Kit review: BW Models RB44

BW Models kit BW324, Reynolds Boughton RB44 fire appliance in 1/76 scale (now Mid Devon Models MDM026)

The model vehicle industry in the UK is full of small cottage industry manufacturers whose products are relatively little-known but cover a wide range of interesting subjects. One such example was BW Models, who sadly closed down on the proprietor's retirement last year, having built up a vast range of over 300 different kits of civilian emergency and post-war 'softskin' military vehicles. Some of the moulds have been sold in batches to various other cottage industry firms and this particular kit is one of those recently reintroduced by a new entrant to the market, Mid Devon Models. Although many kit producers have now turned to resin casting, BW Models continued to favour the traditional white metal approach, and this is the first metal kit I have built for a while.

The prototype

The Reynolds Boughton RB44 was a 2.5-ton 4x4 lorry developed in the early 1980s primarily but not exclusively for military use, and also found favour with a few civilian fire brigades. Early versions such as the subject of this kit used the cab from the Ford A-series, but after this was discontinued Reynolds Boughton switched to using the Renault 50-series cab, and demobbed examples of the latter are now popular for roles such as forestry and expedition vehicles. This kit represents what is described in military parlance as 'RB44, Truck, 2.5 ton, Fire Fighting', a small batch of which were delivered to the Defence Fire Service and have appeared in civilian use following disposal.

The model

The kit consists of 41 pieces, all metal apart from the clear plastic glazing material. The instructions are quite comprehensive and suggest building the model in three main sub-assemblies, the cab, chassis and body; I followed this general principle but deviated slightly to facilitate spray painting by putting together assemblies that would be painted a single colour. Assembly was done with a combination of cyanoacrylate superglue for smaller and tight fitting parts and my usual 'Power Glue' epoxy where gap-filling was needed, and the paints used were Halfords aerosols along with brushed Humbrol enamels for the small details.

I have found the quality of BW kits to be quite variable but this was one of the better examples. The main castings were quite heavy and chunky but free of distortion and with an acceptable level of surface detail. They showed evidence of having been cleaned up by the manufacturer but some small pieces of flash remained, which were easily removed with a file and craft knife, and no filler was necessary at all. In BW's usual fashion, smaller parts came attached to large blocks of metal from which they had to be carefully sawn away. This is where the main issue occurred as the axles were attached to the blocks by the brake drums and while cutting the back axle away it snapped at the weak point where the thin axle met the brake drum. Effecting a strong repair was not easy as the axles have to support the entire (considerable) weight of the model.

Assembly was generally straightforward and the floor and rear wall of the cab were a tight push fit with no glue necessary. The major problem was the recess in the cab front for the bumper not matching the shape of the bumper itself, and a fair bit of work with a file was required to correct this. Very little filing was needed otherwise to ensure a good fit, although I found one of the propshafts was slightly too short for its location; I was able to make it fit with a blob of epoxy to fill the gap. I also found after fitting the angled rear section to the underside of the body it fouled on the back of the chassis, which needed trimming slightly.     

A piece of moulded acetate was provided for the windscreen but its thickness and the awkward shape made it quite difficult to cut. I managed to mess this up and no spare was provided so I substituted a piece cut from a fizzy drinks bottle, which is thinner and easier to work with, and in any case I have found the acetate used by BW tends to turn yellow and opaque after a while. To finish off, the smaller detail parts were fitted, and the under-bumper steps and foglights proved a bit difficult to handle due to their tiny size but careful use of tweezers got them into position. Not being a military vehicle enthusiast I deviated slightly from the instructions for the rooftop equipment by omitting the foam monitor from the cab roof and fitting the stem light in its place to produce a civilian rescue tender rather than the military version as supplied,

Unfortunately my kit had a part missing (one of the cab steps); normally the manufacturer would replace any missing parts but I only discovered this when I opened the kit long after BW Models had ceased trading so I was unsure what to do. I decided I had nothing to lose by contacting Mid Devon Models, the new owners of this kit, and was delighted when they immediately agreed to supply the missing part free of charge even though I hadn't originally bought the kit from them. That level of customer service bodes very well for the future of this new manufacturer.

In conclusion, building this kit was an enjoyable change from the resin models that are more common these days, and although maybe not suitable for absolute beginners it should be easy enough to assemble for someone of average ability who has built a few kits before. Although I am not familiar with the prototype and have never seen one in the flesh, photos indicate that the model captures its likeness very well. It is a shame that BW Models are no longer trading as their demise has left a huge gap in the market, but several of their former kits have been reintroduced by other manufacturers and hopefully others will follow.

The completed model, a rather ugly vehicle but well captured by the kit.