RecyMech

You know......I was just thinking the same thing ! Is it squaddie proof ? Very Thunderbirds & all very fancy.....but will it keep going for as long as a Scammell (call it a DAF if you must) or a Foden? Will they still be in service in 20-25 years I wonder.:-\ H

Lets not be unkind......it has a certain quaint charm about it.....dos'nt it ?.......hmmmm ?...... just me then.:blush: Certainly no worse than cutting the bottom out of a perfectly good Saracen & welding it to a truck chassis. (JMO) H

Oooh, ta N.O.S...shall go shuftie. Might get the wife one for her birthday:beatenup: H

Where DO you get those fabulous REME front grill badges from:cool: ?? As ex REME I'd love to get one of those on the front of the house. Best regs.......H

HA ! months ago the pattern maker & me had a long long discussion about which tread pattern was 'original'....turns out they all are !! Cheers for that. H

Hi Nick, Slightly later than yours then I think. Not the one with the civilian cab roof (although that might be an option later as the cab has a separate roof at present) but the one with the twin skin roof right across. This gives the option of stripping half the top panel back & fitting a hip ring. Until I got into it I did'nt realise the Matador had so many variations of just about everything.....& thats not including what private owners did to them after service. I'm trying to strike as many options as possible while keeping the cost of the thing in mind. Cheers.........H

Thats the stuff Nick :kiss: Sound as a pound. Many thanks for picture, that explains it all perfectly. Apologises to Roof OB if it sounded like I was doubting your knowledge. Thanks again lads, both of you. Best regards........Howard @ KFS PS if you had`nt guessed already, this is all to do with the forthcoming 1/24th scale Matador kit.

Many thanks Roof OB Ahh, I'm starting to get the picture now.....from the rather poor pictures I was looking at I though these bars were flush against the tailboard (so you could`nt get anything behind them)....now you've said that though & I look again there does appear to be a shadow behind them.. It's falling into place:) H

Thanks for the reply Roof OB The central 3 leaf 'shock absorber' part makes sense....I can grasp that bit now. So thanks for the info on that bit. Cheers. But the other parts..... I'm not sure we are talking about the same thing here. I have reference pictures showing two large C shaped rope retainers, one either side on the tailboard & pictures of same with ropes fitted, as you say in a figure 8. I'm happy with those, but it is not these I'm referring to. The items in question are dead straight bars going vertically from the bottom plank...one either side of the central tail board mount, about 10 inches outboard. They are definately on hinge pins at the bottom, so they must swing downward. I can't tell what they are attached to at the top end though. Do they form some part of a carrying rack for something maybe ? Any thoughts anyone (or pics even better) ?...Howard @ KFS

Evening all.....I wonder if anyone could answer a question for me please & hopefully a Mat owner might be able to supply a piccy or two. On the tailboard of a Mat gun tractor are 2 vertical bars, one either side of the centre pivot bar. They're fixed to the tailboard itself on the bottom plank & appear to be hinged at the bottom....any clues what they are for ? & does anyone have a detail shot of them please...in particular the top end ? In the same vein....there is a further slightly curved bar attached to the tail board centre pivot bar itself. Any ideas as to its use & again a detail piccy would be greatly appreciated. Cheers. Howard @ KFS kfs1@btinternet.com

Hi Barrie, They don't call me the Khaki Pimpernel for nothing:thumbsup: By the way, this is THE site for friendly helpful info. The lads on here have not let me down yet. If they don't know, they know someone who will. H

Could be a field mod....although under what circumstances & for who/why I dont know. I guess we`ll never know for sure. Even the guys at the ACOC only have evidence of 3 'in service' examples. I only included the optional ('optional' as in you don't have to fit it if you dont want to) 2nd map pocket in the kit because if I did`nt someone was bound to pipe up with "ah but did you know some Champs had two map pockets". H

For Neils v Take a look in British Vehicles, the thread titled RAF Champs, 2nd picture, in service photograph of Champ with what looks like 2 map pockets on the seat backs. Cheers....... Howard.

Quote;- I think that the champ only had one map pocket on the passenger seat back and not on both front seats, but I might be wrong. It might be hard to replicate but there are is a sheet metal plates on each side of the front sump reinforment/guard plate. and The steering wheel looks a bit wide at the center. Hi Niels, I could not find evidence to confirm whether it was only ever 1, or occasionally 2 map pockets. The seats & the covers are interchangable after all. The model map pocket is a separate etch item so it's easy enough to fit one & leave the other one off. Leaving off the sheet metal plates either side of the sump shield was a deliberate decision on my part. They would be too thin to cast in scale & look un-natural if cast too thick. My Champ never had them fitted anyway : - ) The Steering wheel spokes are brass etch & right on the limit of what could be done. They are already 5 thou. To make the steering wheel in 100% exact scale thickness is impossible, it would be like tin foil. Regards......Howard @ KFS

Just pasted up 12 pics of the Champ proving rig http://www.kitformservices.com/standard.html This is not a 'test build' as such. Just the thing I've test fitted, altered, re-fitted bits on. All comments welcome though boys. Hood design & proving next (not looking forward to it) LRDG in a Suez stylee anyone ?:cool2::cool2: Best regs.......Howard.

Oooooooohhhhhhhhhhh. Pass the tissues someone.:thanx: H

Andy, Top hole mate, top hole !! It's all starting to fall into place now I can see behind all the gubbins lashed on the outside. Cheers for those, massive help !! Best regs........Howard @ KFS

Evening all.....I'm in the process now of gathering all the info needed for one of next years 1/24th scale kit releases. The FV432 Mk2/1. Although I'm doing quite well so far, I'm really struggling to find any reference pics of the K60 outside of its pack frame. Would any kind soul have any pics of a K60 engine, stripped out of the frame that I might perloin ? Or anything from a manual perhaps ideally showing both sides of the block with all the gubbins out of the way. Bit of a long shot I know but you blokes have never disappointed yet :kiss: Best regs all. Howard @ KFS

Thanks :cool2: We got verbal permission for the two LR at last. Just need to complete the relevant paperwork & crack on with the 1 tonner......after the Matador & 5.5 that is:nut::nut: Cheers....H

Evening all. For the Champ fans amongst us, I've just pasted up a picture of the latest 1/24th scale kit in the Military Range section on http://www.kitformservices.com :cool2: Just a parts layout at present & a few re-freshed details. Hope you like it :blush: As soon as we get the SMW show out of the way (this w/e at Telford) I'll be cracking on with the test builds & instructions. Best regs all. Howard @ KFS

The one on the turret says "you don't have this trouble getting bits off a Fiesta" !:-D Good pic, like it. H

Thanks Andy....all becoming clearer. Off to REME museum anyway tomorrow for raping & pillaging of archives. Now I know a little more on the differences I can pay attention to those areas. cheers lads. Howard.

Ah, cheers peeps, already got the 432 site mentioned above bookmarked & have been in for a study thereof ! So, no big Mk1 style engine access hole retained behind the Mk2 silencer, & different top grills to a Mk1. All good info, many thanks. Just trying to see if with a different pack I could offer both Mk1 & 2 version without have a whole new hull. Brain ticking, plan formulating. Thanks both. Howard.

Evening all, I have a question for the 432 lads if anyone can help please. OK, its a question for a 1/24th 432 model project, but the question is not about the model itself. Bear with me & I'll explain..... We`re lining up to do a 432 Mk2/1 as a kit in 2012 & I'd ideally like to be able to offer various options. a) I'm aware of the main differences between a Mk1, Mk2 & MK2/1 visually.....but.....on the real deal, if the exhaust system was stripped away from the hull left side on a Mk2 would you be looking at the same lozenge shaped aperture that you would find on a Mk1 (the bolt on engine access plate) ? b) Likewise, on top, regarding the exhaust outlet for the Mk1, what or how many panels/grills/plates etc change between Mk1 & 2? c) Finally, with the Mk2/1 having the 'slimline' NBC pack...are there any external differences on the hull where this is fitted compared to a Mk2 with the big filter pack? Any advice you can offer fellas, much appreciated. Best regs.......Howard @ KFS

Cheers chaps, many thanks. Will be taking you up on the offer in 2012. :cool2::cool2: Best regs H