Dear all,

After some study I found out that quite some bulldozers were manned by Afro-American units.
Now I want to build my Mirror bulldozer as one from such a battalion. I know that 826th Aviation Engineer Battalion was such a unit.
Now my question are:
1. These units belonged to the Army. Are thus their vehicles OD?
2. How would the registration look like?
3. I have a picture where a soldier wears something that looks like the Navy cap. Can I use such a cap from my Italeri parts spare box and just paint it OD?

Thanks for your input, enjoy the weekend.

P.

Any of the US modellers able to write down the tactical registration for these units?

Paul
I don't have an answer for you regarding the unit designation without seeing the photo you speak of, but perhaps I can address some of your questions:

"1. These units belonged to the Army. Are thus their vehicles OD?" --If they are indeed WWII Army vehicles, which would include the USAAC, they would almost certainly be OD. If they were Navy vehicles, they might be OD, but could be gray.

"2. How would the registration look like?" --That would depend on unit of assignment, unit practice, and the service assigned to. But lets make sure you are speaking the registration number, as in bumper codes/numbers or are you speaking of the vehicle serial number that might be found on the hood/engine cover of the bulldozer?

"3. I have a picture where a soldier wears something that looks like the Navy cap. Can I use such a cap from my Italeri parts spare box and just paint it OD?" --Again, without seeing the photo, it's difficult to tell if it looks like a sailors "Dixie Cup" cap. It's possible the photo you are looking at is a "construction battalion" ("CB", commonly known as the "SeaBees" during WWII) which was an auxiliary of the Navy, and initially made up of civilian volunteers. They built airfields and installations primarily in the Pacific Theater. They would have worn a combination of Navy/Marine style uniforms and hats. However, there were OD & khaki sun helmets worn by the Army as well. The Army and Marine Corps also wore a casual "fatigue" hat with a bill and a "floppy" crown. I believe Miniart or Master Box has a set of vehicle drivers wearing this more casual hat.
VR, Russ

Hi Russ,

Thanks for your help.

I came to the idea to build a dozer of a Aviation Enginer Battalion after reading Donald L. Miller's "Masters of the Air".
A photo showed some Afro-American soldiers on a concrete spreader. These soldiers wear something that looks like the Navy cap. So, there was one of my questions. I will paint it OD. Furthermore, these Afro-Americans would bring some other aspects into my collection, which is, until today, a rather 'white' business!
(modeling cies: hint! hint!)

The vehicle identification can be fixed with the help of the US standard vehicle registration code I have. But I have no clue at all about the unit registration, if there would be any anyway on these vehicles.

So, if you could help me there it would be great,

Thanks in advance