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Alvis FV601C Saladin Mk. 2
- Thread starter RichB
- Start date
RichB
Well-known member
Work on Sally started with hull build-up. First thing to be taken care of was a molded on conduit that ran along both sides the upper hull. This was added to vehicles in the 70's when additional lights were added to the front and rear fenders. (Spoiler alert, additional mods coming at that stage.) While on the upper hull, tool tie downs were added using the ones molded onto the tools as guides to position them. The shovel T-grip and blade from the resin kit were used in place of the kit parts that looked like they were made from Lego. On the aft part of the turret platform the kit antenna storage tube was added. Unfortunately, they omitted the long pry bar and smaller crow bar that were also stowed there. They were made from styrene rod with added tie downs. There is some PE mesh supplied with the kit still to be fitted over the vents on the rear deck. A resin fire extinguisher replaced the kit idea of one.
Moving to the hull front, the driver's hatch (as well as the commander's and gunner's) is molded without any interior detail. The resin kit fixes this if planning to leave the hatch open. The only thing added was a thin strip of styrene on the edge for the hatch coming and the exterior portion of the periscope from the kit.. The front plate and hatch haven't been attached yet as the crew has yet to report for duty and a mount for the driver will need to be fitted.
Getting to the bottom of things and the suspension. Built out of the box, Sally will sit 2-3 mm low. Not a lot, but more noticeable with the fenders on. There is enough play in the wishbones to lower the suspension but the drive shaft and hub molded pieces force everything back to horizontal. The real assembly had a CV joint at the hull exit and on the hub giving the drive shaft a down angle. Cutting the kit shafts off and replacing it with some rod moved the hubs down with the wishbones. A little fiddly to get the first one in the right position, but not to difficult if so inclined. While adding the rest of the suspension bits, the aft section of the torsion bar is about 3 mm long and extends past the aft hull. An easy fix with a razor saw.
Lowered suspension vs stock.
Wheel position OOB.
Wheels in lower position.
All the suspension bits in place along with most of the lower hull fittings.
The kit wheels are nicely detailed with well molded nut details on the rims. Here, and with many parts, the sprue attachments are rather thick and connect at awkward positions requiring careful cutting and sanding to get clean, sharp edges.
That's all for now.
Cheers,
Rich
Moving to the hull front, the driver's hatch (as well as the commander's and gunner's) is molded without any interior detail. The resin kit fixes this if planning to leave the hatch open. The only thing added was a thin strip of styrene on the edge for the hatch coming and the exterior portion of the periscope from the kit.. The front plate and hatch haven't been attached yet as the crew has yet to report for duty and a mount for the driver will need to be fitted.
Getting to the bottom of things and the suspension. Built out of the box, Sally will sit 2-3 mm low. Not a lot, but more noticeable with the fenders on. There is enough play in the wishbones to lower the suspension but the drive shaft and hub molded pieces force everything back to horizontal. The real assembly had a CV joint at the hull exit and on the hub giving the drive shaft a down angle. Cutting the kit shafts off and replacing it with some rod moved the hubs down with the wishbones. A little fiddly to get the first one in the right position, but not to difficult if so inclined. While adding the rest of the suspension bits, the aft section of the torsion bar is about 3 mm long and extends past the aft hull. An easy fix with a razor saw.
Lowered suspension vs stock.
Wheel position OOB.
Wheels in lower position.
All the suspension bits in place along with most of the lower hull fittings.
The kit wheels are nicely detailed with well molded nut details on the rims. Here, and with many parts, the sprue attachments are rather thick and connect at awkward positions requiring careful cutting and sanding to get clean, sharp edges.
That's all for now.
Cheers,
Rich
Shwing!!! 
RichB
Well-known member
It's a bit of mixed bag, much better than Tamiya's old kit but not in the same class as Accurate Armour's fully detailed and quite expensive resin kit. The fit has been very good but there are a lot of details missing or are kind of clunky. There is no interior detail at all, requiring the addition of figures if opening hatches, the shovel that looks like it was made from Lego, no detail on hatch interiors, missing the Commanders 30 cal MG & mount, Jerry can with only one handle and the "low-rider" look. It does look like they used the vehicle at the RAF Museum Cosford as the pattern which is a later, upgraded version. The decals are for 4 vehicles that were operating in the Mid-East and Far-East in the 1960's which means back dating the details, one in Cyprus in the 1970's and one privately owned vehicle from Texas.
There is after market available for it including wheels from Def Model, resin from Mr Modellbau (British FV601C & German Border Police FV601D) and a PE set from Voyager to replace the fenders, stowage bins and more.
Thanks for stopping by.
Rich
There is after market available for it including wheels from Def Model, resin from Mr Modellbau (British FV601C & German Border Police FV601D) and a PE set from Voyager to replace the fenders, stowage bins and more.
Thanks for stopping by.
Rich
RichB
Well-known member
On to the fenders. Build-up was fairly straight forward for them. I've left the rear view mirrors off until the end so they don't get broken off. I replaced the tie downs for the tarp, cam net and .30 cal tripod with wire loops. New brackets for the single lights on the front fenders and the additional light removed from the top of the rear fender brackets for a 1960's Sally. I replaced the kit brush guard for the siren with one made from strip styrene. Mud flaps were added to the rear fenders, the RH being damaged as seen in some photos. A cam net made from gauze bandage and dried oregano. Foil and wire straps secured it to the fender. The engine cover tarp was added to the LH side with the old standby of tissue and watered down white glue and secured with foil straps. The tripod was also secured with foil straps. The backs of the storage boxes on the underside of the fenders had some thin styrene added to fill the gap between them and the hull
LH fender build-up. For those curious what goes in all those storage boxes, from front to rear, the first box held the drivers screen, the next upper and lower boxes carried the crews rations, the rear upper box contained the main gun cleaning kit, cooker, fuel funnel, jumper cables and kettle and the lower contained lubricating oil, starter handle and tool kit
RH fender build-up. The front upper and both lower storage boxes contained blankets, ground sheets, greatcoats and haversacks. The rear box contained a tent, gun and grenade launcher dust covers, wire cutter, hatchet and 4 ton jack.
The fenders are now attached to the hull. There was a little bit of filler added along the underside joint with the hull. The large drum on the rear of the RH fender is the muffler, a much better detailed piece from the Mr Modellbau kit.
The crew has reported in, so they will be fitted to their new home. On to the turret.
Cheers,
Rich
LH fender build-up. For those curious what goes in all those storage boxes, from front to rear, the first box held the drivers screen, the next upper and lower boxes carried the crews rations, the rear upper box contained the main gun cleaning kit, cooker, fuel funnel, jumper cables and kettle and the lower contained lubricating oil, starter handle and tool kit
RH fender build-up. The front upper and both lower storage boxes contained blankets, ground sheets, greatcoats and haversacks. The rear box contained a tent, gun and grenade launcher dust covers, wire cutter, hatchet and 4 ton jack.
The fenders are now attached to the hull. There was a little bit of filler added along the underside joint with the hull. The large drum on the rear of the RH fender is the muffler, a much better detailed piece from the Mr Modellbau kit.
The crew has reported in, so they will be fitted to their new home. On to the turret.
Cheers,
Rich
Looking good Rich!
RichB
Well-known member
Turret is done. Hatches, 30 cal MG & antenna bases are from Mr Modellbau set. I used the kit gun and added a tissue/white glue/foil dust cover. Wiring & a new handle were added to the smoke grenade launcher. Strip styrene coamings were added to the hatches.
The spotlight mounting bracket was rebuilt to look more like the real thing. An aiming handle and wiring was also added. Sally's seemed to sprout turret baskets when deployed so one was built from styrene angle and nylon window screen.
And what's a basket without stowage. An epoxy resin tarp, water can and a call sign placard filled it. The cable reel had some wire wrapped around it.
The crew are checking out their ride. They are from Firestorm in Australia. Now ready for some paint.
Cheers,
Rich
The spotlight mounting bracket was rebuilt to look more like the real thing. An aiming handle and wiring was also added. Sally's seemed to sprout turret baskets when deployed so one was built from styrene angle and nylon window screen.
And what's a basket without stowage. An epoxy resin tarp, water can and a call sign placard filled it. The cable reel had some wire wrapped around it.
The crew are checking out their ride. They are from Firestorm in Australia. Now ready for some paint.
Cheers,
Rich
