US M113 Armored Cavalry Vehicle (ACAV)

My thanks to David Howitt of Britannia Miniatures for supplying this model for review (catalogue# VEH 1, 20mm Vietnam range).

The M113 ACAV kit comes supplied with the following components:

Single piece Hull/Chassis cast in resin and which includes the driver (whose head can be seen in the drivers hatch)
FMC commanders turret also cast in resin and shown attached on the hull
Left and right running gear and tracks
Two M-60 gunners cast complete with M-60 and gun-shield as a single figure
A command figure firing the .50-cal main armament
An alternative command figure, in classic pose, holding binoculars and whose arms are resting on the sides of the FMC turret kit
A single .50-cal machinegun for use with the alternative commander
Gun-shield for the .50-cal (used with either commanders)

Note: the roll of anti-RPG fencing is not supplied with the kit but forms part of a stowage pack which is intended for separate release.

Preparation

Before assembling and painting any models it is always a good idea to 'clean' the various components of mould lines, flashings and other unwanted bits and pieces. This is also an opportune time to 'sharpen' edges and details. In the case of the M113 ACAV it was not necessary to do too much work since the casting is relatively clean and free from these defects. I did however use a needle file to open-up the gaps between the wheels of the running gear on both left and right sets.

I decided to use the command figure which was depicted as firing the .50-cal since I foresee this vehicle seeing some heavy action!

Before you glue anything, it is also a good idea to have a 'dry run' at the assembly. Put the model together in order to check that everything fits as it should without using any glue. I sometimes use tiny pieces of 'bluetac' to hold components in place at this stage. You can then check if any high-spots require filing down or if their are any unsightly gaps which may need your attention.

The ACAV went together very well with no obvious faults. The gun-shield has an extruding pin at the rear which fits into a hole on the pintle mount. I cut this pin off since it did not fit sufficiently well and decided to glue the gun-shield to the flat face of the pintle mount once I had painted each piece.

There are two 'lugs' under the rear chassis which are designed to space the running gear away from the upper body to compensate for the height of the sprocket hub disk at the front end of the running gear. These lugs fit flush up against the TOP of the track, not the back of the track.

The vehicle comes without track shrouds, which is historically correct since these were routinely removed in RVN to prevent the build-up of mud and debris.

At this stage I only glued the running gear to the main body. Everything else I intended to paint separately. With models like this I generally paint each separate component and then glue all the components in place at the very end.

Painting the Hull

Before painting, I always undercoat my figures and models. I use a black primer spray rather than paint on the undercoat since this gives an even finish. I use a black undercoat partly because I am lazy and it allows me to take many 'shortcuts' when painting but also because it results in very deep shadow in areas which you choose to leave unpainted.

I didn't actually 'paint' the hull as such since I did not use a single brush. What I do use however are what are called 'make-up' sponges. These are small, wedge-shaped, sponges which are available from a Chemist (Drugstore?) and which women generally use for applying face make-up.

The technique, which I call 'sponging', is quite simple. Gently dip the flat-face of the sponge into some paint on your palette. Try to just touch the surface of the paint with the sponge face and then 'bounce' the sponge face up and down against a clean part of the palette - the objective here is to evenly spread the paint across the face of the sponge. The base coat was applied using OD green (Colour Party paints).

Once you have done this, then dab the sponge face against some tissue in order to remove excess paint. Finally, use the sponge to dab paint all over the model, paying particular attention to angles and edges. Dab very gently and, if you have the correct amount of paint on the sponge, you will see the colour begin to build. this is an excellent technique for painting large flat areas and results in an effect similar to air-brushing.

I generally do the whole model in several coats, allowing each coat to dry before applying the next. You should aim to build the colour depth up in successive thin layers rather than achieve coverage in one go.

You will find that the sponge fails to deposit paint on areas immediately adjacent to raised surfaces - don't worry, this is where you are going to leave deep shadow and produce definition. In the accompanying picture you can see this effect around the edge of the rear compartment hatch, the drivers hatch cover and on the engine vents.

I use this technique for both the base coat and the highlights. Highlights are applied in successively lighter coats and with each coat being applied onto a smaller and smaller area. When applying highlights to vehicles using this technique, I always work on the sharp edges of the vehicle. In this case I mixed a little Sunburst Yellow (Games Workshop) into the OD green. It is possible to overdo this highlight and have your vehicle look too yellow or for the highlights to appear too sharp. If this happens then simply wait until the model is dry and apply a wash of OD green over the whole model. This will tone down the highlights.

Blacking Out

Once I have the model painted to this stage I then 'black out' (paint black, with a brush) all detail which is to be painted colours other than the base colour, i.e. everything which is not going to be Olive Drab. In most cases this is usually stowage items and the running gear.

The reason I do this is that when I come to paint the individual items, I can leave a black outline around it and thereby give it enhanced definition so that it stands out from the main colour. Unlike the M551 Sheridan model from Britannia, the M113 ACAV does not have a lot of stowage items (the odd piece of track and some jerry cans) so this stage was quickly completed.

Weathering

When looking at pictures of armored vehicles in Vietnam, one of the striking features is how weathered they are. The laterite soil of Vietnam had a particularly distinctive red colour and the dust from this soil coated everything. If you try to paint the vehicle as it must have looked in real life then you will end up with a red coloured model! Therefore, I decided only to suggest the fine dust covering and limited the amount of mud that was depicted as having covered the running gear and splashed over the hull.

Using the sponge technique already described, I built up a layer of mud and dust around the model, paying particular attention to the lower hull and the running gear. I used GW Bestial Brown for this first coat. I then added a second, lighter, coat of GW Snakebite Leather as a highlight. This also produces a good dust and dry mud effect.

Crew

The crew figures were painted in the same manner as all the figures depicted in other figure reviews on this web site. Essentially, the figures are painted in stages very similar to the vehicles themselves, except that I use a brush instead of a sponge!

Since I intend to cover the subject of painting infantry figures in a future article, I will not go into any great detail here. Suffice to say that the steps involved, as well as the colours, are very similar to those described in the article about Painting Forces for Crossfire.

Finishing Touches

As a result of the ever increasing use and effectiveness of RPGs by the forces of the VC and NVA, nearly all M113s carried a roll of anti-RPG fencing that would be erected in front of the vehicle whenever it adopted a stationary and permanent or semi-permanent position. The ACAV kit that I received had a roll of this fencing included, however, it does not come with the model as standard but can be purchased separately. As a result, I decided to make my own fencing. I used a strip of wire mesh (used in car body repairs) that I simply rolled up. To this I attached two strips of paper to represent the straps used to hold the rolled-up fencing on the vehicle. I spray undercoated this black and then drybrushed it with GW Bolt Gun Metal. The straps were then picked out in black and a thin strip of Olive Drab was painted over the top of each strip for the webbing.

As an afterthought, I decided to add the unit markings. This should really be done prior to any weathering effects being applied but unfortunately I had forgotten to do this. I simply hand painted the identification number on the left-rear of the vehicle and added some writing to the left-front (this is not actual writing but a series of lines and dots etc.).

Finally, I added an aerial. Many pictures of ACAVs show them festooned with radio aerials and these are clearly attached to specific points on top of the hull. One of the primary points for attachment of an aerial was just to the left of the drivers hatch, but on the model itself, this point has been covered by the open hatch and so I had to 'fudge' the placement. The aerial was made by heating and then stretching a piece of plastic sprue which I then cut to the appropriate size.