Evets

Not too sure if the questions about Brit airborne jeeps are extant but here's a pic of the final scratch-built 1/6th scale Brit airborne jeeps (of the 1st Airborne Division's Reconnaissance Squadron). Changes include placement of the correct type ammo boxes on the bonnets and repositioning of the BREN gun...lots of research (not to mention frustrating modelling) went into them and I now consider this project (I'm now working on a 1st Airborne Div BREN (Universal) Carrier. Cheers to everyone who assisted me with the details Evets

Cheers for the additional pics lssah2025, probably the first time I've seen such pics of such mounts (some very perculiar ones amongst them)...as stated in an earlier reply thread...the PLM mounts that I made came from whatever research (pics) I could find...though I may have to add a few more nut/bolt bits to the vertical support brackets judging by some of your pics. I've taken a break from the 1/6th models for the time being...I've got an all-metal German SdKfz 222 recon car that I was planning on doing this year but will now have to be next year due to posting cycle (such is Army life). I've just recently finished a Dragon models 1/6th SAS jeep...other than that, I'm spent for the time-being, any other pics or suggestions to the Brit airborne jeep models would be most welcome as I reckon there's always room for detail improvement (though hopefully not too many). Steve

Cheers for the pics Nick...originally I had planned to go for the single gun mounts as per those fitted to the SAS' desert raiders...it was not until I was doing research on the VGO guns themselves that I stumbled upon a bizarre looking mount called the P.L.M which was often used by British armoured vehicles...several of the period pictures of recce jeeps at Arnhem clearly show these mounts and there is a classic photo of a shot-up recce jeep that was taken on the Ede-Arnhem road several months after 'MARKET GARDEN' by a AFPU photographer during the Canadian liberation of Arnhem which shows the P.L.M mount (I'll have to scan and attach later) with the VGO still, surprisingly, fitted as well as several pics from the Arnhem battle showing recce jeeps with these mounts (the double volume 'Then & Now' series on 'MARKET GARDEN' carries said pics which was where I first got a good (though grainy) look at them. As stated, I can't find too much at all on these mounts other than photographic evidence. I've been thru loads of books but non explain why this perculiar mount was used in-place of the standard single fitting. I had to scratch-build them for the model jeeps out of plastic piping and thin plastic sheeting...probably the most frustrating mods required. Steve

Cheers 'Willyslancs' for the comments...whilst I tried to apply every detail I could find...I could not replicate oil leaks from the sumps. As for 'abn deuce' question...Vickers K guns were not normal issue to British forces at that time of the war (as the BREN was the standard issue LMG) and even more so by the Recce Squadron as they were the only troops in the division to use such machine guns. Hence - I'd imagine the purpose built drum magazines used would not be a common sight at the resupply dumps so I reckon the jeep's crews would keep hold of any empty magazines for refilling later. Attached pic is the reasoning behind the making of the jeeps...originally made to be part of a 1/6th British airborne diorama...I later decided to put the jeeps on display by themselves. Yes, I know...the backdrop of books (on Arnhem) and some other dude's display of a 1/6th U.S. Civil War cannon and crew somewhat take away the realism. Steve

Here's a view of the rear of the communications jeep as used by the Recce Squadron which highlights the rear of the jeep. The wireless is a No.19 (most jeeps were fitted with the No.22). The wooden lead-acid battery cases and their frame carriers were scratch-build...so was the PLM VGO mount and spare magazine tin. I even put in a detachable steering wheel clamp amongst the many mods...suffice to say...every mod I looked at often led me to another mod...I have place 1/6th British airborne figures in the jeeps since these pics were taken...enjoy...hope they help with your research. Steve

Radek... If you're refering to the VGO gun mounts on the model jeeps...yes, the Recce Sqn, in particular, used Vickers-K guns mounted on cut-down armoured vehicle PLM mounts. If you look closely at the period pics of the Recce jeeps used at Arnhem (which formed the basis of my research for the 1/6th model recce jeeps) as well as refer to a website that covers Vickers guns (of all types) then the PLM mounts are evident. Originally, The Squadron's OC - Maj 'Freddie' Gough - requested twin mounted VGO's in order to beef up the firepower of his jeeps due to the coup-de-main assault on Arnhem road bridge that his Squadron was tasked to carry out as part of the overall flawed 'MARKET GARDEN' plan (based on the excellent results of such pairs by the SAS desert raiders). However his request was turned down largely because of resupply ammunition requirements. Hence, most of his jeeps were only fitted with the single gun. I can't find too much on the PLM mount itself. Another VGO item was the spare magazine containers...whilst the SAS jeeps had their spare drums contained in wooden ammo boxes nestled between the seats of their jeeps, research suggests that many of the recce jeep crews utilised large biscuit tins and these were positioned in the passenger foot wells (inbetween the legs of the machine gunner) for ease of changing out the magazines. Some pics also show the magazines fitted in brackets onto the outside and on the upper dashboard. I have many books on the Battle of Arnhem, and I scoured every website and jeep book I could find in order to try and get the jeeps accurate (John Fairley's 'Remember Arnhem' was a favourite for research as was Rob van Meel's 'British airborne jeeps 1942-45 - Modifications and Markings). I'm always up for changing out the many modifications made to the jeeps if new research indicates that my results are incorrect. As such, whilst many of the mods were fun to make...others were purely frustrating based on insufficient or ambiguous information...however, I believe I've done the Recce Sqn justice....not to say that I won't appreciate any feedback if there are indeed things that I've missed...however, every single mod that I could find is on the jeep (right down to the white painted rear dif plate and switch on the rear of the jeep to turn the axle flood light on)

This pic might help with your Jeep project...these are actually Dragon Models 1/6th 'Willy's' Jeeps that are kit-form. The kit-form model allowed me to make the necessary modifications and turn them into a jeep section of the 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron...took me several weeks to make overall.