Counter Battery Radar HalfTrack - Finished

[Buzzbomb]

Trying to squeeze another one in for this groupie.
There are some great builds so far.

Continuing on the theme of the Russians attacking the west in mid 1945. There was much work being done on using radar for counterbattery work. There were already radar for AA gun control and by happy accident it was found that with a bit of tweaking it could also be used for to locate enemy artillery. Now for this sort of technology to be of any use it had to be mobile. Plus it was delicate gear so it needed protection. The US M3 family of halftracks were utilised to mount the radar in a mobile platform, plus have an operator on board, it pushed them over weight, somewhat limiting their mobility, but it was worth it for the great service they performed

What I have is a Tamiya 1/35 Mortar Half Track. So cobbled up a radar with a roof mounting


Operators station, this will have overhead protections as well


Also planning on a generator trailer as well.
So more to follow, hopefully we can get this finished before the deadline

Cheers
Brian T

[Brian da Basher]

That's a killer concept and that radar certainly looks the business!

Brian da Basher

[Old Wombat]

Great idea, Brian! Hope it all comes together quickly for you. :)

[GTX_Admin]

Great idea!

[finsrin]

Halftrack is on the track to becoming very different.  I like it :)

[Buzzbomb]

Moving ahead

Cobbled up the structure and the generator trailer


The operator area, perhaps a little too modern, but it sort of works. The roof is removable at this stage

Have a figure in the works as well

[Old Wombat]

Moving ahead nicely, I'd say! :)

[Brian da Basher]

The generator seems the real deal and looks right at home behind that half-track!

Brian da Basher

[Frank3k]

Brian,
 great scratchbuilding! Is the radar unit going to be motorized or are you lighting the interior? The operator's station doesn't look too modern, but it only seems to have a range/bearing screen - are you going to add a small one for height/altitude?

[Dr. YoKai]

 Great concept and coming along nicely. I could see this accompanied by a couple of 120mm mortar carriers.

[Buzzbomb]

With a bit of double time we have got a build !

Not much advanced on the last under construction, a couple of access panels and some stowage

Then into painting


..and lights ! A bit pointless now, you can only see the Warning Radar On light (Red LED) but the Radar Display glows as well. The figure hides it
But it was also an experiment on what can be squeezed in where.

In this case the batteries are in the trailer, I pulled apart one of those Tea Light LED Candles and used its battery holder and switch, which all fitted neatly in the trailer. Access is from the bottom. The Radar Array power coupling cables from the Gene trailer are in reality, power coupling cables.

More views



Went for Royal Artillery Markings, attached to the 79th Armoured Division as it is a specialist Vehicle.
Slam in another for the Spooks group build
Ta

Brian

[Old Wombat]

That, my friend, looks fantastic!

[Brian da Basher]

Wow that looks every bit the business! What a stunning finish!

Brian da Basher

[GTX_Admin]

 :)

[Logan Hartke]

Really fine job, buzzbomb! The external stowage, paint job, and weathering really make it seem like a little-know real world variant. You've done a fantastic job on the whole thing.

Cheers,

Logan

[kitnut617]

Yeah! that is very good    :)

[finsrin]

I gotta second Logan !
Dirt/Mud looks real.  Really real, beyond model weathering :)

[Jeffry Fontaine]

Definitely came out looking like it has a real mission.  Like the generator trailer a lot.  Was the generator and trailer based on a specific type or just your imagination gone wild?  Either way it looks like a generator set and quite convincing. 

Now you have me wondering what a full length raised roof might look like on a half-track.  Something reminiscent of the BTR-152K command vehicle with the raised roof.  Turn it into the colonel's caravan or tactical Winnebago. 

[kitnut617]

I've always wondered what a 'cab-over' version would look like ---- 

[Buzzbomb]

Thanks for your kind words folks.

Definitely came out looking like it has a real mission.  Like the generator trailer a lot.  Was the generator and trailer based on a specific type or just your imagination gone wild?  Either way it looks like a generator set and quite convincing. 

Now you have me wondering what a full length raised roof might look like on a half-track.  Something reminiscent of the BTR-152K command vehicle with the raised roof.  Turn it into the colonel's caravan or tactical Winnebago.

The Generator trailer is pure conjecture. I found some WWII pattern Gene trailers on the web, even started down the road of having a soft top with the sides up with a Flat Head V8 out of a Quad. but most appeared to be smaller engines so drifted away from that. Ended up taking the easy way out and just boxed it up. Besides it gave me somewhere to hide the batteries for the lighting.

As to the full Hardtop, thought about that about halfway through as well, again took the soft option and did what I did.
REME did have a high top version as a workshop
Page of pix from Military Modelling
http://www.militarymodelling.com/forums/postings.asp?th=77929

[Frank3k]

This really came out good - the weathering is fantastic and the trailer is perfect. I got a BTR-152 feel for it, too.

[taiidantomcat]

Looks legit!! outstanding realistic look