introduction

Service Publications continues to add new books to their Weapons of War series, and the Heavy Utility in Canadian Service is another great addition. The Heavy Utility vehicle was born from the necessity for a vehicle to replace existing staff vehicles, as the current CWT trucks were impractical due to only allowing seating for two and no protected work area. Using the existing CMP frame, the Heavy Utility was designed allowing the use of the proven frames, and allowing the standardization of vehicles in use. The design of the Heavy Utility body proved itself with the ability to fill multiple roles.

the book

The book from Service Publications offers a great look of the Heavy Utility and its several uses. The book is very well written and contains several black and white reference pictures. Also included is a scale schematic of the exterior of the vehicle.

the contents

The Heavy Utility in Canadian Service starts out with a brief section on the requirement of the vehicle then goes into a great description of the vehicle, which includes design elements. The description also provides statistical information on measurements and capacities. There is some description of differences from early vehicles compared to later vehicles, to include the placement of various components of the vehicle.
The book then continues on to describe some of the roles the vehicle was used for during the war, to include Ambulance, Cipher Office, Computor, Machinery, Personnel, and Wireless. Each section provides a good description of the different configurations of the vehicles and use. The configuration descriptions provide good reference to the interior layout and exterior of the vehicle, as well as changes made for the use of the vehicle. The descriptions provide great information as to the location of internal storage and use. The book finishes off with a brief section on civilian use of the vehicles and the fate of the vehicles post war.

acknowledgement

This book was provided by Service Publications. Please be sure to mention that you saw the book reviewed here when you make your purchase.

conclusion

Overall this is a great reference book for the Heavy Utility vehicle, and there is a lot of information packed into this little book. The pictures included compliment the detailed descriptions of the different configurations. The only small issue for me, with the great descriptions of the interior of the vehicle, it would have been nice to include some scale diagrams of the interior. That being said, the book is still worth the read, and highly recommended.
As a note, with the upcoming Heavy Utility kit from Mirror Models, this would be a great reference book to accompany the model.