Here’s my first submission to this site (notice the sweaty palms!!), go easy on a first timer!
I built this for a fellow colleague retiring from the Army using the Italeri Mortar Car lower hull, and apart from Hobby Fan tyres, everything else is scratchbuilt.
The vehicle represents an ASLAV fitted with a conceptual surveillance system and the Remote Weapon station currently fitted to our vehicles in Iraq.
I have yet to add unit markings, etc as I’m venturing into that great unknown world of producing my own decals…where that goes is anyone’s guess. Hope you enjoy the pictures.
Great job.
By the way, how many variants of the LAV does the Australian Army use?
The version you built looks suspicously like a Bison used by the Canadian Forces, and the surveillance suite is a lot like the one on our Coyote.
The Australian Army uses the Generation II LAV (we refer to them as Phase 3 ASLAVs to confuse the matter!) which uses the same Hull as your Bison. I think the two main differences are the engine (we use the Silver Series) and we still swim ours, but I’m happy to be corrected.
We designate our vehicles by the main catergory of “Types”, that being Type 1 (25mm Gun variant), Type 2 - the hull I used, of which there are 4 Variants - Pers Carrier, Surveillance, Command and Ambulance, and Type 3 - two variants which are our Fitters (Crane) and Recovery.
The surveillance suite is loosely based on what the US Army is currently using (the lower sections) with the Australian AMSTAR Radar on top.
We did trial the Coyote suite for a couple years to develop our requirements for the surveillance, but are only now looking at further developing this capability.
Sorry if my answer may be longwinded, but I’m sure there are a number of people who will appreciate the info.