Help with APCs/armor

[biglou]

Hi, I just joined S.S.M.H. forums since this is HQ for 1/18 stuff. A few days ago I started to research non-Hasbro 1/18 military vehicles and I'm glad I did as most of them seem pretty awesome.

Anyway, I really want a good transport vehicle for my new 25th Anniversary GI Joes, but up to now I can't decide which 1/18 scale armor to get. I've checked through several APC threads here, and various other websites, but nowhere can I find pics of the interior of the various APCs. There are pics aplenty of the exterior of these vehicles, but without any interior pics I can't judge the amount of figures they hold, how much storage space/seating they have, or even how the inside of them look.

The APCs/armor I'm talking specifically about are:

Elite Force Light Armored Vehicle
Ultimate Soldier XD M113A Armored Personnel Carrier
Ultimate Soldier XD M3A3 Halftrack

If anybody could direct me to some interior pics I'd be eternally grateful.
In the past 2 days I've literally spent about 11-12 hrs searching to no avail.

[parrish333]

Hi, I just joined S.S.M.H. forums since this is HQ for 1/18 stuff. A few days ago I started to research non-Hasbro 1/18 military vehicles and I'm glad I did as most of them seem pretty awesome.

Anyway, I really want a good transport vehicle for my new 25th Anniversary GI Joes, but up to now I can't decide which 1/18 scale armor to get. I've checked through several APC threads here, and various other websites, but nowhere can I find pics of the interior of the various APCs. There are pics aplenty of the exterior of these vehicles, but without any interior pics I can't judge the amount of figures they hold, how much storage space/seating they have, or even how the inside of them look.

The APCs/armor I'm talking specifically about are:

Elite Force Light Armored Vehicle
Ultimate Soldier XD M113A Armored Personnel Carrier
Ultimate Soldier XD M3A3 Halftrack

If anybody could direct me to some interior pics I'd be eternally grateful.
In the past 2 days I've literally spent about 11-12 hrs searching to no avail.

11 hours! Impressive. Really, in the future just ask the board and spare yourself the pain!

Anyhow...I don't have pics but the BBI LAV will hold ~6, the M113 ~8, and the M3A3 ~5-6. Also there's the XD Bradley (~3), and the Forces of Valor (FOV) Bradley (~5-6).

I really like the M113 personally, but the LAV represents an amphibious vehicle, so that's a bonus there.

Also, FOV is coming out with a Stryker hopefully next year.

[grunt1]

Here you go:

As you'll see, the M113 has a huge interior..

21st Century Diecast Bradley








BBI LAV


21st Century Diecast M113

[biglou]

Thanks so much parrish333 for the descriptions and grunt1 for the pics. You guys really helped me out, and yeah the next time I have a question I'll remember to just ask the board.

The pictures are exactly what I was hoping for(thanks again!) and judging from them I'm definitely picking up an M113 ASAP. It looks incredible and definately exceeds what I expected, the Bradley looks pretty awesome too. I'm really impressed with the amount of interior space in the M113 and the number of opening hatches. Without these pics I wouldn't really have been able to make a judgement about whether I wanted to buy these or not.

Thanks again for taking the time and helping me out, you guys rock.

[olifant]

Just remember not to buy the RC M-113 because there is no interior.

[biglou]

Just remember not to buy the RC M-113 because there is no interior.

Thanks for the tip.

[aferguson]

can one fit all 6 FOV army guys in the back of the FOV Bradley? And if so is there any room left over for gear, mre's etc?

[Ruger]

I really like the M113 personally, but the LAV represents an amphibious vehicle, so that's a bonus there.

Are you sure about that one? I was pretty sure that the M113 was a swimmer. But I could be wrong.

MV

[aferguson]

m113 can be made amphibious with a fair amount of preparation; the LAV can just dive right in.

[Ruger]

On the M113:

It can also swim without deploying flotation curtains, and is powered by tracks, which was of tactical importance in battlefields like Vietnam which required crossing a multitude of terrain features: jungles, swamps, muddy dirt roads, forests, and rice fields

Amphibious with minimal preparation

The vehicle is capable of: amphibious operations in streams and lakes; extended cross country travel over rough terrain; and high speed operation on improved roads and highways... ... The vehicle is capable of "swimming" bodies of water.

On the LAV 25:

The LAV-25 is fully amphibious with a maximum of 3 minutes preparation... ...Capable of fording streams, rivers, and inland water ways with minimal preparation.

These vehicles are also amphibious, meaning they have the ability to "swim", but are limited to non-surf bodies of water (no oceans). While engaged in amphibious operations, the maximum speed is approximately 12 km/h. The current SLEP (Service Life Extension Program) modifications will hinder/eliminate amphibious ops.

I checked several of my books as well, and nowhere was it mentioned that the M113 required anything in the way of special prep for amphibious operation, what exactly is required? It floats without a swim-screen, and is propelled by it's tracks, it doesn't seem like there's much to do other than close the door. I seem to recall reading of it being used in amphibious landings as well, in bodies of water that did have some element of surf to contend with, such as the Mediterranean, though I can't find those references at the moment.

I don't suppose you'd care to elaborate?

MV

[Panther F]

The 21st Century Die-cast Bradley is my favorite 1/18th piece of what I own.

[aferguson]

that was supposed to be without a fair amount of preperation....some prep was required though, as oppose to the LAV which could just drive straight into the water.

Excerpt from wikipedia article on the bradley: "Whereas the M113 would float without much preparation,..."

[aferguson]

btw has anyone tried to see if the bbi lav or the m 113 float? May need to fill the interior with styrofoam to keep them from flooding but i suspect they both will float well (with some small preparation ).

[grunt1]

can one fit all 6 FOV army guys in the back of the FOV Bradley? And if so is there any room left over for gear, mre's etc?

No way.. 3 at best with no gear. The 113 is like a mansion compared to the Bradley and the LAV.

[aferguson]

Here's a post from missing-lynx regarding the M113's ability to be amphibious.

"For all the manufacturers' claims, the M113-series never really swam well. Being a slightly bouyant brick made any deep-water work an iffy proposition. In the water, there wasn't much of the vehicle above the surface, maybe 6 inches at best. The Army issued a laundry list of safety procedures for non-combat swims (which were a training requirement for a number of years) that included limiting personnel on board, where they could sit (mostly on top), the required use of lifejackets, maximum entry & exit bank slopes, water conditions (dead calm, for the most part), etc. There was a shutdown drill for minimizing damage to the engine in the event of a foundering and many units actually swam their M113s hooked to a cable paid out from an M88, so they could be more easily retrieved if/when they sank. Despite all of that, there were still drownings that occurred during swim operations.

None of this is the kind of thing that gives crews great confidence in swimming the vehicle, and I doubt that anyone would consider it a practical idea in a combat environment except in dire straits. The newer M113A3s are a bit heavier and had the extra-bouyant trim vane installed, so the swim characteristics couldn't have been much changed."

[popeye357]

Has anyone seen the new EIFV?? I saw one on base and It looked really wierd, I asked a guy that was working on it what it was and he said he couldnt tell me. i went home and googled it and got some great pics. So much for secrecy.

[aferguson]

on the topic of the FOV Bradley.....what figures do you use for crew for it? I've got soldiers but no crewman.

[tmanthegreat]

on the topic of the FOV Bradley.....what figures do you use for crew for it? I've got soldiers but no crewman.

To crew my FOV Bradley, I use the FOV tanker figures in the Army green cammo. These are available at Target stores in the US. Only two are needed as only the turret hatches open on that vehicle. The passengers are the FOV Army soldiers. The FOV vehicle is a later model of the Bradley, current for today, and the figures work perfectly.

I also use the same figures in my 21c Bradleys, even though the vehicles are earlier models, more approporiate for the early 1990s. The figures should have the "Desert Storm" type of cammo, but I'm OK fudging things a little...