The Musical Box

Armor/AFV Dioramas
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On the first day of the Battle of Amiens, 8 August 1918, A British tank named “The Musical Box” was part of a breakthrough and went on a rampage behind German lines for nine hours. It destroyed an artillery battery, an observation balloon, a transport column, and the camp of an infantry battalion before being knocked out. This is my depiction of part of that action, it features the Medium Mk. A Whippet by Meng. I added the stowage and scratchbuilt the storage bins. The figures are from a Masterbox set with Hornet heads.

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The stowage arrangements were based on actual wartime photos. The gas cans stowed atop the fighting compartment were the cause of the tank’s downfall. Fumes from damaged and leaking cans forced the crew to abandon the tank and two were captured and became POWs, unfortunately one crewman was killed. Thanks for looking.

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Beautiful diorama Al. The tank came out excellent. I love the mud; great accessories as well.

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Outstanding diorama Al. The whippet came excellent, the stowage as well. Figures look to be VERY well painted. Overall an excellent scene!

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Very nice indeed. I thought the thread was going to be about a song by the Who.

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Thanks Matt, much appreciated.

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Thanks for such high praise, Richard.

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Thank you, appreciated. If it had said Pinball Wizard…:wink: :blush:

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I’d bet in the history of tank warfare there has been one with that name.

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And I’d bet that you’d be right.

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Al that is a great little scene and a beautiful build! Weathering and painting are just excellent! Loads of details around the vehicle too that add so much to the realism. Thanks heaps for sharing!

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Thanks for the high praise, Sam.

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Great looking diorama (though I think something like gunfire from the tanks guns would make the action more intense).

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Great looking build. :+1:

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Thank you, It’s hard to make something like gunfire convincing and I didn’t think I could pull it off.

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Thank you.

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That is one ace dio & the Whippet looks perfect in every way, bravo & thanks too for the combat report which I’d never heard before – for me anyway, the research aspect adds even more bonus points :trophy:

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I think a little piece of clear sprue with clear yellow/orange could do it?

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Thanks, Tim. There was some info about The Musical Box on Meng’s instruction sheet and the decals were included. But strangely, they weren’t one of the suggested markings options. I found some additional info after the build as well. For instance, it was supporting Australian troops during the initial attack. Google can be your friend.

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Thanks for the suggestion, but the gun muzzles are small, and trying to keep anything glued to them aligned properly while the glue set wouldn’t be easy. Also muzzle flashes are very brief, the only thing visible would be tracers.

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I started this - and will finish it one day - replace a rifle barrel with fiber optic. paint it, except for the tip. Run the fiber optic through the body to its light source - flashing LED.
I did it with a cigarette. Lots of drilling involved, but you can make it work.

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