introduction

The Daimler Dingo was arguably one of the finest armored fighting vehicles built in Britain during WWII. It was a small, two-man armored car that was well-protected for its size with 30 mm of armor at the front, and the engine located at the rear. An interesting feature of the Dingo was its transmission: a pre-selector gearbox and fluid flywheel gave it five speeds in either forward or reverse. Original Mk-I versions had four-wheel steering; but this feature was dropped in the Mk II variant due to inexperienced drivers having difficulty in controlling the vehicle. The Dingo was first used by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) during the Battle of France by the 1st Armored Division and 4th Northumberland Fusiliers. The Dingo was so successful that replacements weren’t sought until 1952 with the introduction of the Daimler Ferret. In the mid-1970s the Dingo was still being used by Cyprus, Portugal and Sri Lanka.

the kit

MiniArt has done it again, this time with a nice rendition of the venerable Daimler Dingo Mk II. According to the box top, there are 212 parts molded on six medium-gray sprues. These include two figures to man your scout car, as well as a small fret of photo-etch brass for straps, mud flaps, handles for the hatches, bolt heads, piano hinge for the roof top, and various angled braces. Molding is well done with crisp detail found throughout. The lower hull of the vehicle is made up of four separate pieces, which might be cause for concern if they are not properly aligned. There is nothing I hate worse than to have one of my car kits suddenly go from a 4 wheeler to a teetering 3 wheeler. Interior details such as control lines and boxes are molded into the sidewalls of the hull. There was one small knockout mark I noticed, but based on its location, it shouldn’t be visible once assembled.

Assembly takes place over 50 steps. Yes, you read that correctly: 50. Kickoff is with the hull assembly in Step One, and it just gets more involved from there. The instructions are pretty “busy” and as such the builder would do well to take your time and study them carefully as they go. I would guess that there wouldn’t be any building on-the-fly with this kit. There are a lot of parts, and little parts at that. I found no flash or serious amounts of knock-out pin marks on my kit. Sprue attachment points are small and should clean up easily once removed. The figures and assorted weapons are especially well done.

Painting & decals

Painting options are pretty simple: dark green or dark gray. Paint call-outs are provided for Vallejo, Testors, Tamiya, Humbrol, Revell, and Mr.Color brands. The painting guide is in color which is helpful. Marking options provide for three vehicles, including a German Beutepanzer (“A captured vehicle in German markings”):

• “B” Squadron, 2nd Derbyshire Yeomanry, Tunisia, North Africa, 1943 (Dark Green)
• sPz Abt 503, Summer 1944, France (Dark Gray)
• Regimental HQ, Royal Canadian Dragoons, 1st Canadian Corps., UK. Spring 1943 (Dark Green)

Conclusion

For a small kit, this thing is loaded with detail. Compared with my old Tamiya kit sitting on the shelf, there is no comparison. Some may hesitate at the price. It is a small kit once complete and all those little pieces will prove trying to those of us with large hands and fingers, but I guess that is why they made tweezers. A nice kit, just small.