Chevrolet CMP 15 CWT with Breda 20mm gun - case report

Lads!!

      Let's see an interesting conversion, one of many of that the combatants did on the field. The war in the Desert was especially hard. The warring factions used any means to overcome the hostile environment and the enemy. Captured vehicles and weapons usually were used against his former owners, with considerable damage...See the examples below:

 British Ford 15 CWT  captured by Italians and armed with Breda 20mm AA gun 

Captured Ford with 20mm Breda used by the Italians

Australians with captured Italian M13/40  tanks

British Matilda II used by the Germans

   ... and many, many more examples confirms these assertions. The weapons, especially, were much used in this purpose.

Breda 20mm gun in use by LRDG (Chevy 1941)

Breda 20mm gun used by Germans

Breda 20mm as naval AA gun in a British vessel

      So, I decided to build a Chevrolet CMP 15 CWT, used by Australians, with a captured 20mm Breda gun at the rear, in use as a fire support weapon. 

Go, Aussies !!!

......and the Aussies loved the Breda gun:

Aussies with Breda guns. Very good, indeed !!!

      But, first of all, a historic vision about this important truck: the Chevrolet CMP 15 CWT.

Chevy CMP 15 CWT 4x4

History

      The Canadian Military Pattern (CMP) truck was a class of military truck made in large numbers in Canada during World War II to British Army specifications for use in the armies of the British Commonwealth allies. Standard designs were drawn up just before the beginning of the war. 

      CMP trucks were also sent to the Soviet Union following the Nazi invasion of Russia, as part of Canada's lend-lease program to the Allies. During the War, CMP trucks saw service around the world in the North African Campaign, the Allied invasion of Sicily, the Italian Campaign, the Russian Front, the Burma Campaign, the Battle of the Philippines (1941-42), the liberation of Northwest Europe, and theWestern Allied invasion of Germany.

      CMP trucks also saw service in post-war conflicts in Indonesia, French Indochina, and the Portuguese colonies in Africa.

Chevrolet CMP CWT 4x4

      The rise to power in Germany of Hitler and the Nazi party in 1933 led to discussions in the mid-1930s between the British War Office and the Canadian Army concerning the possible production of military vehicles in Canada. During the First World War Canadian land forces had participated as a corps in the British Army. In any future conflict it was assumed that Canadian forces would again be tightly integrated with those of the Mother Country, and so it would be essential that Canadian-manufactured equipment be compatible with British standards and specifications.
      Early in 1937, the Ford Motor Company of Canada and General Motors of Canada Ltd were each invited by the Canadian Department of National Defence to produce a Canadianized prototype of a 15-hundredweight (or centum weight (abbreviated cwt) light infantry truck that had then been recently adopted by the British War Office. By 1938, Canadian military authorities had shifted their interest to heavier 4x4 and 6x4 designs. In that year, Ford and GM were invited to produce prototypes of a 6x4 medium artillery tractor derived from the British 6x4 Scammell Pioneer. By 1939, plans had been prepared for the mass production in Canada of a range of military vehicles based on fairly strict British specifications. These trucks were originally designated "Department of National Defence (DND) Pattern"; however, when production volumes increased and it became clear that the Canadian-built vehicles were to serve widely in the forces of other countries, the class of trucks was redesignated "Canadian Military Pattern (CMP)". At the outbreak of World War II, Canada's relatively large and modern automobile industry was shifted over to the production of military vehicles. While the Dunkirk evacuation in the spring of 1940 succeeded in rescuing close to 340,000 Allied soldiers who had been encircled by the invading German army, the British Expeditionary Force had been required to abandon most of its military vehicles in France. It then became an urgent need to replace those losses and to provide new vehicles to equip the rapidly expanding armed forces of the Commonwealth.
      Canadian military truck production included both modified civilian designs as well as purely military designs based on the CMP specification, in roughly equal numbers. Truck production was focussed on a broad range of medium-capacity vehicles; Jeeps and trucks larger than 3 tons in capacity required by the Canadian Army were purchased from U.S. suppliers. Most CMP trucks were manufactured by the Chevrolet division of General Motors of Canada Ltd and by the Ford Motor Company of Canada. The Canadian subsidiaries of the two largest American vehicle manufacturers were able to rapidly ramp up their production because of an unusual degree of inter-company collaboration, the use of interchangeable parts, and because of the large amount of idle production capacity that was a lingering result of the Great Depression. A smaller number of CMP trucks were assembled from Canadian-made chassis and parts in Britain, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa (2,600), India (9,500) and Egypt. In Germany, the facilities of GM subsidiary Opel and those of Ford-Werke AG were pressed into service to make military vehicles for the Nazi war effort. Following British convention, CMP trucks had right-hand drive even though most of them were built in Canada, which primarily used left-hand drive vehicles. The CMP specification proved versatile, and it formed the basis of a wide variety of different truck types and armoured vehicles. In Australian service (almost always with the No. 13 cab) these vehicles were known as the "Chev Blitz" or the "Ford Blitz".

Propaganda folder: Australian Ford CMP

      Just over 400,000 CMP trucks were manufactured in Canada, accounting for roughly half of the 815,729 military vehicles made in Canada during World War II. The most prevalent type was the 4x4 3-ton truck (including models C60S, C60L, F60S and F60L), with just over 209,000 vehicles made. In addition, roughly 9,500 4x4 CMP chassis were made, mainly to be used to build armoured cars and other vehicles in Allied countries. CMP truck production in Canada exceeded the total military truck production of Nazi Germany. The British History of the Second World War (the official history of the war) argues that the production of soft-skinned trucks, including the CMP truck class, was Canada's most important contribution to the eventual Allied victory.
      Newly manufactured, or modified war surplus, CMP trucks were used after 1945 in several European armies (e.g., the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Spain) and around the world (e.g., South Africa, Argentina, Jordan, South Vietnam, Malaya). CMP trucks were adapted after the war for a variety of civilian roles including forestry, grain transport, fire-fighting trucks, and snowploughs.
      The Ford-built CMP trucks had a 239 cu in (3.9 L), 95 bhp (70.8 kW) V8 engine, while most of the Chevrolet-built CMP trucks had a 215 cu in (3.5 L), 85 bhp (63.4 kW) straight-6 overhead-valve engine. An American-made 270 cu in (4.4 L) GMC straight-6 engine powered the C60X 3-ton truck.
      The Ford and Chevrolet trucks shared a standard cab design, which evolved over the years of production. The first (designed at Ford by Sid Swallow), second and third cab designs were called No. 11, 12 and 13, respectively. The first two type were similar, the main difference being a two-part radiator grille in No.12 cab (its upper part was opened with a bonnet, which was known as the "Alligator cab"). The final No. 13 cab, an entirely Canadian design made from late 1941 until the end of the war, had the two flat panes of the windscreen angled slightly downward to minimize the glare from the sun and to avoid causing strong reflections that would be observable from aircraft. All the CMP cab designs had a short, "cab forward" configuration that gave CMP trucks their distinctive pug-nosed profile.

CMP Chevy cabin pattern 13

      This design was required to meet the original British specifications for a compact truck design that would be more efficient to transport by ship. The specifications also demanded right-hand drive. Internally the cab had to accommodate the comparatively large North American engines and it was generally cramped. The standard cabs were then matched up with a variety of standard chassis, drive trains and body designs. Chevrolet-built vehicles could be recognised by the radiator grille mesh being of a diamond pattern, whereas Ford-built ones had grilles formed of a square mesh.
      The production of CMP truck bodies in Canada was subcontracted out to smaller companies in Ontario and Manitoba, organized into the wartime Steel Body Manufacturers Association by the Department of Munitions and Supply. The wide variety of truck body designs included general service (GS),water tanker, fuel tanker, vehicle recovery (tow truck), dental clinic, mobile laundry, wireless house, machinery (machine shop), folding boat transport, and anti-tank gun portee.

Restored Chevrolet CMP water tank
cabin pattern 12

Chevrolet CMP wrecker

Australian Ford CMP 2 pdr. gun portée

CMP truck 20mm Polsten portée

      In the list below, a drive specification of NxM means that the vehicle has a total of N wheels and that M of those wheels are driven. The military specifications did not permit more than two wheels per axle. The British standard load capacities of 8 cwt (hundredweight), 15 cwt, 30 cwt and 60 cwt correspond roughly to the American loads of 1/2 short ton, 3/4 ton, 1.5 ton and 3 ton, respectively. The 60-cwt CMP trucks were usually called 3-ton lorries or trucks.

• Ford F8 (4x2, 101 in (2.6 m) wheelbase, 8 cwt)

Ford F8 4x2 8 CWT - LRDG

• Ford F15 (4x2, 101" wheelbase, 15 cwt)

Ford F15 4x2 CWT

• Ford F15A (4x4, 101" wheelbase, 15 cwt)

Ford F15A 4x4 15 CWT

• Ford F30 (4x4 drive, 134.25" wheelbase, 30 cwt)

Ford F30 4x4 30 CWT

• Ford F60S - 4x4, "short" 115 inch wheelbase, 3 ton)

Ford F60S 4x4

• Ford F60L - 4x4, "long" 158.25 in (4.020 m) wheelbase, 3 ton

Ford F60L CMP 4x4

• Ford F60T tractor unit (4x4, 115" wheelbase, 3 ton)

Ford F60T tractor CMP

• Ford F60H - 6x4, rear axle undriven, 160.25"+52" wheelbase, 3 ton

Ford F60H 6x4 CMP

• Ford FAT (field artillery tractor) (4x4, 101.25" wheelbase)

Ford FAT  field artillery tractor: the famous Quad

• Ford Lynx Scout Car (4x4, 101" wheelbase) - based on Daimler Dingo

Ford Lynx 4x4

• Chevrolet C8 (4x2, 101" wheelbase, 8 cwt)

Chevrolet C8 4x2 cabin pattern 11

• Chevrolet C8A Heavy Utility Truck (4x4, 101" wheelbase, 8 cwt) Made in Wireless (HUW), Ambulance (HUA), Personnel (HUP), Machinery ZL (mobile radio repair shop) and Computer (accounting, payroll) configurations

Chevrolet C8 4x4 CMP HUW

• Chevrolet C15 (4x2, 101" wheelbase, 15 cwt)

Chevrolet C15 4x2 CMP

• Chevrolet C15A (4x4, 101" wheelbase, 15 cwt)

Chevrolet C15A 4x4 CMP

• Chevrolet C15TA Armoured Truck (4x4, 101" wheelbase, 15 cwt)

Chevrolet C15A armoured truck 4x4

• Chevrolet C30 (4x4, 134 " wheelbase, 30 cwt)

Chevrolet C30 4x4 30 CWT

• Chevrolet C60S (4x4, 134" wheelbase, 3 ton)

Chevrolet C60S 4x4

• Chevrolet C60L (4x4, 158" wheelbase, 3 ton)

Chevrolet C60L tanker 4x4

Chevrolet C60L

• Chevrolet C60X - C60 chassis with 6x6 drive, 160"+52" wheelbase, 3 ton, 270 cu. in. GMC straight-6 engine)

Chevrolet C60X CMP

• Chevrolet CGT Field Artillery tractor (4x4, 101" wheelbase)

Chevrolet C GT(Gun Tractor) - Quad

• General Motors Fox armoured car (4x4, 101" wheelbase)

Chevrolet Fox Armoured Car

• General Motors Otter Light Reconnaissance Car (4x4, 101" wheelbase)

Chevrolet Otter crossing a Bailey bridge over the Volturno river at Grazzanise in October 1943

Outside Canada
      To meet the pressing demand for military vehicles during World War II, several Commonwealth countries designed light armoured vehicles based on CMP chassis made in Canada.

• Ruskin Motor Bodies Pty Ltd and Ford Motor Company of Australia Rover Light Armoured Car (4x4, 134.25" and 158.25" wheelbases) - built on Ford 3-ton CMP chassis
• General Motors Holden Ltd Rhino Heavy Armoured Car (4x4, 101" wheelbase) - prototype only
• General Motors Holden Ltd 6x6 Heavy Armoured Car (6x6, 158" wheelbase)
• Indian Railways Armoured Carrier Wheeled Indian Pattern (ACV-IP) (4x4, 101"? wheelbase) - most used CMP chassis
• South African Reconnaissance Car, also called the Marmon-Herrington Armoured Car (4x4, various wheelbases)
• Beaverette NZ, the New Zealand version of the British Standard Beaverette armoured car
• C8AX "Puddlejumper" (4x4, 101" wheelbase, 8 cwt), variant created in New Zealand based on the C8A chassis

Specs:

Chevrolet 15 CWT 4x4 CMP with Breda 35 AA gun
field modification

Chevrolet CMP 15 CWT 4x4 with Breda Gun
Specifications
Weight	3.361 Kg
Length	4.267 mm
Width	2.235 mm
Height	2.311 mm
Crew Wheelbase	3 101" - 2.565 mm
Armour	no
Main armament	Breda Model 35 20mm AA gun
Secondary armament	no
Engine	GMC 6 cyl. gasoline 85 hp (79 kW)

The kits:
       To complete this work, in 2011, I used an old Bilek Chevrolet 15 CWT truck plus an Italeri Horse Drawn Breda mod. 35.

A rare Bilek Chevy 15 CWT  kit...Old, but honest....

Italeri kit. I used only the gun...

      My idea, as I said before, was based on photos of captured vehicles. The weapons were varied ...Let's see the pics, again:

British Ford in Italian hands...The gun is Italian

Again, Ford in Italian hands...

British  Ford F15 captured by the Germans with 20mm flak

British Chevrolet 30 CWT (India Patern) from LRDG
with Breda 20mm iktalian gun

Another British CMP with 20mm Breda gun.
Notice the cammo...

       As we saw, in the desert was worth everything!!  Let's go with my project...Starting by the chassi:

The Chevy C15 CWT chassi with suspension and transmission: 4x4

Cabin and wheels...

left side

Rear view

The cabin building continues...left side - Notice the cargo bed...

Front view

Right side. The kit is awesome...

       Sorry, but I missed the building pics of the Breda. I did a dry-run of the gun in the cargo area, but did not like the appearance of the wheels of the truck. They did not seem ideal for the desert environment ...

Wheels: ok in off-road but not ideal for the desert...

      So, I changed the original wheels of Chevy 15 CWT by resin wheels (desert) from LRDG Chevy 30CWT.  Much better !!!

Surgery time: changing wheels...Notice the metal reinforcements...

      After that, primer time:

The truck with primmer

      I used the original decals for this version: 9th Australian Division in Africa, 1942. I reworked the design to help the building.

Go, 9th Divvy !!!

Decals in position with Future

Chevrolet 15 CWT from 9th Australian Division - right side - Notice the new wheels...

Chevrolet 15 CWT from 9th Australian Division - left side

Breda gun in position...

Next step: weathering....

      And the Aussie girl in battle dress...Ready for action !!!

Chevrolet 15 CWT from 9th Australian Division with Breda 35 20mm gun

Chevrolet 15 CWT with Breda 35 20mm gun - right side

Chevrolet 15 CWT with Breda 35 20mm gun - left side

Chevrolet 15 CWT from 9th Australian Division

Thanks for follow, Gentlemen!