The picture above was taken in Algeria in October 1956. Here’s a better version
Another one
H.P.
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Thanks for better photo. I found Dodge 6x6 photo. There are scale drawings of several variants in Armoured Trains An Illustrated Encyclopaedia 1825-2016 by Paul Malmassari.
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Do you need more scout-car pics ?
H.P.
There’s a guy on Cults that sells STL files for those French-made wheels for the Dodge! But I wanted to use the wheels I already have so will be winging it as a “what if” version instead…
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Well, you can use your imagination to make it into an inspection vehicle if you like, and I didn’t make a rule about not using models that were already started. So feel free to proceed however you wish. My main rule for this campaign is to have fun with it. 
Now……I need to get busy and find something to build. 
Thanks,
Randy
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Thanks Randy, but I’m already halfway through a fresh build of a Dodge WC-51 with rail wheels! It’ll probably be painted in MOW orange as sported by the Long Island Rail Road’s fleet after about 1955 since that’ll really stand out on the display tables amidst all the OD green tanks. And I’ve had a lot of fun sorting the fit of the resin wheels onto the ancient Max/Airfix axles! The more I do to it, the more I like it! (Pics have been taken, and will get uploaded eventually…)
But that half-built truck will indeed get its day on the bench! When it does I’ll post pics…
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More scout-cars in Algeria
Period footage
https://imagesdefense.gouv.fr/fr/ouverture-de-voie-ferree.html
Dodge WC-51 (Veraro rail/road conversion) :
Different wheels :
Armored Jeep
This French forum thread has a few drawings…
https://www.passionmilitaria.com/t202971-avis-aux-amateurs-de-jeep
H.P.
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Food for thought 1 - who’s going to build this Vietnam War inspection vehicle? I have a road wheel Mechanical Mule in my stash 
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Food for thought 2 - another US military example, this M151 was used on railroad siding on domestic US Army base. Daylight use only.
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That mule is about as minimal as a vehicle can get! It certainly gets my vote.
As for me, here’s the latest on my Dodge. I’m not sure yet about the “canvas” top - my choices are to use it, to go open-top, or to bodge-up a metal cabin lid in the best of railroad workshop tradition. I’ve already cut off the brush-guard extensions that protected the headlights, and scrapped the spare wheel bracket. The track base is from the Trumpeter set (for the Morser Karl rail transport rig) so there’s tons of track to use elsewhere! The only problem is the ballast interferes with the rails in places, suggesting the guy designing the bed didn’t talk to the guy designing the sleepers…
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Found it! The color pix of the Soviet Ua Railcar, used to move section gangs around. I have no confirmation that they were used as inspection vehicles although I can all but guarantee they were.
Here’s a URL to a review of Armor35’s kit.
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This French forum thread has a few drawings…
https://www.passionmilitaria.com/t202971-avis-aux-amateurs-de-jeep
Thanks for the link to the French forum. I have a copy of the book the drawings came from if anyone needs better copies - Les Trains Blindes 1826 - 1989 by Paul Malmassari.
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Group, today I stumbled across this critter:
I have an idea for it. Take a bobber caboose frame and bogies, and kitbash a trolley cab onto it.
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Hmmm,
It says gondola motor which makes me believe it is powered,
especially considering this:
I would use the trolley bogie and the cab front and use plasticard
and styrene profiles for the flatbed frame. I presume that the tram
company workshop would have taken the stuff they had available.
The cab on the motor gondola doesn’t overhang as much as on the tram
so there will be some cutting.
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No doubt it was powered. I was commenting that I think I could create it with a bobber chassis, and just enough of a trolley front for the operator to shelter in. However, the longer frame of a larger trolley would make a larger more interesting vehicle.
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The actual bogie under those trams is rather short,
they have a huge overhang at both ends …
I was thinking something like this:
Shift the cab backwards (blue area moves back to the green are),
cut off the other end, move the couplers inward
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I like that! I was just wondering if the French used any of those scout car versions in Indochina? Wayne
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According to Armoured Trains, an Illustrated Encyclopaedia 1825-2016 they did not. The only vehicles used on rails in Indochina (1945-1954) were Jeeps (1946) which used small 50 cm diameter rail wheels causing the engines to over rev. It states "a study of a Dodge 4x4 on rails was not followed up”.
Dodge were not introduced until Feb 1956 in Algeria following successful use of M3A1 Scout car trolleys. Used coupled back to back due to only having a single reverse gear. Also paired with a Billard Trolley.
Their role was as “sweepers” preceding trains so very much inspection vehicles.
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