Ford G917 Maultier - German haltrack 3 ton truck - case report

Gents...

    We are living happy days ...The Great companies are releasing new kits and more new kits. Trucks, AFV, figures...wow! One of the latest release is this 3 ton German truck, the Ford G917T (by ICM). When I built this model, there was no kit truck with wheels. This topic may awaken the will of the ICM to build this version: the Ford G917 Maultier.

History:

      The history of the Ford Company is mixed with the history of the Automobile Industry. Henry Ford, with its capacity for innovation, had built an empire in the 30s, with manufacturing facilities in the United States (Dearborn MI), Britain (Dagenham), Canada (Windsor), Australia (Melboume), South Africa (Port Elizabeth), New Zealand (Lower Hutt), France (Poissy and Asnieres), Holland (Amsterdam), Belgium (Antwerp), Romania (Bucharest), Germany (Cologne) and Soviet Union (Gorki). Ford vehicles always have been characterized by the ruggedness and standardization, and the products from these various factories usually exchanged among themselves parts and technology.

Henry Ford

Poster from the British Ford, in the 30's

      With the advent of World War II, during the Nazi expansionism, the Germans used Ford vehicles and found Fords in almost all theaters of war, which greatly facilitated its maintenance and operation. The Mechanical Companies and soldiers were accustomed to models and mechanical peculiarities of these vehicles. An example is the use of vehicles manufactured by the Germans and captured in Belgium, Holland, France and those manufactured by allied Romania. The Russians not only used the Fords (known as GAZ), but the factory Gorki was nothing more than the old industrial plant that existed in Berlin-Plotzensee, in 1925-1931. The whole factory was sold and moved to Gorki, in the 30s.

Ford Koln pin

      In Germany, the Ford Motor Company AG was founded in Berlin in 1925, for the assembly of American products. In the 30's, as cited before, this plant was sold to the Russians and in 1931, the factory in Niehl-Cologne was inaugurated.

Ford Koln - 1931

      At the beginning, the Ford AG was building only the Ford AA Truck with parts produced in the United States. These trucks were more produced in  the GAZ factory in Gorki, Russia.

Ford AA truck, 1931 - Made in Germany

      In 1935 the Ford AG started producing products suited for the German market, with some independence of American headquarters. The first "Germans" models of trucks produced by the Ford AG were the Ford BB, 1.5 and 2.5 tonnes, produced from 1932 to 1939. These vehicles were extremely robust, with a 4-cylinder engine derived from the famous Ford Model T, with 52 hp.

A crashed Ford BB truck , 2.5 ton - 1937 - Still used byLuftwaffe, in 1940

Ford BB truck -1937. Notice the Ford v8-51 in the background

      The Ford BB truck was followed in the production line by the Commercial V8-51, from 1936. The v8-51 truck was more robust, with a great v8 engine with 85 hp, while keeping the same typical transverse leaf springs of Ford, in the front axle.

Ford v8-51 Commercial truck - Afrika Korps

Ford v8-51 truck with open cabin

      In 1939, the factory was renamed Ford Werke AG, with its production being completely diverted to the war effort. At this time, the standard truck was the Ford G917, 3 tons, v8 engine with 91 horsepower. It was produced until 1942 and more than 25,000 have been produced.

Ford G917T  - Transporting fuel to Luftwaffe

 Ford G917 with gasogen device

Ford G917T stucked

Ford G917T truck

Ford G917T from Wermacht

      At the end of 1942, the G917 was succeeded by Ford V3000 also 3 tons but with a front suspension more robust and simpler fabrication. This model remained in production in the final period of the war and was the standard model of the postwar period. More than 24000 have been produced in this period.

Ford V3000S - early production . Notice the rounded front fenders

Ford V3000S - mid production . Notice the rounded cabin with flat front fenders

Ford V3000S - mid production truck restored

Ford V3000S - late production . Notice the wood cabin with flat front fenders

      During 1941 Germans troops discovered that their wheeled transport vehicles were unsuitable for the muddy rasputitsa conditions that marked the beginning and end of the Russian winter. Only halftracks were able to operate in these conditions, but removing them from their operational purposes for supply duties would have been unworkable. Instead, Germany began to build half-tracked versions of their 3 ton trucks Opel, Ford, Klöckner-Humboldt-Deutz and 4,5 ton truck Mercedes-Benz by removing their rear wheeled axles and replacing it with a sub-chassis with tracked suspension, adapted to the normal "wheeled" chassis. 

    In the case of 3-ton trucks (Opel, Ford and KHD), this sub-chassis featured in its anterior portion the adaptation of the truck's original differential with sprockets adapted to the brake drums of the original wheels (to allow the service brakes to be maintained), suspension bogies copied from the British  Horstmann type suspensions, used by Universal Carriers and a idler wheel at the rear. The front axle was connected to the normal gearbox using a very shortened card axle, minimizing adaptation and production costs. The vehicle used tracks from the (now discontinued) Panzer I light tanks, which made logistics and maintenance even easier. These 3 ton trucks with rear tracked undercarriage were officially designated Lkw 3t' mit Gleiskette SSM Maultier (Mule) in the German army, with the designations Sd.Kfz. 3a (Opel), Sd.Kfz. 3b (Ford) and Sd.Kfz. 3c (KHD).

    The Mercedes-Benz 4,5 ton trucks they used a more robust suspension (with wheels and tracks), derived from the Panzer II, with the designation Mercedes-Benz L4500 R Maultier - Sd.Kfz. 3/5 or Sd.Kfz. 4.

schematic drawing of a Maultier suspension in Ford V3000

      Most conversions were to Opel trucks, which proved successful in service - although they lacked the overall mobility of purpose-built halftracks. 

Opel Maultier SSM Sd.Kfz.3/a

Klöckner-Humboldt-Deutz KHD S3000/SSM  Maultier Sd.Kfz.3c

Ford Maultier V3000 S/SSM Sd.Kfz.3b

      In pictures, the most common Maultier models were the Opels, followed by the Fords V3000. In my research, I only found two photos of Fords G917T  Maultier version:

Here we see a line of 'Maultiers' (Mules) built on the Ford G917T

3-ton truck which was manufactured between 1939 and 1942,

Very few of this type were made before production switched

to their V-3000S model. (almost 14.000 produced).

      Okay ... Here is the reason this topic!!!  Let's build one of this oddballs!!!

The kit:
     As I said before, when I built this little girl (May, 2011) there were no kits Ford G917T that ICM has recently released.

Ford G917T, by ICM ICM

       The ICM could release the Maultier version of G917T, faster. She has all the parts on hands.

Ford V3000S Maultier, by ICM

      My options were far more complicated...I used as chassi host an old Italeri Opel Maultier plus a Ford G917T resin cabin, from the extinct Panzer Resin Models and a conversion kit (resin) to substitute the Maultier rear wheels...

The players: Italeri, Panzer Resin cabin and Electric suspension wheels

The Ford G917T cabin

Electric Maultier late suspension

Italeri Maultier kit

      Let's go...Starting for the PRM and Maultier chassi: surgery in progress...

Frankenstein action...

Ford Mautier chassi done !!!

Testing the Ford cabin

Checking the alignement... Cabin in dry-run.

The Electric Mautier wheels and PRM resin front wheels...

Dry-run...Notice other projects in background...

The vehicle with interior cabin painted and with tracks

Notice the triangle (towing signal) in the cabin roof

The frame of the canvas made with copper wire

Primer

Side by side with Ford Maultier V3000.
The V3000 model was made using the same methodology:
Italeri chassis with PRM cab resin.
At this time, the ICM had not yet released this model injected ...

The Ford V3000S "hybrid": resin and plastic.(old picture)

Two Fords Mautier

Making the canvas with tracing paper and PVA glue...
Notice the truck in Panzer-Gray.

The canvas drying...

Painting th canvas with acrilics: Khaki

Wheatering the canvas...Notice an old Ford G917T
(full resin kit from PRM) in background...

Canvas is done...Notice my workbench, crowded with kits...

       Time to add the cammo. I will reproduce the photographic references about this model.

Fords G917T Maultier in line...actual pictures.

Color profile

  

Color profile based in IBG 1/72 model kit

     To make the striped cammo, I masked the model with paper-tape and painted all with dark-yellow (with tonal variations)

Notice the complete isolation of canvas. I was afraid that the paper tape
ruin the canvas. The stripes ​​on canvas will made
with brush (with Panzer-Gray) ...

Other side...

Voiláá...The cammo without paper-tape and with canvas stripes done

Adding the weathering in the cammo...

After Future, decals from Bison Decals: Flammable !!

Wehrmacht fuel transport truck

Notice the straps in the canvas made with paper-tape

      To make the windshield, I make a mold with thin card. I cut one windshield in cardboard, very carefully, to make a template of the glass. Then, using the cardboard template, cut out one transparency for laser printer. After testing the cropped transparency in the place of windshield, apply PVA glue on the edges of the kit windshield 'hole' and put the transparency in place. I wait to dry two hours and have an excellent windshield.

Making the windshield with transparency.
Notice the PVA glue pasting the transparency in place

Done...PVA glue dry and painted with black-rubber

       And the Mule is ready:

Ford G917T Maultier - Fuel transport truck - Russian front ,1943.

Ford G917T Maultier - left side

Ford G917T Maultier - right side

Ford G917T Maultier - Kojak approves !!!

See you soon, Lads !!!