Deep Forest Green

The US Army was always on the forefront of mechanization.  They realized that shipping horses, mules, their fodder, tack, and all the other gear needed to operate massive numbers for animals for cavalry, towing wagons, and artillery was just too much space for shipping across the Atlantic.

The first motor vehicles had balloon tires that were white, they were like a big inner tube and got punctured frequently.  Later they added carbon to the rubber and made it both stronger and black.  Heavy loads still could not be carried on these balloon tires so tires similar to those wooden wagon wheels were developed.  They were a solid black rubber band heated and then slipped over the steel wheel.  It would shrink and bond to the wheel.  They were very tough and provided better traction than steel wheels without the rubber.  These were used in World War One.

Later the pneumatic tire was invented, not unlike tires of today.  Many thousands of US Army vehicles were switched over to the new tire type.  These were much like automobile tires of today, not the big off road knobby tires usually associated with military vehicles.  Those came later, during WWII.

My WWI era US Army vehicles get painted Olive Drab, but my 1938 US Army vehicles mostly get Rust-Oleum Deep Forest Green.  In peacetime the US Army usually drifts away from the mission of war fighting and the 1930s were no exception.  The began painting vehicle glossy paint jobs and painting large bold unit insignias on them.

This is one of my WWI era trucks, spoked tires.

The same with the canopy up.

And the first truck but painted in Deep Forest Green and with pneumatic tires.  After getting the Deep Forest Green, which as you can see if very flat, I will gloss coat them.
 

Truck and Cargo

Three axle truck conversion.

Dual rear wheels for carrying or towing heavy loads.

Rugged and large.

Designed to carry the 6 ton tank.

Six ton tank goes 3 mph but the truck brings 20 miles per hour.

Providing greater speed to the armor force.

 Loading right in the field.

New Truck

US Army truck in Infantry blue markings.

Same truck without the canopy.

Together.

Now a third version is in service.

Much longer.

Three axle heavy truck.
 

1938 Army Deployed

Trucks tow artillery into place while the infantry deploy.

The newest version of the French 75 artillery piece.

Armored cars also bring in medium artillery mounted on the rear of the chassis.

Batter is set up, with ammo dump between them.

Armored artillery is ready with ammo supply truck ready.

The overhead view.
 

1938 US Army

My 1938 US Army is actually two different but overlapping armies.  Armored cars support advancing infantry.

It is a War of the Worlds army that includes armored cars like the one above that are not based on actual historic vehicles, but are toys from the period, or are other toys that represent vehicles that are speculative, that is fictional, that have been built in the period, but were not actually built, or even seriously proposed.

The magazines the Electrical Experimenter and Popular Science and others often had military related articles that proposed fantastical weapons, vehicles and equipment that may have been possible but usually impractical and sometimes even impossible or useless.

The other 1938 US Army represents a real US Army organization with actual vehicles, troops, equipment, weapons that were used in training, some of which went on to be used in WWII, although often in slightly different versions.

Usually I combine these two armies, especially since the WOTW army is not really intended to be complete, but rather a supplement to the actual existing 1938 US Army.  Some like the little trucks above towing French 75s in their 1938 configuration without gunshield and with pneumatic tires, are trucks from the general era but may not be exactly like those of the US Army.
 

1938 Armored Car

Years ago I purchased vast numbers of slush cast vehicles.  I got them on ebay, at train shows, model shows, GI Joe shows, Kit Collector Shows, Gun Shows, and Toy Soldier shows and other places.

Many of these were made as early as the 1930s.  My plan was to use them for my WWI and 1938 US Army forces, but I was going to repaint them and give them realistic wheels.  Even though some of them, like this armored car, were likely fictional vehicles.  I did not want to buy models in perfect condition because I think it is selfish to take 80 year old models in new condition and pull of the wheels and repaint them a different color.  I think those should be left to those who collect these little gems.  So I always looked for the ones with most of the paint knocked off, wheels missing, dents and other problems.

I have four of these and at least one of them had the cannon almost torn off!  I managed to glue it back on.  They were originally in silver paint and look pretty good that way.

This model has new resin tires and has been heavily repaired.  It had a big dent in the side and most of the paint was worn off.

I mostly paint them in olive drab by Testors spray paint and then touch up with their little jars of paint.

Those old time models were all different sizes, and I look for ones that work well with 1/72nd scale plastic figures.  This is a Strelets Early War WWII US Army figure.

I selected 1938 as the year to collect models because the M1 rifle was in service and so was the Thompson but they were not that common yet.  So I can use a mixture of WWI and WWII troops as long as they have the the M1917 flat hat helmet.

1938 the Army was using a mixture of World War One equipment, World War Two equipment, and Interwar vehicles that did not serve in either war.  It is also when the Orson Wells War of the Worlds radio broadcast was made in October, so these troops can fight Martians in a historic wargame.
 

Truck and French 75

In the 1930s the US Army decided that it took up less shipping space to ship mechanized units rather than horse drawn units.

So they started updated their artillery by replacing wooden wheels with rubber tires.

Various trucks were used as the Army had a very small budget and trucks were improving constantly so they did not want to buy a lot of any one kind.

I am putting little boxes of supplies in the bed of these trucks for use by the artillery as ammo dumps.

I have also been working on armored cars.
 

Small Trucks

Small 1918 truck in primer paint.

Painted in semi-gloss olive drab, and updated wheels.  Trailer hitch added and removable cargo.

Iron spoked wheel with a solid rubber band tire over the rim of the iron, in gray.  The tire in the back is an early style pneumatic tire.

Trailer hitch added, still needs painting.

I plan on using the spoked wheel version for World War One and painting them in camouflage.

After many years of peace, the Army started painting vehicles with gloss paint because it looks nicer and is easier to wash.  These open bed trucks I intend to use for towing medium artillery, French 75's.