Thanks Gamera.  I really like how it came out.

Oh that looks great! Fantastic work there sir! 

Now I wanna do a gun truck, not like I don't have fifty zillion tanks here already... 

Good work, Gino!

S.H.

Yeah, I would have done it too! If I was building it I mean.

Thanks Pawel.  I hear you, but I know it is right.

Hello Gino!

Very nice! Although I'm afraid only experts can see the difference without a hint from somebody else...

Thanks for sharing and have a nice day

Paweł

Here is the 3D printed cargo bed backdate in place. The parts are awesome. They only took a light sanding where the supports attached to clean them up. No Issue adding the parts to the kit either. They fit perfectly.

Here it is with the proper bed.

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Even the slots for the canvas bows are hollowed out.

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I highly recommend this set. I may have to get another for a future build.

Thanks Pawel.  I do like to get them as "right" as possible.

Hello Gino!

I admire your dedication to the subject! It will be cool to see it 100% correct.

Good luck with your build and have a nice day

Paweł

I had the following questions asked on another website while I was building the kit.

"I was wondering if you were going to build this subject to an accurate level for this subject and address the cargo bed issue of the AFV club kit. The kit provides the later M54A2C drop-side cargo bed, but Easy Rider has the early standard M54A2 cargo bed with the tool box mounted under the driver side front."

At the time, my answer was, No.  However, since then, 3D printed solid-sided bed parts are now available.

I just ran across the set on eBay, by the_swoose. Set includes: x1 headboard, x2 sides, x1 tailgate, x2 reflectors for headboard, x1 exhaust, x1 air cleaner intake, x1 storage bin, x1 mud flap. It looks pretty nice.

One ordered. 

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1/35 M54A1 Conversion for AFV Club US M54A2 5-Ton 6x6 Cargo Truck Vietnam Gun | eBay 

So now, the answer is a resounding Yes!

Easy Rider has gone into the maintenance shop to prep it for backdating. From pics I can find, I believe it was an M52A1. The A1 had the earlier bed, open air intake, and a straight exhaust coming out below the fender.

So far, I have removed the exhaust stack, filled the hole in the fender, and replaced the angled mirror supports with straight ones. I have also removed the additional air cleaner on the intake and reverted back to the open intake pipe, which is also included in the AFV Club kit.

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I also popped out the armored box in the bed, removed the sides and front plates, sanded the bed smooth, and cut and sanded all the hinges off the lower sides of the bed. It is now ready to receive the 3D printed A1/A2 bed without drop-sides.

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I also ordered another set of the Star decals to replace ones on the bed sides.

More updates after I get the bed parts.

Thanks.  It was a fun build.

Gee whiz, go away for a while and lookie what I missed. As usual Gino, fabulous work on a very interesting subject.

Thanks Glenn.  Glad you liked it.

Next build begin here:  

https://cs.finescale.com/fsm/modeling_subjects/f/16/t/193380.aspx

Always a treat following your builds.

Thanks DRUMS01.  Glad you like it.

I thought I responded to your reveal, sorry for the late response but this is impressive. Great skills to motivate is all and a great result as well.

Just right!

Thanks.  Glad you enjoyed the read.

Just read this from start to finish totally engrossed. Great looking model

Thanks Gary.  It was a fun and rewarding build.

You did a great job, Gino!

Gary

Thanks for the compliments guys.  I really like how it turned out.

Dang, all that's missing is the smell, that aroma of LSA gun oil, burnt diesel, and hot paint that surrounds such things.

Now There:

    Let's just get our ducks(trucks?) in a row, hey! bad guys, Surprise! Surprise! You have done a great job on this vehicle. Even I, who usually avoid Armor(Lack of Knowledge) Love the work you've put into it!

Thank you, gentlemen.  I am very happy with how it turned out as well.  Gun trucks are very intersteing to me and I have at least one more planned, the AFV Club "Eve of Destruction" gun truck...eventually

What's next?  I don't know yet.  Maybe a tracked subject or a helo.  I will break out and get started on something soon.

Great job! The weathering is really nice.

S.H.

Hello Gino!

I like your model a lot, looks really beautiful to me! So what's next? Thanks for sharing and have a nice day

Paweł

That's a really good looking build Gino! It makes a nice stable mate to King Cobra. 

Oh wow that looks great Gino! I love the faded weathered paint on the gun shields. 

A gun truck is something that I've never modeled, one of the things I love here is to see cool stuff like this. 

Easy Rider is done.

I did some light drybrushing with a muddy red-brown color, a light sandy color, and then a wash of a red-brown color to show the color of dirt in most of Vietnam where these trucks operated. It is intended to show a dry, dusty weathering for a vehicle that mostly operates on paved roads.

Here it is.

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Here it is with its cousin, the King Cobra guntruck I did about 20 years ago, way before the AFV Club M54 was even thought about. Still looks pretty good.

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This was a really rewarding build. I enjoyed the ease of the AFV Club M54A2 kit and the level of detail it offers. I have a few more AFV Club M54 versions for later and am looking forward to doing them too.