Dutch Austin K2Y

35th scale Vacu formed Katy


Original: With 15.000 build she was a common site in all theathers of war. Existing of (mostly) plywood and linnen not many survived. On August 11 1944 the Dutch "prinses Irene brigade" embarked on their mission in the liberation of Holland. An iconic picture of a Katy rolling of a LST was the inspiration

Model: 35th scale vacu kit of Airpress / Franz Schmidt with an updated chassis from a Tamiya LRDG chevy. The vintage vacu-kit is reasonable acurate in scale, only not in details.

Build: February 2016 - September 2019. This bold ambulance has always appealed to me. It got shelved for some time. The goal was to build it as simple as possible, but accurate to the eye. Ommitting details that are not significantly seen. She served as a test vehicle for oil paint too. Basecoat is a Tamiya airbrushed green, with an black pre-shade. That turned out too dark. Than oil proved to be the lifesaver to rescue my red cros markings.

July
2019

It's a strugle to get to the color where I want to go. The lion I tried to paint from scratch, but I finaly took the decals from the Tamiya Tilly and used them as a base. First weathering is too crude. (September 14 I finnaly finished the paint.

June 24
2019

After many expiriments I finnaly got the use of oil paint to blend where I wanted tho shades of the color to go.

June 2th
2019

With Militrack (May 18 - 19) behind me, I gave myself a break from finnishing the Famo's and started expirimenting with oil based paints tot make the green a little less dark. Of that test only the chassis and the right side made it to a picture. The whole of the K2Y went a dul grey green. I found myself repainting the whole vehicle with a brush and the green is a little better, but my tidy airbrush work is gone. Working with oil in this way reminds me of the old Humbrol paints, but this even dries slower. It's showing all kinds of gloss and dull spots. The scratches of the sanding are visible through the paint. What have I done.

December 29 2018

Last of the details missing added, like the mirrors, a clamps and a stap that went missing. Keeps bugging me with the color. It's way to yellow. We'll see later. For now I have to put al time in the Famo's.

December 26 2018

Touching up the overspray and adding details. The difficult thing being the Dutch "Prinses Irene" lion. I think the whole vehicle is to dark. I started all kinds of test to make it look less dark without starting all over with the base coat. Not as tidy as I hoped. It's kind of spotted with greener color.

December 20 2018

Almost no overspray, almost no damage from removing the stencils. Only the right side one that I used double. That's a learning thing for next time. I'll make a stencil for every spray spot next time!

December 8 2018

The stencils for the red crosses are on. The right white cirkel has it's pencil marking stil on it, to stick the stencil in the midle. Now I need to gather courage and find some time to point my airbrush towards it.

December 2 2018

They are on! My first stencil spray job ever.. Most are good, the rest is reparable. Looks odd though, these huge white circle's.

November 30 2018

Well, here's the moment of truth for those stencils. They need to be stuck on the sides and roof, but all rim's and protruding body parts are in the way.

October 1 2018

All damages repaired and she's green again. Now I realize that the next hurdle is a big one. These hugh red cross markings can only be sprayed on. All have different diameters! 4 different masks, only the 2 sides are the same. And they consist of 2 parts. The cirkel and the cross.

September 28 2018

And a pre-shade layer is added.

September 21 2018

To serve as a base, a much lighter green is the first basecoat.

September 19 2018

Boy what a lot of scratches and other imperfactions. It's not completly blank again, but I sanded a lot of the poor little car away. The top vents where easy, once I found out how they function. From the few pictures I deduced they are two U-shaped sheets with a cirkel on top and below. The side vents where not that easy. I made a mould and pressed a sheet of thin aluminium into it. (it's lying beside the K2Y).

August 31 2018

It's green. (the blue is just because of the simple camera of my phone). And yes, several scratches and holes. The collective modellers find 2 other faults. The airvents are not sollid and the side and back slits are distracting with their inaccurate lines.

August 29 2018

Step, spare cans, rear lights and some details added. First station in building is ready. The windshield wipers and rear mirrors wil be added later. First layer of paint wil reveal stuf to fix.

August 26 2018

Rear of the chassis and the step are almost done. The rear fenders fitted. All raised fitting lines on the box added.

August 13 2018

the fittings on the dashboard and the floor of the cab turned out to be a puzzle. differences on the various survivers. The floor is never completely visible. The LRDG kit provides the steeringwheel and the rolled canvas doors. I scratchbuild the handbrake before I realised it's similar to the LRDG's.

August 12 2018

The stories of the body being of leather seem right. I found a very small seam on a lot of pictures running down from the side slits. A lot of trim lines on the body added and the fittings on the rear doors. I found a bell on the front bumper on some vehicles, I had to have that!

August 10 2018

The characteristic bull bar added, with a lot of other details. Stil sanding and sanding. The curve of the fender is to steep.

July 27 2018

Further on the bonnet. The curve of the fenders and a lot of other details started, and the first headlight. The austin logo is so tiny, it's hardly visable. The hoodornament is easier. The pannel lining added.

July 26 2018

Further details of the rear of the cab. strips to roll up the curtains and to hold on while sitting at the co-drivers seat added. Als the parts that hold the spare in it's place. Contour light on the fenders added and the sliders with the stits in on the body. One melted away. It wil be repaired later. The front and back top of the box have a raised rim that I susspect to be another opening with a maze on it. The fuel tanks are fixed.

July 14 2018

The drivers chair is a box of pieces of card with a sanded down buckle seat, with 2 pieces of 5 mm sheet for cusions. Fittings for the cab rear are getting complete. The slits are coverd by a piece of plyable fabric as the rolldown curtains on the original. I found 2 gastanks in my sparebox that match the whith and height of the Austin's. rearpart made and the inlet changed to the middle.

July 10 2018

Now that all the big problems have been solved the first details can be added. The back of the cab gets it's first fittings.

July 9 2018

a fine mesh added and again a lot of sanding to get to the right form. First steps on the dashboard, fire wall finally closed. The rim of the fender is getting the form, but it needs a line on it. The Austin logo and the hood ornament are to be added.

June 30 2018

The side slits in the bonnet are all different lenght. The fenders are way to short, so they need to be lenghtened. The bumper added. Next step on the engine cover in the cab. inside cab to the right straightened. What to do with these slits? The front of the radiator is too crude. It have to open it.

June 26 2018

The engine cover in the cab starts its life from 4 sheets of 1,5 mm plastic. A lot of little dips and scratches filled, corners straightend.

June 25 2018

Further mishaps on the bonnet filled with putty. The front axle is much too wide. All parts cut so that the trail of the front wheels match the rear wheels (It actually is correct on the Airpress drawings....). Now the mudguards match the whith of the wheels. The height of the windshield and the mudguards lead to the place of the floor. Judging from the rest of the cabfloor the floor should be much thicher and higher. The original floor is a guard only for the rest.

June 16/18 2018

The cabin floor has a heigthend part. Size fixed by the placing of the spare wheel. The engine covers have sink holes. I'm not happy with the wheels protruding outside the mudguards.

June 11 2018

So far with the intended swiftness. First troubles. the slits are too crude and are only 3 slits where they should be 4. Bottom seems to far protruding. There seem to be crosmembers. Bottum fixed upwards from that The roof has a huge dent. A sheet of plastic added to the top makes the curve it should have. First step of the body is fixed.

February 1 2016

All parts are put together and a Tamiya LRDG chevy provides the chassis. can't wait to go on!