Modelik Mk A Whippet

[CharlieC]

This model was an order filler so I didn't expect too much from it. I haven't seen a review or build of the Modelik Whippet which I think is a gross oversight by the modeling community.

The Whippet was built as a response to the realisation that the slow, heavy tanks like the Mk IV, St Chamond were incapable of exploiting any breakthrough of German defences. The design can only be called idiosyncratic. The Whippet was much faster than all WW1 tanks (13-14 km/hr). To achieve this speed twin engines were used with a strange arrangement of individual throttle control to steer the tank. The engines could be locked together for straight ahead travel. It was very difficult to drive and had limited trench crossing capability. Although satisfactory turrets were available a design was adopted which looked like a medieval citadel with Hotchkiss machine guns were mounted on the 4 faces of the superstructure. The "engine forward" design didn't reappear until Gen. Tal and his team designed the Merkava in the 1970s.

The Whippet was used in WW1 in 1918, the Russian Civil War and the "Troubles" in Ireland. The Whippet was the only Allied tank the Germans copied - The LK I and LK II were fairly close copies of the Whippet.

There are a few Whippets still in existence and there are walkarounds on the Web of most them.

The Modelik model represents a tank of the 17th Battalion in Dublin 1919. I was a bit perplexed by the green camouflage used - apparently the Whippets were painted green in the factory rather than the khaki of the heavy tanks.

The Modelik A4 booklet contains:

3 pages of description and instructions (in Polish) - there are photos of existing Whippets (nice touch).
3 pages of construction diagrams - these are seriously complex.
2 pages of frame parts on 80gsm.
2 pages of parts on 80gsm
7 pages of parts on 160/180gsm.

The booklet claims the model has 1200 parts - this might be an underestimate. In terms of complexity this model is up there with the Halinski armour. The suspension and tracks are finely modeled even though it's nearly impossible to see the road and return rollers because of the track frames. There is no interior - I can't imagine how large the part count would be if there was one.

I think this model presents a serious challenge to experienced modelers - it's certainly not doable for a first (or fourth) model tank build.

Regards,

Charlie

[Don Boose]

Thanks for another outstanding review. I am glad to get your comments on the difficulty of this model. By coincident, the Whippet was the subject of a discussion at the office yesterday and I was actually contemplating buying this one. It's good to be reminded that small does not necessarily equate to simple.

Don

[doctormax]

For the War of Independence the cover is wrong really if it is to be for Dublin 1919 really because I surely would have looked out for it myself if it was one from the Irish war of Independence. did you know that the Tommygun was used in action for the first time really during the Irish war of Independence.attacking a train at Drumcondra in Dublin. the makers gave the IRA of the time a shipment of Tommyguns to try out in actions to try and get sales.. the 17th battalion had four whippets in June 1919, the nicknames were Gofasta, Golikell, fanny adams and fanny's sister.. not sure if this be any help or which nickname is on the model. but may give you an idea of what names would suit for the 17th battalion

[CharlieC]

The cover picture has a lot of artistic licence - the British Tommy in the front of the Whippet would probably have been run over - the Whippet wasn't a vehicle to use with infantry because of the steering issues.

The vehicle name is "Fanny Adams" - there's a photo of a Victory parade through Dublin with Fanny Adams leading the armoured contingent (which I've seen but can't find). The name has resonances in British armed forces which mightn't be known in the former colonies. "Sweet Fanny Adams" is an old Royal Navy expression meaning "nothing at all". In NZ and Australian contexts the same expression is/was used with much cruder word substitution.

Fanny Adams was a child murder victim in 1867 - the case was quite notorious at the time. The Royal Navy picked up the expression from the introduction of tinned mutton about that time which was highly unpopular - the matelots decided that the Navy's victualers were using parts of Fanny Adam's corpse in the new ration.

Regards,

Charlie

[jagolden01]

Great review. I'd love to see a build of it also.
I purchased the model and can only look at it.
Would a very serious commitment for anyone building it.

[maurice]

Tanks were not popular in Ireland and the British have not dared to deploy tracked armoured vehicles on Irish streets ever since.
Well they did once try a Centurion AVRE to clear barricades but all the locals screamed "tank" and "foul" and it was back in England in a trice.
:D

Bellona published an appallingly inaccurate drawing of the Whippet in the 60's.
Slavishly copied by other publishers, two generations of modellers, mainly plastic, were led lemming like to the same errors. Only recently have kit producers taken the trouble to look at surviving examples and get things right.
Halinski have the correct overall shape and in particular the rear mg mount and door in the right places and the rear of the tracks and rear of the side armoured skirts are correctly shown. Well done.

[doctormax]

A little more research, by the time of the withdrawal the 17th battalion had sixteen whippets in service in Dublin. to confuse matters the Free state forces named the Rolls Royce armoured cars whippets..

The best armored car that was used in the war was the reliable 1920 pattern Rolls Royce, which the Irish troops christened 'Whippets'. Armed with a water-cooled Vickers heavy machine gun in a revolving turret, it could provide sustained fire with devastating results. The Free State also employed a few heavier dual-turret Peerless armored cars
(Anon. Short History of the Royal Tank Corps. (Wellington Works, Aldershot: Gale and Polden, Ltd., 1930), p.84; B.T. White. Tanks and Other Armored Fighting Vehicles 1900-1918. (New York: The Macmillan County, 1970), p.172; Peter Leslie, "Armoured Cars in Ireland [Pt.1]" Military Modelling (May 1980), p.398; information supplied by Prof. Denis J. McCarthy, 13 September, 1997)..