).Steve has done a fine job so far:
so it's a shame he decided not to finish it. I think the spoked wheels got to him - a challenge to us all ! I shall, of course, be standing on the shoulders of the Giants on this part of the Forum
. When the Rolls-Royce was first released, I would have been minded to paint it in Battleship Grey, as part of the 'Southwold Squadron' under the Duke of Westminster in late 1914. But that's proved to be a very popular option, so I needed a new subject. Trawling through my book collection I came across something that caught my attention ......
After the fall of German West Africa (now Namibia), four Rolls-Royce Armoured Cars were transferred to German East Africa (now Tanzania) with two officers and 40 men under the command of Lieutenant Commander Nalder, forming themselves as 10 (Royal Navy) Armoured Motor Battery, or 10(RN)AMB for short. They must have been a bunch of mavericks, as they were the last Armoured Car unit to obey the War Office instruction to transfer from the Navy to the Army ! (which was generally unpopular as it led to reduction in both rank and pay, as well as pride). They provided useful support to Allied forces (mainly South Africans and Native Africans) despite appalling road conditions. Their most notable action was the Battle of Salaita Hill (near modern-day Nairobi) on 12 February 1916, when two of the cars under the command of Sub-Lieutenant Marshall managed to get between the German trench lines, providing a suitable distraction for the South Africans to extricate themselves from a clever German trap. Incidentally, the Native Africans (on both sides) were terrified of the Rolls-Royce Armoured Cars, never having seen anything like them before ! They called them Kibaru, which means Rhinoceros - quite apt, really. So that's my subject - a Desert Sand one.
There's also a very personal aspect to this build. My Father-in-law, John, died in June 2019. He was a World-renowned expert on horse-drawn carriages, which carried on into motor vehicles. In the past he owned a 1931 Rolls-Royce 20/25hp, which he still had when I first met Helen (and when I first learnt, very forcibly, that a Rolls-Royce is never, ever called a 'Roller'
). I have now inherited all his books about the Rolls-Royce (unfortunately there's relatively little about the 1914-pattern Armoured Cars, but it's all fascinating stuff):which enhances my more meagre collection:
He also left Helen an original Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost 'Spirit of Ecstasy' which we're going to get re-silvered and mounted on a plinth. Monique very kindly supplied me with the Armortek version, so here's a picture of them both:
I hope he'll appreciate what I'm doing. It's the best tribute I can offer - apart from looking after his daughter, of course !
So that's the story so far. Thanks for bearing with me - those of you who know me know that I never do anything simplistically !
All the best,
Chris
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) gives us all plenty of time to get on with all those projects we've got outstanding. And, for me, that's the Rolls-Royce.
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. And that excludes all the nice dials etc. that are for the chassis kit only, so are not even supplied. But that's my choice - I want a model that will drive around and look (and sound) like an AFV, rather than a display piece. That's the joy, and the sadness, of this model - so many choices !