Landships II

Vilkata · Brigadier

Hey! Best 1920's British tank picture EVER. (Centurion, for you in particular!)

Vilkata · Brigadier

The turret rotation in this picture would suggest it was taken at the same demosntration.

And a few pics just for fun,
A good Romfell picture:

Good beaute picture:

---Vil.

Jeeves · Corporal

That picture is superb!
Good find

Centurion · Legend

Very nice - there also appears to be a Martell in the background.

Centurion · Legend

Vilkata wrote:

The turret rotation in this picture would suggest it was taken at the same demosntration.

---Vil.

Not necessarily, the rear starboard mg turret is rotated to a different position in the two photos. Turrets rotate. This does look like a 'march' past a saluting base. This was a tank equivelent of 'eyes right' and might also be repeated for the camera.

Roger Todd · Legend

That photo of the Independent and chums appears in an old Tank Museum booklet I have - unfortunately it's a hundred miles away from where I live, at my parents' home! Still, I should imagine the Tank Museum have the original (or at least a decent print) so you should be able to order a copy from them.

As for the occasion, I wonder if it was the following (from 'Men, Ideas and Tanks' by J B Harris - the part in italics is, in turn, quoted by Harris from Liddell Hart's 'The Tanks: Vol 1'):

On 13 November 1926 the General Staff held a demonstration of the Army's mechanized vehicles for the benefit of the Cabinet and Dominion Prime Ministers attending an Imperial Conference. According to Liddell Hart the entertainment concluded with:

the presentation of a future battle compressed into a small space for the benefit of the eminent spectators who in a double sense formed the objective... The advance was led by midget reconnaissance tanks and the heavy tanks delivered the assault covered by the fire of the self-propelled guns, while aircraft dived out of the skies in a synchronised swoop on the defender's position. Infantry machine gunners in armoured carriers followed close by the tanks to take over the conquered ground.

Cor, what larks!

-- Edited by Roger Todd at 23:49, 2007-01-29

Vilkata · Brigadier

The next time I correspond with the Tank Museum I simply must order a large photo reproduction of this image, if they have the original!

What more could one ask for? There is something breathtaking about One-Man tanks operating side by side with a 5 turreted landship.

---Vil.

Roger Todd · Legend

Aye, like little fluffy cygnets with mummy swan...

Except made of steel and armour�and bristling with guns! Mwah hah ha ha ha ha haaaaa...!!!

Great links, by the way, that last one has some excellent images of Holt experimental SPGs - cheers!

-- Edited by Roger Todd at 00:15, 2007-01-30

vincent · Corporal

unfortunately�most photos from that period are not the greatest of quality. there are some overall improvements you can make to that photo Vilkata�in photoshop like taking out the creases etc. but from what i can see from looking at the photo for the tank you wouldnt be able to improve the qualtiy that much.

Roger Todd · Legend

I've seen a much better reproduction of that photo - the one Vilkata found looks like someone has taken a photo of a creased print of that image, hence the contrast is also poor, making it look a bit washed out. I think Vilkata should strike it lucky if he contacts the Tank Museum.

Tonys · Field Marshal

Roger,

Spot�on�with�the�event!

The�demo�was�given�at�Camberley�-�picture�13,�page�24�of�David�Fletcher's�"Mechanised�Force",�although�that�picture�has�been�cropped�to�exclude�the�aircraft. �The quality is, however, a lot better.

No�doubt avaliable through Bovington.

Tony�

Roger Todd · Legend

Tony, nice bit of info, cheers! I'll bet there are more photos from that event - definitely worth contacting David F at Bovington.

Vilkata · Brigadier

You guys mentioned a more detailed, but cropped, version of the Independent panorama picture. Is this the one?

The detail level is far better. This is one of the better pictures I have seen of the Carden-Loyd One-Man in operation.

---Vil.

Edit: Actually, if you look at the front of the Independent in both pictures, the viewing angle is substantially different. So, while taken at the same time, perhaps moments from eachother, these are not the same photo.

-- Edited by Vilkata at 06:41, 2007-02-04

-- Edited by Vilkata at 07:39, 2007-02-04

Tonys · Field Marshal

Vilkata,
Yours is possibly a different picture - not only does it only show one of the three tankettes, but there seems to be something else cut off in the right foreground and the foreground seems smoother.
The quality of the picture is more or less the same.

Can you imagine going to war in one of those tankettes?
Having been in the PBI and shot at, I reckon I'd rather take my chances on foot. �Those things wouldn't have stopped a determined bumble bee and you're a hell of a lot more conspicuous.
Another reason to be against them would be that if it's a one-man version, there's only you to get it ready for inspection or parade!!!!
Regards,
Tony

Centurion · Legend

Vilkata wrote:

You guys mentioned a more detailed, but cropped, version of the Independent panorama picture. Is this the one?

The detail level is far better. This is one of the better pictures I have seen of the Carden-Loyd One-Man in operation.

---Vil.

Edit: Actually, if you look at the front of the Independent in both pictures, the viewing angle is substantially different. So, while taken at the same time, perhaps moments from eachother, these are not the same photo.

-- Edited by Vilkata at 06:41, 2007-02-04

-- Edited by Vilkata at 07:39, 2007-02-04

And both the main turret and the front starboard mg turret have rotated further to the rear which suggests they were moving during the 'march' past

Treadhead · Major

Howdy fellas,

Very nice photos All!� I especially enjoyed the first one, even tho' it was of lesser quality, I liked the inclusion of the biplane fly-by

My question is;� where does one purchase 1/35th scale plastic kits of either of these fine macheen's??

Tread.

Roger Todd · Legend

I don't know about the little tankettes, but of the splendid�Vickers Independent there are no model kits in any scale currently available, although Accurate Armour have been announcing for many months that a 1/35 scale kit is in the works:

http://www.accurate-armour.com/comingsoon.cfm?navlevel=2

Vilkata · Brigadier

I believe that the length and shape of the Carden-Loyd One-Man tracks was similar if not identical to the common Carden-Loyd Mk.VI that there are so many kit variations of. The Carden-Loyd Mk.II had the same manner of 4 wheel rubber bogie suspension as the common Mk.VI's did. That, and the structure of the little one-mans was very simple, and seems like it could be easily replicated, especially at a small 1/35 scale. If one could find a 1/35 scale Carden-Loyd Mk.VI it seems like one could easily kit bash a One-Man out of it. This would be an undertaking I would love to be kept informed about, if any modellers here would like to attempt it while waiting for the Independent model kit - after which, they would have a dandy little companion for their completed Independent. The trickiest part might be finding a 1/35 infantryman to drive the thing.

Just for instance, there are many 1/35 models of Carden-Loyd Mk.VI variants. For instance... The track assemblies of the Polish tankettes, of which there are many model kits of, are a bit different than the Mk.II one-man, but they are similar enough that some modifications could back-date them. And those distinctive shaped tracks would undoubtedly be the trickiest part of a One-Man scratch-build.

---Vil.
P.S. I do not mean to say that the vehicle in the picture is a Carden-Loyd Mk.II, it appears to be a MK.I, but the MK.I track assemblies would be vastly harder to scratch build than the Mk.II.