tunis three years later.  UI can only find kits for the 1917 or 1920 model Rolls Royce's so does anyone know of a 1924 model Rolls or am I having to try and scratch upgrade a 1920 model.  Also does anyone know of any upgrades to allow a portrayal of the Hussars open toped turret

[AMC1965]

Sorry, the above post uploaded before I finished - I was going to finish it with "allow a portrayal of the Hussars open toped turret as used in the desert" many thanks" 🙂

[stevehnz]

Both Roden & Meng do one appropriate for 1940 in 1/35, Roden do one in 1/72. The Roden 1/35 has an interior I think, the Modelling Madness review shows one, the Meng doesn't afaik, I should know ' cause I have one but haven't looked. ☹️

Steve.

[AMC1965]

Cheers Steve,  do the Meng and Roden not depict 1920 and earlier patterns? or can I use the 1920 pattern (I know that the main difference between 1920 and 1924 was in the cupola which I will be dispensing with) but is that the sole difference? If so then that is good news and I just have to research further the Nairn open top turret.

[Kingsman]

The Meng kit is a 1920 Pattern, although they don't give you the right disc wheels for a standard 1920 pattern.  OOB with the wire wheels it's a 1918 Pattern, of which only half a dozen were built.  But you're on your own for the turret.  Despite the kit being out for some time no-one has seen fit to offer the Hussars pattern turret.

 

And it doesn't have the 1924 pattern front wings and running boards.  The War Slug kit might be a better start point.  It copied the Bovington survivor, which is a 1920 car re-fitted with 1924 front wings as was apparently commonly done in the 30's.  Many photos show it.  The photos I've found of the Hussars cars all seem to show the 1924 Pattern front wings.  They have a vertical section at the back instead of a smooth curve.  This was to allow the bridging boards to sit on top of the running boards instead of below.

 

But of course the War Slug kit doesn't come with the desert tyres, which are available after-market in resin.  It also doesn't have the modified turret front or Lewis ring mount, but those won't bother you if you're doing the open turret.

[AMC1965]

Ah that is useful info, many thanks for that. I haven't come across the war slug kit before, I will look it up.  All the photos of the 11th in 1940 also have the 24 pattern wings and that is the look I want. I want to create the well known photo of the 11th's RR up against the border wire. Many thanks for pointing me in the right direction:-)

[stevehnz]

It looks as though I have erred in assuming that kits incorporating schemes for WW2 ops were correct pattern for that, mabe some work to be done on this. The Haynes RR armoured car book I am reading currently should be able to help here I hope.

Steve.

[Kingsman]

Yep.  Never assume that manufacturers have got it right.............  Cos they too-often haven't.

 

[AMC1965]

Haynes manual fell on the doormat yesterday 🙂 found the Warslug kit, many thanks Das Abteilung.

[Ken-l]

Hi there,

 

echoing Das Abteilung, it remains the case, to my best knowledge, that no-one has attempted the oft-called 'Nairn' open turret as used by the 11th Hussars in model form. Apart from that famous IWM picture featured on p89 of your Haynes book, I've only ever seen one other picture which you'll find via any search engine. You'd have to scratch-build a turret based on these two photos. Incidentally, it may have been inspired by, but is not the same as that fitted ion the Morris C9 armoured car, also used by the Hussars

 

 

[Mike Starmer]

Be aware that the turret didn't rotate.  The car at the wire is not in 1940 camouflage scheme.  It is in the 1938/39 scheme preceding Caunter.  This specified Mid.Stone No.62 as the basic colour and 'dark sand' disruptive stripes between 5 -15 inches wide, average 12 inches.   This car's dark patterning exactly matches the all previous images of 11th cars from 1935.   The 11th devised a simple scheme with slight variations using silver and black in 1935.  Subsequent repaints of different colours simply went over the existing pattern.   The 1937 scheme used Pale Cream and what may be Terra-Cotta for the KG.IV  coronation review.   Deployments in Palestine in 1938 & 39 clearly show a change of colour only.