Warren D

Just be careful, those things were notorious for overheating!!!

Thanks! Thank you Thanks!

Thanks Thank you

Thanks, they can be addicting. So much more out there than there was 15 years ago....

Pics of my M37 tribute truck are here: https://pbase.com/baywing/m37 Early morning light so the pics are a bit on the warm side for color balance.

A few more issues with the instructions but calling it done:

Calling this one done. Once I got the frame issue resolved, it turned out well. I'm getting the hang of the AFV Club kits, you need to study the instructions and test fit everything. You also have to look for mis-numbered parts but for someone who has built many an AMT kit, this is nothing new! Color is my own mix and is a lot closer to the FS 24087 than anything available in hobby paint.

Calling it done:

Calling this one done, though I still don't like the color. Kit is AFV Club's 1/35 scale. I added the cargo box that sits on the tailgate, otherwise it's box stock. Paint is Mission Model's FS 24087 (so they claim) but it looks more like the newer version of 24087 than the Vietnam time period. I researched 24087 extensively when I built my 1:1 M37 Vietnam tribute guntruck and this looks like the FS from a later period.

The replacement parts arrived today, thanks to AFV Club for standing behind their products.

Yup, but the problem is they can't drop much below level so if the enemy is below the truck and/or very close, the 50's aren't effective.

I'm getting an introduction to the AFV Club decals and it isn't fun. It's seeming like they readily adhere to the location they are placed in and resist being slid into a final position. I've been trying to put some water underneath but that hasn't worked out too well. Decal solvent doesn't seem to soften them any but does seem to adversely affect the Tamiya clear gloss. Almost done, just 4 more to go......

Love the gun tuck, great job!

While I'm waiting for the clear gloss to set up on the other 2 GT builds, I started another one. Why The Bounty Hunter? I have decals! The Bounty Hunter was a 5 ton truck in the same outfit as the guntruck Nancy. It also had Quad 50 cal's. The truck is a M54A1 and the kit is a M54A2 so a little back-dating is required. The bigger differences are the cargo bed (the A1 does not have drop sides) and exhaust location. In the pics below of the bed, the blue parts are 3D printed from ebay, the green are the kit parts and the white are my scratch built parts, mostly the armor. I still need to fab the storage box that sits on top of the tailgate but I'm happy with the progress so far. The armor is 0.020 sheet, the patterns were in the decal set. The Quad is the Dragon kit of the quad on a trailer which is what they used; they wheeled the trailer into the bed and took the wheels off. Truck kit is the AFV Club M54A2, decals from Echelon.

Looks good.

This build is back on the bench, the paint arrived and though they say it's 24087, it still doesn't look right to me, nor is it very close to me M37 guntruck which is true Vietnam era 24087. I think I'll leave it as is, with the sun in Vietnam, colors faded rapidly anyway and there was always some room for interpretation on just what formula to use for OD. It does look a little darker under indoor lighting.

I'm not so sure. At least where the gun trucks are concerned, they re-used the armor boxes when the truck they were on was totaled. I think there was an ample supply of vehicles, unlike WW2, so a bent frame was tossed. Yes, they would strip off the axles and any usable parts but I don't think they had a need to re-use everything.

Thanks, the credit goes out to those who not only made the ultimate sacrifice but those who survived. Thanks Thanks, I'm looking forward to doing more gun trucks. Thanks, they tried putting armor on just about everything they had but in the end the 5 ton trucks worked the best.

Yes, when I got to looking at the pic I could shorten the frame and use a kit supplied shorter driveshaft. I have replacement parts coming so this one will likely end up in the spares bin. If I hadn't chopped the end off, I'd have a usable M54 frame......hindsight is always 20/20!!!

As the instructions suggested, I mixed OD and black 50/50. This is the 4th try and the final, gloss went on this morning for the decals.

I started this build 15 years ago after attending a Gathering of Gun Trucks in Carlisle, PA (Photos here: https://pbase.com/baywing/gun_truck_gathering). All the guys I spoke with that day were very friendly towards someone who didn't know squat about their story. I started modelling the guntrucks I saw but never got very far. This is the only one I got a real start on, had the makings of Satan's Lil Angel but never started it. This is the Academy M151A1, I ended up with 2 kits just to get the second M60/pedestal. I found a template for the armor somewhere on-line and used that in sheet styrene. It would be another several years before DEF came out with theirs. I got as far as the decals and that's where it stopped. I had good artwork from my photos but my inkjet printer couldn't get enough color density in the yellow to cover the black. And so, it sat. Recently I found decals for Wolfman and just finished it up.

Posted in the wrong place, it's supposed to be under glass (there now)

Progress mock up, almost ready for paint.

The underside of the cab will need some material removed as shown to allow for the steering gear. Otherwise the conflict will prevent the cab from sitting correctly on the frame. Took me more than a few minutes to figure out where the conflict was....

I remember building this one also, I think I was in the 8th grade.....