Hello
I almost finished my HobbyBoss BPz3a1 canadian forces in afghanistan and I’m very
Do you really believe what the manufacturer tell you?
I’m not a CAF armour expert however my unit was involved physically bringing the new armour online and into theatre. We leased and bought armour from the Netherlands and Germany. This would explain why the Canadian ARV is identical to the German. I suspect any modifications would be the “Canadianization” of the ARV which could include; radios, ECM electronics, sensors, etc.
I know this doesn’t exactly answer your question. I hope it can point you in the right direction. There are some retired/ serving CAF members on this site whom may be able to answer your question. Recceboy may also be able to help Profile - recceboy - KitMaker Network
The Leopards came from German Stock that we shipped to Afghanistan with very little modifications done to them. The main type of mods were dealing with the radios and some power supplies for them, and the T antennas . There are some great reference materials out there, 2 digital reference sets have been produced , with a new version that has lots of unpublished photos and reference material that shows the Berge 3 service in Afghanistan and post Afghan mission. If you are on Facebook, there are photo albums on the page and are a go to for any modeller building Canadian vehicles : Canadian Military Modellers Association…
PS: My old user account RECCEBOY , has been nuked, this is my new one, feel free to message me anytime and will help you with your build…
The differences between the kit details and the actual vehicle are pretty tangible if building this kit as a Canadian version that was deployed in Afghanistan.
The frontal armour configuration and layout of the grenade dischargers, headlights, etc on the front hull in the kit is incorrect for the Canadian version. The frontal armour is over simplified and not actually correct for any BPz3a1 version.
The rear hull details on the kit are completely inaccurate for the Canadian version. The remote controlled “stinger” A frame on the rear hull was not on the Canadian version in Afghanistan. The layout of the grenade dischargers on the rear hull should be the standard version for a BPz3 and not the BPz3A1 set up.
The layout and number of stowage boxes on the rear hull is not correct for the Canadian version used in Afghanistan.
The angular T antenna mounts for the Canadian version are not included in the kit.
The best way to build an accurate Canadian BPz3 as deployed in Afghanistan is to combine parts from the Hobby Boss BPz3 kit and the Hobby Boss BPz3a1 kit, correct the inaccurate frontal armour and detail layout, don’t use the hull stowage boxes, and scratch build the antenna mounts. An expensive kit bash / conversion for those inclined to do the work.
When they arrived in late August/ early September 2007 they were stowed complete, but when they moved out to the Forward Operating Base, the crews changed the stowage boxes on the rear, and only used what they figured out that they would need. The Registration numbers of both of the Bergepanzer 3 were 85-69580 became CALGARY, 85-69581 became CLYDESDALE. As each squadron took over the ARV’s names would change , B Squadron took over from C Squadron , so the names changed for example 85-69581 name changed from CLYDESDALE to BRUTUS.
