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Accurate Armour
Austin "Tilly"
British WWII 4x2 Utility Car

Accurate Armour 1:35 Kit No.K156
Review by Terry Ashley

SKP Model
The Kit:

The Austin “Tilly” 4x2 Light Utility Car was used by almost every British unit during WWII with about 30,000 produced being basically the British equivalent of the US Army Jeep.

This full kit from Accurate Armour is of the basic configuration “Tilly” consists of 72 parts in light grey resin with an etched fret with approx. 64 parts and a thin clear sheet for the windows. There is also a short length of 0.88mm plastic rod and thin length of nylon thread for the tie downs.

The quality of the resin is very good with cleanly cast parts and notably no warping in the larger complex parts. There are the usual casting blocks and a bit of resin film to be removed from some parts and a few parts have minor casting seams to be removed. After removing the casting blocks there were some air holes exposed but usually in places not seen after assembly and can easily be filled if need be.

There are four large main parts that are quite complex castings with detail included on multiple sides and as mentioned these castings are perfectly square and warp free which makes life very easy during assembly.

The lower chassis pan includes detail on the underside including the fuel tank plus on the inside the lower floor drive train hump and engine firewall with detail on both sides.

Probably the most impressive casting is the front cab and engine compartment which is a superb piece of casting with the upper firewall having details on the engine side and the dash board details on the inside. The doors are cast closed but have door handles on both sides as well as the window winder handles on the inside with all other details such as side vents and fender contours perfectly cast. There is some resin film to be removed from inside the window openings and minor cleanup around the edges due to the multi-part moulds used but the clean-up is very easy.
The clear sheet provided can be cut to shape for the windscreen and side windows although you will have to draw your own templates for cutting these which will require a bit of care.

The rear tray is also well cast without any hint of warping and includes details on the floor and both sides of the side walls and rear panel and again there is some minor cleanup around the edges of the casting but again easy to deal with. There are two alternate tailgates provided one with wood panels and the other stamped metal for the different uses and timeframes. These fit perfectly into the rear opening and can be shown raised or lowered with fine etched chain supplied for the supports.

The rear canvas cover is cast fully extended and again is warp free with very subtle canvas weave texture on the surface which will come up very well when painted. The details include the lower tie down grommets and the four closed side window flaps with attachments along with a separate rolled up rear opening flap. There are additional etched parts for all tie down straps and the thin nylon cord for the side tie down cord.

These four castings form the main structure of the model and how they fit together will determine the final outcome and I’m happy to say the fit is perfect and as good as any injected plastic kit. This good fit is due to the warp free castings and the precise method of fitting the lower chassis into the cab with the rear tray again fitting snugly to the chassis and back of the cab, the fit of the canvas cover is equally good making for some of the easiest assembly of a resin kit you will find.

Back with the chassis there is the full engine which is made up of a nicely cast block with separate manifold outlet, large top air cleaner and front fan and fan belt pulleys and at the front is the radiator with the upper hose going from the block to radiator after fitting. The front radiator grill is in etched metal for a very good look and there is also the outer canvas cover sometimes fitted and this again has excellent canvas texture included.

The suspension is made up of separate parts for the front and rear axles with steering rod on the front plus the separate leaf springs and central drive shaft from the engine to rear axle. The exhaust pipe and muffler is also included with all these parts fitting well together and to the chassis but take care the leaf springs and axles are assembled square to ensure an even sit of the model.

Seven resin wheels are provided and the complex rim design is very well done with optional hub caps to use if required, not all wheels had the hub caps and you can leave a few off for a bit of variety. The tyres have the chunky wartime tread pattern but you are also provided with two civilian pattern tyres to use as alternatives and this is a nice inclusion with the seventh wheel being the spare carried on the cab roof which includes the retaining handle.

On the inside are separate front seats with very nice canvas texture as well as separate gear lever, foot pedals and hand brake plus a fire extinguisher and rear tray fittings.

After all these parts are fitted the chassis can be attached to the cab and as mentioned the fit is perfect as is the fit of the engine bonnet (hood) which can be shown open or closed with etched parts for the bonnet stay, hinges and inside front lock.

The assembly of the rear tray and canvas cover is straightforward due to the good fit and there are a number of small etched and resin detail parts to be added around the chassis and body, these include the headlights, front and rear bumpers, rear view mirrors, front weight disc, front mud flaps and shovel with tool clips included stowed on the roof and racked .303 rifle.

The instructions are a series of photos of the actual model during assembly which clearly show the placement of the parts which are also called out by number for easy identification. A full listing a parts is also included that also describes the parts further aiding assembly.

These assembly photos are very easy to follow and due to the simple nature of the kit and real vehicle for that matter there are no real traps during assembly but as usual study the instructions and test fit before gluing.

Additional text assembly notes are also provided giving further help with construction and painting.

Etched parts
Accurate Armour
Decal Sheet
Accurate ArmourAccurate Armour

Decals::

As mentioned the ‘tilly’ was used by just about every British Army unit on every front during WWII and in keeping with this AA provides on the decal sheet unit markings for 15 units and a further 10 AoS markings.
The kit can be painted in any of the schemes applicable to the location but I must admit looks quite attractive in the NW Europe scheme of Green/Black as depicted on the box top with the interior being painted in the same base colour as the exterior.
There is also a selection of WD numbers as well as generic numbers for you to make any you wish plus a couple of allied stars and the bridge weight number disc with and without the 2 plus the tyre pressure stencils for each fender.

The unit insignia provided are:
Tilly 7th Armd.Div.
Tilly 11th Armd.Div.
Tilly Guards Armd.Div.
Tilly 1st Polish Armd.Div.
Tilly 3rd Inf.Div.
Tilly 51st Highland Div.
Tilly 30 Corps.
Tilly 2nd Armd.Div.
Tilly 34th Armd.Bde.
Tilly 79th Armd.Div.
Tilly 1st Army
Tilly 2nd Army
Tilly 21st Army Group
Tilly 8th Army
Tilly RAF

AoS Markings include:
Tilly Pioneer
Tilly Royal Artillery
Tilly Regiment
Tilly RAOC
Tilly RASC
Tilly REME
Tilly HQ
Tilly Regiment
Tilly Signals
Tilly Recce Corps

Conclusion:

An excellent rendition of the little ‘Tilly’ with superb details on well cast parts with the lack of any distortion on the larger parts noteworthy and makes for trouble free assembly along with the excellent fit of the parts.

This kit should be welcomed by British Army fans for one of the most common vehicles that can be used in virtually any setting as well as anyone who wants a simple resin and etched kit to get into and experience this medium.

Highly recommended.

Resin Parts
Wheels
Accurate Armour
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Thanks to my Credit Card and Derek from Accurate Armour for the prompt delivery of the review kit.




Page created December 27, 2005