Hi Jeremy & all,
This is my entry for the Great War Campaign, based on the accompanying photo. I started with a Lindberg 1/32 scale 1915 Model T Ford kit, far from ideal, as some parts are warped and fit poorly, but it's coming along. Enough scratching to accommodate a good case of hives. Lindberg's plastic doesn't bond well with Tamiya thin cement. Plastruct works better. The tires are too big for the wheels and will have to be glued on somehow. Still working on that.
Cheers,
Dick

/>Troopers of an Australian Light Car patrol/1st Australian Light Horse, near the Sea of Galilee, September, 1918. The emblem on the radiator is the Australian Commonwealth coat of arms beneath a palm tree, predating the DAK by nearly a quarter century. (Source: Australian War Memorial)

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The cartridges on top of the instruction sheet are .455 Webley and .303 British. The .303 round has a WWI head stamp.

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Partly assembled, engine in place, major surgery on body yet to come. Copper wire throttle & spark levers added to steering column. Floorboard converted to right hand drive, w/scratch built pedals. Brass plating sanded off radiator shell.

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Rear of body cut away, scratch built pickup bed/tray ready to install.


Upside down, showing chassis and underside of body.

Hi Dick,

Look forward to developments, nice project.

Al

Excellent project Richard, and great progress so far. I wonder if this qualifies as the first Aussie "Ute" ???

Cheers, D

Looking good, Richard! I love those Model T patrol cars-- I had been researching them too.
-Sean H.

Al, thanks for the complement.

D, you could be right about the utes. I saw Toyota utes in Western Australia in 1978 with quite similar trays, but they all had roo bars.

Sean, I agree about the Model T patrol cars. I've seen photos of 9 different variants. The one I wanted to build was a T touring car with a Lewis gun used in the western desert of Egypt against the Senussi, but I couldn't find a Touring car kit, and my kit bashing skills aren't up to doing the body work.

Cheers,

Dick

Hi All

A little more progress on the build./>
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Left side view, primed, added louver to each side of hood/bonnet, kit had only 5. Added tie-down cleats to sides of bed/tray. Installed lights. Added hand brake rods to rear brake drums (stainless steel fishing leader)


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Front view, made radiator taller (styrene rod) and more rounded than 1915 model, Added new thinner tie-rod, installed crank (copper wire) Fabricated Lewis gun mount from styrene tube & made cut-out to fit in cowl lamp.

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Front quarter view, showing toolbox on running board. Still lacks a few details but almost ready for painting.


Cheers,

Dick

Love it ! Very nice work.

Cheers, D

Coming on well Dick. I have the skala kit to build some time.

Al

Hi all,
Here's what it looks like after painting. Paint on bodywork is Krylon Fusion Khaki (for plastic). Applied in light coats it works quite well.


Left side view, hasp added to tool box, steering wheel in place.



Front view, headlight and cowl lamp lenses installed. Radiator painted flat black.


Right side view


Underside, exhaust pipe & gas tank (under seat) in place


View from above, still need to patch the hole in the firewall left when converted to right hand drive.

Still quite a bit left to do.

Cheers,

Dick

Hi all,
This build is continued on the Great War thread.
Thanks for looking in.

Dick

Hello Richard, I'm interested in seeing the photos in your post about the Australian Light Car patrol.
I'm new to Amorama and I can see the photo of the WW1 light car with Aussie troops, but I can't see the build photos you have attached. Any chance you could send them to me via Email?
Sorry if this is pushy, I'm keen to have a go myself and I'm trying to get as much info as I can. My Email address is [email protected].
Thanks & Regards
John