British Explorer: Humber Armored Car Mk.III British Army Africa & Italy 1/72

In January 2021, we launched the first model of the British Humber 1/72 scale armored vehicle series. The first to come to the market is the Mk.III version, complete with etched parts, resin details and metal barrels of both machine guns.

History

The construction of the modern Humber armored car was created just before the outbreak of World War II in 1938. Subsequent production began a year later (1939 – 1940). First, Guy’s workshops created, using artillery tractor parts, a modern specialized medium armored car. It was not just an adaptation of the armored body to the chassis of the truck. The chassis design was modified and featured a rear engine and four-wheel drive. The oblique armor of the fuselage then helped to increase the vehicle’s resistance to enemy fire – in addition, the armament of two machine guns in a fully enclosed turret. As a result, a “light tank on wheels” was created.

However, Guy was overloaded with other vehicles, so Humber took over the armored car concept. Guy’s designers helped by adapting the armored hull to the chassis of a Humber tractor. In addition, other standard elements of the Humber company were used, which again accelerated the preparation of production, so that the first vehicles arrived at the combat units in North Africa as early as 1941.

After the first series of about 300 pieces of the Mk.I version, there was a more fundamental modification of the armor of the front of the fuselage – simplified production and at the same time increased its durability. Furthermore, the car was intended only for a three-member crew – the driver of the hull and two men in the tower. The experience of the fights, however, showed the need to strengthen the crew with another man, which allowed a larger tower variant Mk.III.

Armament Mk.III. still remained in the form of a 15 mm Besa machine gun and a second 7.92 mm machine gun. To this vehicle, she often carried another machine gun on the outer bracket, which could be used against low-flying aircraft, or against infantry if the crew of the vehicle dismounted. The production of this variant took place until 1942, when the last and at the same time the most numerous version of the Mk.IV was created, for which the tower was modified again. The 15 mm machine gun was replaced by an American 37 mm tank cannon, which created a car with the same armament as used by American Stuart light tanks.

The use of Humber Armored Car Mk.I to Mk.III is associated primarily with the struggles of North Africa and Italy. Since the first deployment, the vehicles have proved their worth, so the Wehrmacht did not despise their services, if he managed to seize any.

The cars most often came to Italy. The innumerable version of the Mk.IV then served with great success even after the invasion of Normandy on the Western Front or nearby Burma. In addition, after the war, the vehicle came into service with a number of other armies, and thanks to this, it participated in relatively large numbers in the “hot” battles of the Cold War. The Egyptian army deployed them against Israel, they also appeared in a number of wars between India and China, and the last vehicles were scrapped in the 1970s in Mexico, Burma and Sri Lanka. With its concept and modern construction, the Humber armored car laid the foundation for a number of post-war British armored vehicles. High speed, good off-road handling, durability and trouble-free operation were appreciated by all users of this type.

Kit

We are the first to bring a “professional” kit of the Humber Mk.III vehicle in 1/72 scale. Although the model can only be built using plastic parts, we have added resin and etched details. Thanks to them, you can embellish your kit even more. In addition, you will find metal barrels in the kit.

The two frames contain parts of dark plastic.

The cast parts contain new wheels and other details mainly for embellishing the tower. In addition, the mentioned metal barrels are available for both Besa machine guns.