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- V-150 Commando -

Current Usage
4x4 Armored Mortar Carrier
V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier
The Kit:
This kit was produced by Trophy Models/Verlinden Productions. It is cast as a solid resin "brick" with separate wheels and axles. There were additional resin parts, a small styrene sheet and a length of copper wire to finish out the assembly.

Pour plug removal was fairly extensive and there were numerous pits found in the casting but fortunately, the majority of these were on non-showing surfaces. Some filling with putty was required to fill in those pits that were exposed on viewing surfaces. Some minor surface blemishes were present but were easily sanded away.

Assembly was straight forward with basically no difficulties. I added .080 inch laminated styrene to the axles for better clearance of the wheels to the hull. I substituted the kit copper wire with spare copper wire as I felt (and was correct) that the length provided would not be sufficient. This was also the case when I built Verlinden's V-100 model several years ago.

The wheels were pegged to the axles with brass rod for additional strength.

Part detail was fairly crisp. I did not check for kit accuracy as it looks good to me.

There were no decals provided in this kit.

Pictorial reference for this subject was extremely difficult to find. I had originally wanted to model this kit as a Saudi Arabian National Guard service as I know that the SANG uses the V-150 but I was not able to obtain any reference. Numerous emails to the SA Embassy and others were not answered so I decided to use a fictitious color scheme from a Middle Eastern or African possibility.
V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier
V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier
V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier
V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier
V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier
V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier
The Details:

V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier

V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier

V-150 Commando Mortar Carrier
The only non-kit items added were a small patch of anti-slip surface made from fine modeling sandpaper mounted to the top of the engine intake deck, some styrene added to the exhaust grill and the antenna from styrene rod. The antenna mount is a separate Verlinden item. The exhaust pipes were drilled out with a pin vise.
The Base and Groundwork:
The wood is oak and was cut to 7-1/2 x 4-1/2 x 3/4 inches. It is stained with and oil based stain and sealed with multiple coats of polyurethane.

The nameplate (as well as the data card) were printed on my computer. The easel was made from styrene plastic.

The 'concrete' surface is scribed styrene sheet.
Painting, Weathering and Finishing:
Both acrylic and enamel paints were used to paint this subject. A wash of Winsor and Newton Oils thinned with Loew-Cornell Odorless Brush Cleaner and Thinner was applied for depth prior to the drybrushing to bring out the highlights. A final coat of acrylic flat was applied to seal the painting.
General Vehicle Info:
Built by Cadillac-Gage in the United States, the V-150 Commando series of Armored Personnel Carrier has enjoyed a fair amount of success on the export market being used by at least 20 nations and is available in at least 16 different configurations. It is also known as the LAV-150 and V-150S (S=Saudi Arabia) to mention a few designations. The Commando saw limited service with the USAF during the latter stages of the Vietnam War as the M-706 and was used mostly for airfield security mounting a variety of machine gun mounts.

The mortar carrier was originally designed to carry an 81mm mortar but has also been used to mount 60mm and 82mm mortars.
Actual Vehicle Data:
Combat Weight: 21,000 lbs.
Hull Length: 18 ft 8 in.
Width: 7 ft 5 in.
Height: 6 ft 6 in.
Crew: 5 (?)
Ground Clearance: 25.5 in.
Armor: Cadloy steel plate, protects against 7.62mm and shell splintering.
Power Plant: Chrysler 191-hp liquid cooled V-8 Gasoline engine (original equipment).
Amphibious: Full (with no preparation).
Power to Weight Ratio: 20:23 hp/metric ton.
Suspension: 4x4 all wheel powered, front wheel steering, solid beam axle,
                    semi-elliptical multileaf spring, double hydraulic shock absorbers.
Speed: 55mph road, 3.1mph water.
Range: 500 miles road, 400 miles cross country.
Obstacle Clearance: 2-3 ft.
Main Armament: 81mm Mortar with 62 rounds stored in hull.
Secondary Armament:
               1x 7.62mm Machine Gun with 3,800 rounds.
               or
               1x 12.7mm Machine Gun with 1,400 rounds.
Sources:
Federation of American Scientists
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Unless otherwise specified, all models built, painted, photographed and are owned by the author.
Mortars in Miniature, Created and Maintained by Kevin Robert Keefe, Copyright © 2001 - 2010.
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