It`s an AS 42!

[The Smythe Meister]

Hi Guys,
Well,after a lotta lookin` over the last few years,i finally got my grubby little mitts on one of these babies!! Tricky to find or way to much money was the problem always.After winning this one on Ebay i`ve just gotta build it!

It`s my first Italian AFV,as i`m trying to vary my output a bit,(Nationality wise that is!),the design was drawn up to give their Chaps in Africa something to challenge our LRDG`s with..... first thing that struck me,(after wondering about surrounding yourself with that many fuel cans!!), was the size of it ..... it really is a small Truck,rather than armoured car.

The box is truly rammed with goodies of all materials,and that little pamphlette there is a gold mine of info!! However,i`ve also invested in this....

Not seen this series before,but £15 delivered,full of quality photo`s,history,mechanics ect...not just helpful for the build,but a general riveting read too.So,i`m literally just about to start the build,if anyone wants to tag along please feel free,the company,thoughts,ideas or plain old abuse will be warmly received!!
Cheers for now,
Andy

 

[KarlW]

Nice, quite found of Italeries italian stuff so I'll have a nosey in to see how things go.

 

[boatman]

AN so will i
chris

 

[minitnkr]

A truly unique vehicle. Always thought it was a cool solution. PaulE

 

[Jakko]

Even more fun is that you can also paint it bright red, for post-war police service I’m still debating whether to do that with mine, because on the one hand I like idea of the desert finish, but a red vehicle stands out a lot more …

 

[SimonT]

I’m in Andy

currently have an AB41 armoured car on the go in the background

your AS42 is based on the AB41 chassis

 

[KarlW]

Even more fun is that you can also paint it bright red, for post-war police service I’m still debating whether to do that with mine, because on the one hand I like idea of the desert finish, but a red vehicle stands out a lot more …

I’m trying to remember if that’s why I have all the shades of red that vma do........bought to modulate something red.......

 

[Steve Jones]

Looking forward to seeing this one come together mate. Big fan of the Italian stuff in N. Africa. Here is my small contribution to your build.



Gook luck my friend

 

[scottie3158]

I'm deffo in seat front and centre please

 

[Jim R]

Hi Andy
I'll join the rest of the rabble. Nice choice.
Jim

 

[Steve-the-Duck]

Hi Andy
Hmm, that box seems familiar...

 

[Steve-the-Duck]

Even more fun is that you can also paint it bright red, for post-war police service

Strictly speaking they were 'Amaranth red', which is a rather attractive, very slightly greyish dark pink - which I shall be doing my 28mm one once it's been hacked about a bit to make the Type 2 police version
Still, the temptation is there to use a proper Italian, Ferrari, Red...

 

[Jakko]

Oh, that’s good to know, else I might have made the mistake of using proper red

 

[Steve-the-Duck]

Interestingly, among my (large collection of) Regia Aeronautica paints I have the old Misterkit colour 'Rosso Bandiera', which is going the right direction - perhaps a little too bright a red, needs a dash of grey, but difficult to tell as this one dried out before I could use it - Which kind of shows the time it's been in the stash. The colour through the bottom of the pot is almost perfect!

Which leads to another posit - amaranth flowers were used for a dye (and a food coloiuring illegal in the US) - that might be the original Italian flag colour, so you could justify a fairly bright red for the AS42...
I'm going with light rose over grey undercoat
Ahem, when I get around to it...

 

[The Smythe Meister]

Hi Andy
Hmm, that box seems familiar...

HA...... why`s that then Ducky??!!!!
Gentleman,i give you Chris.......
The very seller i bought the kit from!!....... it`s a small world!

 

[Fernando N]

Nice one Andy, interesting armour too the jerrycans on the sides

 

[Steve-the-Duck]

Gentleman,i give you Chris.......
The very seller i bought the kit from!!....... it`s a small world!

Y'know, I seem to remember it was you put me onto this forum - and now I can see what might have been with, formerly, my kit!

 

[The Smythe Meister]

A`noon Guys,
Well,some work has gone on here,but i`m awaiting a paint order so progress has halted.I`m not one for "Exact" paint numbers/grades,however i do want it fairly "Italian" as i`m going to be doing a fair bit of Desert based stuff,so a bit of contrast between the various countries would be desirable!
Karl,Can`t beat a good Italeri kit,rather under rated IMHO!!
Chris,Welcome along Sir !
Paul,`tis a pretty cool AFV ain`t it?!!
Jakko,Like this you mean.........

(Top Right there people!),it does look good doesn`t it!!.....although as the Chaps mention,it aint just ,any old "RED"!
Simon,I know what you mean.....this book has it all!
Steve,Good to see you pop in mate,and thanks for the pic!
Scottie,Always welcomed mate...... and it`s good to see you!
Jim,Glad to see you joining in Buddy
Fernando,yes,Jerry cans are a strange choice for protection!!
So then,i`ll put up the progress........

This`ll all be covered,but fits a treat,and not all flash needs detailed attention!.........

The under,underside!!.........

To show some up close detail.....

Well,that`s it up to now,it is all primered up, we await the Postie!!!!!!
Thanks for looking in.
Andy

 

[Jakko]

Jakko,Like this you mean.........
View attachment 395808

That’s the one. I’d so far only seen black-and-white photographs of it, though.

Fernando,yes,Jerry cans are a strange choice for protection!!

Not really. They’re containers filled with liquid, which will provide a decent amount of protection against bullets and shell fragments. Petrol in a full, enclosed container is unlikely to catch fire from small arms bullets, and even in a partly empty one you generally need tracers or incendiary rounds to set it alight. (Diesel is even less likely to burn, but the AS.42 had a petrol engine.) The Swedes stuck side skirts consisting of plastic fuel cans on the Strv. 103C, the Israelis even use the fuel tanks of the Merkava as an integral part of the tank’s crew protection.