Bedford MWD - 1/5 Battalion Welch Regiment August 1944

[R T Fishall]

With a couple of nights away from home for work I was anticipating dull evenings in the hotel.

But on my arrival in town I happened to spot a model shop and popped in to check it out. While I was in there I had a sudden brainwave that I could make up a kit in the hotel during the evenings and picked up the below.

 

I've got a long term project to create a diorama of B Company, 1/5 Battalion Welch Regiment reporting back after an attack around Martigny in Normandy on 16 August 1944 where Tasker Watkins won the VC and I'm pretty sure these would have been around in abundance in an infantry battalion in 1944.

I built one back when they first came out and I'm sure back then they were boxed as Bedford MWDs rather than "WWII 15-CWT 4x2 G.S. Truck"; presumably the lawyers have been worrying about licencing arrangements again...



Awful photo of the sprues...

Now, you might have spotted something that didn't occur to me until I opened the box in the hotel room.

 

What am I going to make this with? I'd entirely forgotten that I don't have any modelling kit with me...

Model shop is now shut and work commitments mean that I'm not going to be able to get back there to pick something up.

But some shops are open late into the evenings so with a quick jaunt out after dinner I have secured from the limited available selection some potential 'tools' that I think I might at least be able to make a start on this with.

 

I have no idea how these are going to work out as modelling tools but we'll see!

Cheers, Richard.

[psdavidson]

Nice

I brought my own  Don't want the overpriced hotel stuff

[Armor Novice]

I'm not entirely sure the scissors will work, but from beauty shops you can buy some nail nipper which work some what like cheap side cutters you can find on the web cheaply. 

The files will work, I use nail files as well. And the Gorilla glue is well known

[bigfoot]

Nice subject Richard, not one I’ve seen before. Will go nicely with the UC in your diorama.

[R T Fishall]

Back home and how far did I manage to get?

 

Not all that far really. Very much at the 'subassemblies' stage; I figured I might want some paint on some of them before proceeding further.
 

On 10/06/2025 at 18:55, Armor Novice said:

I'm not entirely sure the scissors will work

You were very much right; they were an absolute nightmare to try and use.

 

I've even tried them on my nails and they struggled to cut those; I don't care to throw things out so I'll probably slip them in my partners makeup bag at some point...

After the first night I pretty much gave up on them. Fortunately there was a late opening hardware shop just down from the hotel and the next night I managed to pick up some cheapo craft knives for a couple of quid. A little more risky than decent cutters but they did a much better job than the scissors.

 

On 10/06/2025 at 22:02, bigfoot said:

Will go nicely with the UC in your diorama.

Thanks very much, I've got an idea for it to be loaded up with the Battalion HQ's kit so another one carrying everything except the kitchen sink! Sadly it will probably be more hidden here because of the canvas, maybe there's a way I can fiddle around to get more displayed.
 

On 10/06/2025 at 18:13, psdavidson said:

Don't want the overpriced hotel stuff

Work trip so what I think must have been the cheapest hotel in the town; the tea and coffee making facilities were barely adequate and certainly no minibar!

It's going to be a slow burner from now on, I've got too many builds in progress but I'll try to keep it moving along.

Cheers, Richard.

Edited June 14 by R T Fishall

[psdavidson]

35 minutes ago, R T Fishall said:

Work trip so what I think must have been the cheapest hotel in the town; the tea and coffee making facilities were barely adequate and certainly no minibar!

Yup, been there, although one trip the only room left in the hotel was a suite. It probably cost the company more than the contract was worth

[Milan Mynar]

Nice looking kit.