The Dust Maker

[malcolm48]

This post is about a picture I found on the M-L forum that intrigued me. It is from a thread asking about DAK vehicles fitted with aircraft engines and props. I quote from a post on there by George Burrough: "I am just reading 'Tobruk' by Michael Carver. In his description of Rommel's plan for sweeping around Bir Hacheim at the start of the Battle of Gazala he states 'On the right wing Kleemann's 90th Light Division with the reconnaissance units, would strike north-east from Hacheim for El Adem and Belhamed, accompanied by special vehicles equipped with aero-engines to raise dust clouds, giving the impression that they were tanks'. Does anyone know anything about these vehicles?"

A response on the thread had this picture included:
 

The picture is of a stripped and radically modified captured Bedford MWD light lorry (truck to you Yanks). Airfix will be releasing this vehicle soon in their new 1/48 airfield vehicles line. This lorry has had the cab top, doors, and back, rear fenders, and complete bed removed, and an aircraft engine with the required accessories to enable it to run installed, complete with a safety cage. I did a bit of research and determined that the engine is an Argus As 10 inverted V-8 as used in the Fieseler Fi.156 Storch and Messerschmitt Bf.108 Taifun. The engine mount looks just like the one used in the Storch, but the prop appears to be taken from a Taifun and severely cropped. The fuel tank, mounted at the rear, is the front half of a standard German 300 liter auxiliary disposable fuel tank. This would have been necessary because the aero engine wouldn't have burned the same fuel grade as the lorry. The smaller tank strapped to the top of the engine mount would have been the oil tank, and looks to be of aircraft origin also. This contraption doubtless would have been uncomfortably noisy to operate, but it would definitely have succeeded in raising a huge quantity of dust, simulating a large tank formation on the move.

When Airfix releases their Bedford MWD kit, it will be possible to build this weird monster, using a copy casting of the Argus engine from Tamiya's Storch kit, and a 300 liter aux. tank, which are common in many German aircraft kits. The rest will not be too hard to scratchbuild, and due to the rough nature of the conversion, need not be a labour of love to achieve. I think I'm going to put one of these together, as I really like anything to do with the desert war, and this beast is pretty unique.

Cheers -
  Malcolm

[Ralphonso]

I do love these odd-ball ersatz designs that troops come up with in the field.

Are you sure that engine is from a Storch, and not an Alyson from a P-40? That cone shaped front looks familiar.

[malcolm48]

Hi Ralph -

Yes, I'm quite sure it's an Argus V-8.

I googled the Allison, and it does have a feature on the prop end that resembles the "cone shape" you mention, but on the dust maker rig the cone (fuel tank) is at the other end from the prop, and you can see four cylinders, half of the V-8 layout.

Cheers -
Malcolm

[Ralphonso]

Ah! I stand corrected.

Regardless, a cool looking vehicle, and something more interesting than the standard truck.

[biggles]

And I thought that was an aircraft engine-propelled dune buggy!