Hey everyone,

I just finished construction of Meng's 1/35 scale FT-17 and wanted to portray it in Finnish service during the Winter War.
One of the initial ideas that I had bouncing around my head was to have the FT-17 on a patrol and approaching a disabled Soviet Aerosan. This idea was scrapped when I found, through research, that the Fins didn't use the FT-17s as tanks, but as dug in gum emplacements. Burrying such a beautiful model (the kit was one of the best and easiest I have ever put together) woud be a shame, so I have been playing with the idea of portraying a recently dug position with the FT-17 being nearbye and about to be put into the hole.
Any input or fedback of this idea would be greatly appreciated. I am also looking for any info on Finnish fighting positions and Finnish WWII figures.

Dan

Dan,

I think that's a great idea, especially if you have any period photos to use as reference to help with detailing it.

You could call it something like "Digging In".

Show us some pictures, too!

How's about the hole is dug, and they are ground guiding it into position?

Thanks, Jeff

That's my biggest issue right now, finding reference material. I've googled every possible combination ofFinnish WW2 gun emplacements that I could imagine.

I like that name, though; "Digging In"

Joe,

That's along the lines of what I'm going for. I was thinking of showing the unditching mechanism on the rear, removed. Maybe they would have removed it to make buryig a bit easier?

Dan,

I found this image:



on this page The Duckboard Gazette. It talks about a book "Suomalaiset Panssarivaunut 1918-1997 (The Finnish Armoured Vehicles)" by Esa Muikku and Jukka Purhonen.

I also found the above picture along with this one on another site:



At Tanks-Encyclopedia.com

And another:



At Missing-Linx Axis Discussion Group

HTH

Jeff,

Holy [auto-censored]! Those are exactly what I am looking for. Looks like they removed the engine and transmission in order to enter the turret.

Now I have a new issue; if I place the FT17 in the hole, will I be able to remove the engine and transmission or leave the engine and transmission intact with the vehicle outside the hole, being prepared to be placed in the hole?

Dan,

My guess is that the Finns removed the engines before they were placed in the dug in positions. Otherwise, why even remove them?

The engines probably were so worn out that they didn't run any more, or they just weren't going to expend the effort to keep them in running order.

But I'm just spit balling. The Finns may have removed them to prevent a fire or something.

Oh boy, oh boy! Look at those weathering and flora opportunities! I also like the photo of the guys sitting on and in the turret. That's a great opportunity if you are into figures (which I still am studying)!

Good luck!

Gentlemen,

I really appreciate all of your input, ideas, and photos (Jeff). I love the photos of the buried FT-17s and am really itching to persue that idea. However, I can't help but to go back to the fact that this is such a beautiful kit and I would hate to bury it and conceal all the fine detail. For this reason, I think I am going to portray the vehicle as a WW1 era tank. If I ever come across an FT-17 kit of lesser quality, I will definitely go for the the "Digging In" dio.

Thanks for all of your help,

Dan

You could probably find the RPM kits on EBay. They aren't as detailed, but go pretty reasonable. priced. Wayne