I gotcha on the rear panel. It is part of a gunner's protection kit. The idea is that it supposedly protects the gunner from ground level gunfire. The first time I saw it was on M1114s before they began installing the more common all around gunner's shield. You can still see them on uparmoreds that have the shield though.

Lucas, your argument may very well be true but I'm not entirely convinced that Blast just simplified and got it wrong, as numerous model companies sometimes do for whatever reasons. It looks good enough and by adding that little square piece, it'd look the part just fine.

Jeff

the Gunner Protective shield is 36mm x 17mm. I used a sheet of somewhere between .25mm - .75mm styrene. I then added the hinges by a really thin sheet of styrene cut to size and a tiny piece of rod on top of that.

Jeff

Ahhh! Thanks for clearing that nagging question up. I'd been puzzling over that shield for months and the only (and very lame) idea I could come up with was that it was designed to hold equipment. Even that didn't really make sense to me.

I agree with you on what Blast may have done--as you note, manufacturers do it all the time.

According to Concord's Humvees in Iraq book, some Soldiers took to calling it the "Don't shoot me!" panel.

Just as often as not, since Soldiers find about 263 uses for anything given to them, you will see the shield used, like you said, as a storage hold (which can only help protect the gunner from having rounds overpenetrate the shield), to hold a tire, as well as to mount the "Stop!" signs that you see often.

Jeff

Thanks guys!

That was my choice too, Lucas - a senseless gear holder. But the protection issue is far more inteligent for that design (after all, to hold equip I´d chosse some kind of grile or something

Thanks all!

Marcelo

Look this one.

It´s a darker color M1114 Humvee. (note the gunner shild in the common desert paint).

This pic shows some interesting details of the armor too.



Bye,

Marcelo

Underside armor?



Bye,

Marcelo

Yep, you can easily see the underside armor. The technical manuals are available online and you can easily see the underside armor on the bottom left and right sides. The transmission and all the "plumbing" is left open for maintenance and because they are able to absorb blast and protect the crew. I think though that there is an additional plate between the plumbing and the floor of the humvee.

Jeff

No problem on the pics guys,. If I had a problem with you all using them, i wouldn't have posted them. Just as long as you didn't say you took them, no that i want the credit, just the right thing to do.

Here is a theory on the Blast armor kit. Before the manufacturers starting suppling that peice of the add on armor, the pattern had to have come from somewhere. I know I saw a picture in one of the Concord books that show that peice made out of rusty colored steel and/or painted in the tan colored. maybe thats why it doesn't have the correct bolts.

Still on the upper hatch and Iraq...

An interesting pic of an 1st Acav Humvee in Iraq. Probably in the early months.. The model of the hatch is the older tipe and thare are no protection at all.

Bye the way, intersting composed pic



Note the hillbilly armor.

Pic from here: http://www.pigbird.com/images_war.html

Bye,

Marcelo

Marcelo, that is an interesting picture. You can see that it is an M1025-series vehicle. That little bit of addon armor in the shot is great. Interesting to note not necessarily the rust but the sand mixing in with the rust to create a creamish "drybrushing" over the rust.

Jeff

Marcelo--regarding the first picture you posted of the damaged M1114, I don't think the color is different. I think that what you are seeing is the blast residue and/or paint scorching from the flames/heat of the detonation. That's why the windows look like they are painted the same color, and why the rear smoke popper and rear hatch are painted the standard sand color.

The CAV picture you posted, as Jeff noted, is quite interesting because of what it shows about the hillbilly armor. Look at the armor on the driver's door--it's a diamond-pattern tread plate. These guys used pretty much anything that could help protect them--steel plates, tread plates, mesh, etc. I also remember seeing pictures of Humvees with a lot of sandbags on the floor to absorb blast energy (needless to say, the suspension on those vehicles probably lasted less than a month).

Hi Lucas!

You are right about the humvee color. I didn´t note the wind color Woow! What a blast!

About the CAV Humvee, it probably was took inthe early months of the operation, because nowadays it´s suicide to ride like that!!! Specialy in a terain like this one

Bye,

Marcelo

Helo Hummernatics!

Take a look at this intersting pic on Prime Portal!

Note the second door armor. Is bolted in the original armored door and some inches from it, maybe to deflect the RPG blast.



Nice building option by the way!!

Bye,

Marcelo

Field Mod

Marcelo, the pic you posted shows an M1114 with an add-on armor package. These add-on packages are the ones I was talking about in my first post that are now coming on-line in Iraq. Basically, as we get more heavily armored vehicles, the enemy builds bigger bombs to defeat the armor, and we in turn add on more armor. I remember seeing another one of the armor packages in an earlier thread here that looked even heavier and more substantial.

Yes! I saw that one too! It´s impressive!

The weight of the door must be amazing!!!

18Bravo!

Nice pic!!! But too "cute" in my opinion... nowadays, useless.

But good reference and for the records.

Bye,

Marcelo

Just to add my two cents worth. Here are some pics I posted earlier in another thread of the trucks my son is using in Iraq at this time. [url=https://armorama.kitmaker.net/forums/89838#742185[/url]

Let me try the link again. https://armorama.kitmaker.net/forums/89838#742185

When I made the Mig Productions conversion kit for the beautiful Tamiya M1025 Humvee I realize that there are basicaly 2 different humvees chassis. The one used for the 1025 (among others) and the M1113 ECV (Extended Capacity Vehicle) used in the M1114, M1116, M1151, M1152 and newest versions. The main difference (I mean visual) is the extended nose. The latest versions I have seen are (I think) M1114 and M1152. The first one wich increased armor (just amazing!)and the second one with appearance on a M1025 but with thw extended nose and A/C unit in the rear.
BTW, the weapons ring is different and unique for the M1114 version (and M1116, of course)
Regards

DeskJockey,

The M1109 uparmoreds (square backs) has the side fold hatch like it's unarmored sibilings

Good to know, 2CAVTrooper. It seems every Humvee variant is different from the others!