Alright Gents.... With my Aussie Abrams build behind me, and a few weeks off from major model building work I find myself rejuvenated to start a new project.

With the recent announcement from AFV Club of the pending Dieppe Churchill in 2010, and Echelon's Dieppe Churchill Decal sets... the time has come to finally start this long awaited project.

I'm not sure how many other Canadian Modellers (or international modellers alike) have had a Dieppe subject build on their "to do list" but I've had mine on for almost 5 years now.... the time has come!!!

For those who have followed my Aussie Abrams build I'll try and follow the same organization to post as many pictures as I can including explanation and cite reference material where applicable to help with future builds on the same subject.

In this build log I will take AFV Club's Churchill MK III and convert it back to a MK I using Cromwell Models Dieppe Churchill MK II Conversion, Echelon's Dieppe Decal set and a few pieces from my IMA Churchill MK I-II conversion set I picked up years ago. I will be attempting to build BOLSTER seen on pages 30 &31 of Hugh Henry's Through the Lens - Dieppe.

I will start this as a separate build but I will also tackle in other Build logs under the Canadian Armour Forum a Dieppe Churchill MK III - CONFIDENT and a Dingo Scout car - HELEN. Eventually BOLSTER and HELEN will be amalgamated into a diorama.

Ok, in similar fashion I'm going to post my reference material. I've collected a lot of material over the last several years, but in all honesty anyone wanting to build any of the Canadian Churchill tanks involved in the Dieppe Raid all you need is two books:

1) Dieppe : Through the Lens by Hugh Henry

2) Mr Churchill's Tank - David Fletcher

There are several other refernce books out there, with even more background or historical information, but from the modellers point of view the two listed above will answer all model related questions.







There are lots of people out there that have researched this subject and one to note is Barry Beldam. Barry has markings and camoflage plates for Dieppe AFVs on his website:

http://www.armouredacorn.com/index.html

I'm also going to references Steve Zaloga's Lend Lease Churchill MK III build in Military Modelling magazine. His insight into he construction of the AFV Club kit is well worth the read.

Before anyone posts.... Yes I do own the CBC production TV Mini series DIEPPE. I do not recommend purchasing it, but it was important to me as I watched it when it was first aired back in the 1990's and that's what got me hooked on the subject.

Onto the Build!!!

I followed Steve Zaloga's suggestion of building the boggie components separately and I have to agree with his suggestion. I took the metal springs that come with the kit and soaked them with "Blacken It" to darken them up. Most of the boggie assembly will be hidden, and I didn't want the shiny metal springs to show if I couldn't completely cover them with primer/paint.

Note - I did not drill out the holes in Step #1 for the Rivet heads (part E29) in the AFV Club instructions. BOLSTER was a MK I Churchill and based on my interpretation of the photos above do not show these rivets. These rivets were for the Applique Armour that was mounted inside the sponson. This extra armour was part of the rework project that started several months after the first MK III Churchills rolled out of the factory but before the Dieppe raid. This is not to say that none of the Churchill tanks that went ashore at Dieppe had this, because several tanks did. The Calgary regiment had a mish mash of orignal, semi reworked tanks. Please consult your reference. See illustraion from David Fletcher's Mr Churchill Tank:





There were several other modifications that were added to the Churchill tanks as part of the rework project, but we'll discuss those further on into the build.

Ok, the next point to make is about 3 other reworked items. According to David Fletcher:

" On Vehicles built to manufacturers' "Re-work" Specification the W.d. Number is suffixed by the letter "R""

David Fletcher doesn't list every reowrked item, but does mention these two items:
Continuous Track Rails & Mud scraper & Fenders.

Below is a copy of the tank museum's diagram of the continuous track rails. On this point I haven't been able to find proof whether this rework was simply the extension of the rails or the rails themselves. As observed in the Through the Len pictures none of the Dieppe Churchills have the front extension. This is easy to observe as the track sags in this area. But also on Page 29 you can clearly see the rails below the shell damage. I am going to make the assumption based on this that the rails existed but not the frontal extensions. This means omitting parts E24 & E25 from the build.



The absence of the frontal rail extensions can clearly be seen on page 19. As for the rear extension, small as it may be I'm going to leave it on. This is kind of a mute point as most of this will be covered by the tracks. I think the rear extension was there based on images on page 56 & 58. It's a guess.

The mud scraper that is located between the last boogie wheel and the rear drive sprocket are not present on any of the Dieppe Churchills, and as indicated in Fletcher's book is a reworked item. I've omitted this from my build as well. Part D13. By omitting this ment filling the holes where they were to mount. Also because it was a rework item The bolt on the outside has to be removed.



Remeber both sides



Lastly, the Dieppe Churchills had the early style fenders. Only 2 Dieppe Churchills had the rework style fenders - BLUEBELL and BELLICOSE. The mounts for the late style fenders have to be removed. Unfortunately the are hollow and the aperture has to be filled and sanded.

Hi Carmen,

I'd agree the rail is already there before the extensions. Some of the pics (eg Pg 33, 36) shows a smooth surface below the top run of tracks.

Logically speaking, if the rail wasn't there originally, the tracks would have caused much havoc running wildly like that!

Cheers,

Lawrence
P/S: still working on the other instruction sheet...

Hi Carman,

Look forward to the build.

Al

Hi Carmen,
Looking forward to the build. Good start.
Jeff

Thanks Jeff and Alan!

Lawrence - That's awesome, my other project is started so perfect timing. I'll post pictures soon.

I've been working off and on, on this project all week. I even started my Churchill Mk III which I'll also post pictures of soon.

I'm a pretty happy guy this week... I finally received my Cromwell Models Dieppe Churchill Conversion sets.... *sigh of relief*... Let's just say it's been a long wait, but I'm happy I have it now. Gordon you do great work as always!



Here's a comparison of the Cromwell Models Mk I turret and IMA's Mk I Turret, the differences should be obvious in respect to general dimensions and attributes. Note the side turret ports on the IMA turret and the rear hatch. I apologize in advance, my lighting wasn't the greatest and resin definately gives a bit of a glare to boot.









From my previous pictures I forgot to remove the mud scraper latch, it's now been removed off the rear panel.




Don't worry the front drivers plate is not glue on yet, hence why it's lop sides.

There are missing rivets or bolt heads along the sides which I've made note of. I'll be adding them in due time.

This kit is absolutely stellar! I have had no fit problems what so ever. If anyone plans on building this kit,... once you get past the boggie assembly the kit just falls together. I absolutely love it when you're doing a conversion and the kit doesn't give you any grieve and is the least of your worries... it allows you to focus on the conversion parts.




A teaser of my Churchill Mk III along side my Mk I. I've opted to use the 2 Pdr Jordi Rubio barrel on the MK I. I picked it up years ago to build this project using Tamiya's Churchll Mk VII and IMA's Mk I Conversion set. Best use it, or it'll sit in the spares bin for the rest of its life. My Mk III will be CONFIDENT.

I've also found this build log of a Dieppe Mk II Churchill RINGER on Missing-Lynx with scratch built interior. My hat is off to Chris... Great job!! Doing interior scares me, but is a challenge I'm going to have to take one of these days.

http://www.network54.com/Forum/110741/thread/1253270919/Ringer,+MkII+Churchill,+Dieppe

Hello All

I've got a bit more completed on this build.

I removed the two giant rivets on the front nose armour. After further review and discussing this with some friends I've come to the conclusion that these rivets were a new addition to the MK III Churchill. I've checked David Fletcher's book and reviewed as many Mk I and MK II pictures as I can and have not found any indication that these were on any Mk I or MK II chassis.



After reviewing Through the Lens I can conclusively say that BEEFY, BETTY, BELLICOSE, CONFIDENT had these rivets on the nose. Surprise surprise, these are all MK III tanks. The rest are either obsured or I don't have photo reference to tell. One note is BLONDIE conclusively does NOT have the front rivets. A great shot of this is BLONDIE with a German crew.


Image from Achtung Panzer website. You can clearly see no Giant rivets on the nose armour, but if you look carefully enough there are the indents where they would have gone. BLONDIE does not have giant rivets on the side either, meaning it was a first production MK III without the Applique armour I spoke of earlier... does this indicate which MK IIIs have the giant rivets on the nose armour?? Your guess is as good as mine.

Here is the fontal picture of BELLICOSE from Wikipedia. You can clearly see the two Giant rivets on the nose for comparison.


I've reviewed so many pictures and I feel confident enough to say that all Churchills involved in the Dieppe raid had the 5" air inlet on the rear of the tank and not the 8" air intake as is available in the AFV Club Mk III kit. Te 8" Air intake was a rework item.

For information on the the differences please refer to Armour in Focus website
http://freespace.virgin.net/chris.shillito/a22new/articles/airoutlet/index.htm

Here's my attempt to correct this. My steel beam between the intake grills and the rear engine deck hatches is a bit thin, but othewise looks good to me. I've also re-done the rivets on the rear armoured plate. This work is a little in vane as I'll be covering most of it up with waterproof canvas. I used the Churchill MK II at Bordon, Ont as my reference. Image is from Prime Portal. I still have to do the metal shroud under the rear plate.







There are images of rivet patterns on the Armour in Focus website as well under the Air intake section. I've left the center two smaller rivets off until I can examine the decals that will be going over them. Or I simply put them on after I apply the decals. I have also not applied the two small rivets just left of center. These two were to hold the bracket which supports the fuel line to the rear external fuel tanks. If the bracket existed on the Canadian Churchills it would have been removed to allow for the deep wading stakes.

I forgot to mention that again my work on correcting the rear air intake might also be in vane as I'll have to cover most of it with the screen plate used to attach the deep wading stakes. Here's a great shot of this plate.

Image from Wikipedia


You can also see the rear water proofing which will cover most of my work. You can also see the rivet pattern on the rear armour plate which supports the 5" air intake and not the 8" air intake. This picture is not in Through the Lens. Other great things: Early rear fenders, Pioneer tools?? which is interesting because most reference talks about them removing them prior to battle, also early style fire extinguishers on the turret.

Carmen, it's going to be a great build, I will follow it to learn.

Looking good to this point Carmen. You did your reserch. I was thinking of doing the same but was wondering about heavy weathering. I like to do heavy wear and tear, Did the tanks look new when they hit the beach?
My other option for a Canadian Churchill was some British Churchills that served with Canadians in Italy.

Hi Carmen,

Looking excellent, great work and a really interesting build to follow.

Al

Hey Chris

The Calgary Tanks (14th CATR), only had their Churchill tanks less then a year before the onset of the Dieppe Raid. They were fairly new looking and they drove out of the sea at Dieppe so they had their "tank wash" if that answers your question. The Calgary Tanks also received several Mk I or Mk IIs from the British 48th RTR, these were specialized tanks (flamethrowers and carpet laying tanks). I don't know how many or which ones (Other then BOAR) but they would have had (in theory) more wear and tear then the rest. If you're looking at more wear and tear then your best bet would be a Three River's Regiment (12th CATR) Churchill which I believe served in Italy before being equipped with Sherman tanks. Might want to look into that deeper a I'm no expert.

I'm no expert on Churchill tanks but I understand and know about the basics. Cheers!

Nice work!

I'm a big fan of the Churchill tank and it's always great to see one being built, especially when this much care and attention is lavished upon it.

Keep up the good work,

James

Canadian tank units had their Churchills replaced by Shermans shortly before the invasion of Sicily. After the breaking of the Hitler Line, my regiment (the North Irish Horse) caught up with Canadians for a general get together near Valmonte..I well recall their comments that the advance up the east coast of Italy would have been a lot easier if they still had have the Churchills.

Cheers, Gerry.

Thanks Gerry! Learn something new everyday. My grandfather faught with the Canadian 1st Div, West Nova Scotia Regiment so he was there in Italy as well. He never told me many stories, only the funny "non-war" ones. He past away before I could really talked to him about his experiences and before I really got interested in all this "stuff". I have his regiment's history which I've read several times.

Anyways, I've been wondering, since the air intakes had extensions if the rear intake had another metal grill placed over it? A grill similar to the ones on the sides with smaller apertures? I haven't been able to find any good reference or pictures so here's what I've observed and my assumptions for my build....

I don't think it would make sense placing another metal grill over the metal grill already inplace on the rear air intake. Since I am going to do my model without the extensions this was an important question, but I'm making this assumption and not including any extra screen over the rear intake.

Here's a picture of BURNS. This picture is from Henry's Through the Lens: Dieppe on page 27. If you look at the right hand side of the rear intake you can clearly see a shadow. Mind you the connection brackets were raised a bit off the regular intakes I still don't see any extra, or smaller aperture grill. Comments welcome..





Here's a picture of BETTY from David Fletcher's Mr Churchill's Tank. Again you can see a shadow showing a deep open aperture. You can also see the smaller aperture grills on the side air intakes.





I've also read the AFV Magazine's arrticle on the Deep wading gear from Issue 32 and there's no mention of any extra screen. Honestly it's a bit inconclusive but I'm going to go with the practicality of the situation those guys faced and not put on any extra screen.

I've started the missing rivet heads along the sides, pictures to follow soon. Cheers!

I have the rivets completed on the sides. You can make them out in the captured Churchill Photo BLONDIE I posted above.

Well I got a bit more progress done. I finished the front sprockets. Most of this work will be covered but can be seen by the trained eye at a model show... hence why I did it. I have also done it for two other reasons.... 1) To help educate anyone planning on doing a Dieppe churchill where these sprockets are visible by a thrown track and 2) because I enjoy learning and building (construction is my favorite part) and making my models as accurate without becoming too anal on the details. If it's easy to do, then I'll do it.

Here's a shot from a few weeks ago


And here's the update:



To be honest I didn't even notice this until a close friend of mine let me borrow Steve Guthrie's REGIMENT build article from Fine Scale Magaine dated 1998... I traced the cut out parts with a Sharpie pen then drilled a hole and cleaned it up with my dremel, hobby knife and file. After reviewing the picture on the front cover it appears as though these cut outs were down with a welding torch. In my opinion they don't look perfectly square or uniform which is a blessing because getting those cut outs uniform would take me a lot longer then what I put in. The bolts were puched from Historex's Hex Punch and die set

Here's some pictures of the sprocket for reference:

Through The Len: Dieppe Front Cover



If you look back in my build log you can see another great frontal shot of this sprocket from Wikipedia. Cheers!

I've been asked to post a picture of my rivet making tool. I use a jeweller's beading tool. You can find these at jewellery supply shops and online for ~$25 bucks. The set I have comes with 24 different punches. The tips of each punch are concave and when punched through styrene produce a concave rivet head. It's great for mass producing rivets ... especially of different sizes.

Trying to finish the rear end off...

I've added missing bolt heads to the inside lip of the rear drive sprockets. You can clearly see these bolts on the picture from Through the Lens on page 28 of BACKER. I again used Historex's Hex punch and die set.

I did this to help educate and to bring awareness for modeller who choose to do a Dieppe Churchill with this sprocket visible from a thrown track.

Last post of the night and a call for assistance....

Given the fact that the Dieppe churchills had the 5" rear air intake and not the 8" the rivet placement on the rear sides would obviously be different then those cast in the kit plastic. I've reviewed as many pictures as I can and have only found a few, but unfortunately they aren't totally great for proper placement.

I've sanded off the kit rivets and marked the sides with a black sharpie pen what I know and what I think.



The ones behind the drive sprocket I'm fairly confident, but the 6-7 rivets along the sponson I don't have any great reference for proper placement. These rivets are visible even with the tracks so I want to make sure I got them in the right place.

If there's anyone out there that has a great picture of these rivets please contact me. Otherwise I'll use artist license and place them to the best of my ability. These will be on any Churchill tank made Pre-Rework. Anyone live in Borden, Ontario??

Here's the only shots I have:

Here's the Borden Mark I from Prime Portal, you can clearly see them but given the angle it makes it hard for proper placement.



This one is from Armour in Focus website. Picture taken by Bob Grimster... again it's the Mark I from Borden Ontario

Hey, well it's been a while since I've posted anything so I thought while I have some time I'd post some pictures of my progress.

First I'd like to thank those individuals who answered my call for assistance, with a special shout out to Bob Grimster. I'd also like to retract my comment about the holes in the front sprockets being cut with a torch... I've seen enough pictures to convince me otherwise.

Here's two pictures of the front. I still have to do the sheet metal on the inside left and right along the tracks. Once those are out of the way, the headlights can go one.




I've left the inner driver's aperture open a bit for character. The 3" gun is a brass tube a friend of mine gave me as I wasn't happen witht he resin versions I had.

Here's two pictures of the rear. I've finished off the mysterious rivets on the hull sides. Though I'm not 100% confident in their placement the pictures I received helped me out tremendously as there were more rivets in those areas then what I originally thought. This is my best attempt given the pictures I had. I've also added the track guards behind the side air intakes, and the extra track mounts on the sides in PE.




Next step... louvres for the side air intakes and Deep Wading Gear mounts. Front Sheet Metal armour inside the tracks, and last but not least... PE handles and mounts. Stay tuned....