Hi Janwillem,

Read your email. Picture send.

Paul

Very nice. That is a great little trailer kit.

When the M105 trailer is hooked up to a tracked vehicle, the braking is done by the vehicle and the trailer's air brake lines are not hooked up. The only connection is the light pigtail to the back of the towing track. On an M577, it is the tombstone-shaped cover next to the tow pintle.

Before I forget, the CIP panels on the side of the M-577 (and any M-113 version) how are they attached to the vehicle? I did a google search but no good pictures. It looks like they are just placed on it without any visible attachment mechanism. Are they glued, welded, stuck on the side with Velcro? or am I missing bolts or straps?

Cheers,

JW

It’s a slow day at work so another question popped up. With my thoughts focusing on the last few things that need to be done on the model the shelter came up. In particular the way it should be stored. I have been looking on the web and could not find any real good photos or information on how it is stored.

Is the shelter just rolled up, strapped up and fixed to the top of the M-577 or is there a special bag for it?

Cheers,

JW

I guess Velcro is used on the M113 hull sides :

See here

or here


H.P.

merci beaucoup Henri. As always you know where to find it.

The tent extension cover is attached (and remains attached) to the vehicle. When the tent is rolled for storage, the over flap hanging at the rear of the vehicle is brought up over the roll, the ends of the cover folded in the center of the roll and the remaining section of the cover wrapped around the tent extension.

Thank you for the explanation Robert.
Will have to figure out how I will make the rolled up tent for the model (break out the green stuff).
Does explain why you see some really messy rolled up tents on the rear. I might go for a not too neatly rolled up one.

Cheers,

JW

Really thin Sculpy ought to do it. Or tissue soaked in white glue, over the plastic Tamiya piece. Now you can envision the shape you need.

I have started messing around with the tent and that got me wondering if I should/could leave it off. I have seen quite a number of M-577 with the poles but without the tent attached or rolled up on the rear of the roof.
Was this a common thing to do, leaving the tent off of the vehicle?

Cheers,

JW

I'm sure there were instances where it was removed, but as I said, that cover was sort of semi-permanently attached and was probably B***** to remove.
Besides, the tent was designed to mate up to a second one to form a TOC. There just wasn't much room in these vehicles.
I'm sure tons of photos exist to show otherwise, but the practical reality is that they really needed it in adverse weather, ie, extreme heat or cold.

It depends on when you are depicting your vehicle from. The original M577 tent extension was a canvas tent that went over the poles held on the rear. It was a b**ch to remove and was just rolled onto the top of the track.




The newer system that has been in use since the late '90s is the Standard Integrated Command Post System (SICPS, pronounced sick-ups). It is a modular system that has removable wall sections so any number of the 12' x 12' tents can be combined in any configuration to build a custom command post. Only a small boot section stays attached to the vehicls and the rest (with support legs) is packed up into bags and stored on top of the vehicle.

janwillem, im not sure what it is as ive not seen one before, but that this is cool as heck! Great build too man...well done

Thank you Gino for that. Looks like I will just have to find a way to make the tent. So tissue paper and glue are comming on the workbench.

Great photo of personel rolling up the tent. Now I see why sometimes it looks like they just through it up and over onto the roof.

Cheers,

JW

Hi, Janwillem,

1. To the tent
Since the tent is quite a massive and expensive part of equipment, some units decided to leave it off in general and use it only during technical trainings or exercises. The large manouvres in western Germany seldom left enough time to set up and tear down the tent for art. and reconaissance units. At brigade level, HQ's were more static. Here, tents were deployed almost every time.
2. I use for fabric very tin lead foil. It keeps it form better than tissue, is more easier to bend and, when using an Evergreen core, substantial mass can be created.
3. Pls., read your email for tent photos

P.

Hi Paul,

I got you emails. as always great stuff.
Keep this up and you'll have sent me the entire manual in no time

Using a core did cross my mind but never thought of leadfoil.
Would keep its shape way better. Only draw back is that now I have to find some.

Thanks,

JW

Dear Janwillem,

This is the time to have a very good excuse to buy some good bottles of wine! Hand over the bottles to your beloved one and keep the (empty??) bottle yourself.
Good wine bottles are closed with a very thin foil, fulfilling your requirements. Take care, have a close look at these closures, since they have a tiny overlap. If you cut along this overlap, you have a complete sheet of very useful foil. Furthermore, shops, which sell sport fishing gear, may have very thin lead foil as well.
Feel free to publish the sheets I send to you. The M577 manual must be around at every corner of the world in the mean time!!!!

Thank you Paul for your input and all the valuable information, and this goes to everybody that took the time to help me with your knowledge and experiences on the subject.

I got my hands on some large sheets of lead foil measuring 7.5 by 10 cm so I can make the tent in one piece. Hoping to have it by before the weekend so I can add this last large detail to the model.

Again thank you all for your help, this has been invaluable for this project.

Cheers,

JW

He guys,

Well the model is still in only in its primer coat but I wanted to share some photos of the trailer hitched up to the bucket.







Still haven't managed to make a tent that I am satisfied with so I am thinking of taking the easy way out and letting it off.

Cheers,

JW

I am taking the easy way out with the tent and I am going to leave it off. Non of my attempts ( lead foil with core, lead foil with out core, rolled up tissue paper and tissue paper over the original kit part) have resulted in something that was satisfying.

Could I get away with a short section attached to the roof to represent the boot of the tent? and if so how large would that section be?

From the photos I have seen the boot is attached to the sides and roof. When on the move would they just unhook the sides of the boot and throw it over the top onto the poles?

Hi Janwillem,

I will send you photo's from the tent from all sides, which might help you to sew/glue a 1/35 mini one.

Furthermore, a loose tent on the back of a M577 is less likely. It is just too big and one might face the problem that it is ripped off or falls down during movements. For sure in a woody area. On (public) roads, (public) safety regulations may not allow it. In my unit, I always rdered the driver and my staff to roll it and tie it with the straps to the back. For longer trips, certainly on trains or truck/trailor combinations (like the FTF, Scania, DAF or Mercedes), the tent was stored in the bag.
As stated before, M577 with tents were deployed on higher echelons ( brigade level or higher), thus creating a bit more time to build up/break off command posts. Here, soldiers had "more" time and hands to handle the tent. Also, the use of a back up with the help of (an)other M577('s) enabled an overlap ( in Dutch: dakpansgewijs verplaatsen) for the command post, thus creating time to break it down, store it and secure t acc. the rules.
For units, which moved more frequently, like field artillery batteries, reconaissance unitsor amored engineers, the tent was less commen used.