RE: Armored cars / unarmored antitank vehicle rules questions [TANKS]

["Doug Conn" <dwconn404-at-comcast.net>]

The rules are pretty flexible about what qualifies as an armored car:

Armored Car: Any fully or partially wheeled vehicle
Armored Car: Single, semi-automatic paintball marker
Armored Car: 20 paintballs 

As usual, the rules are geared more toward fun than historical accuracy,
which I heartily condone.

I was thinking about an M274 also, but it's just too tiny for me. At 1/6
scale, I think it comes out to 16" long and 8" wide. I'd love to see a 106mm
RCL vehicle on that chassis, but it will take someone with a lot more skill
than me to build it !

                - Doug

-----Original Message-----
From: tanks-admin-at-rctankcombat.com [mailto:tanks-admin-at-rctankcombat.com] On
Behalf Of jtsumrok-at-comcast.net
Sent: Monday, January 09, 2006 8:41 PM
To: tanks-at-rctankcombat.com
Subject: Armored cars / unarmored antitank vehicle rules questions [TANKS]

Hi, I'm new to the hobby and wanted to introduce myself and ask a few rules
questions about armored cars unarmored anti-tank vehicles.

My name is John Sumrok and I live in Pittsburgh, PA. Since I'm not that far
from Maryland, it's possible that I'll be able to do the occasional road
trip to Maryland to participate in battles.

While I'm working on the plans & details of building a tank (Semovente
75/18), I first want to build a 1/6 scale 4x4 armored car or anti-tank
vehicle, as I have an existing 4x4 RC truck chassis that should have enough
torque, duration and cross-country mobility to be a usable platform for a
1/6 scale armored car (provided I keep the weight down).  

I have a few questions about armored cars and other wheeled combat vehicles:

?  What qualifies as an armored car?  Any limitations on the historical
armor or armament of the subject vehicle?  Do lightly armed APCs / IFVs
qualify as armored cars, or does the historical subject vehicle need to have
large antitank armament?

- From reading the Battle Reports, there doesn't seem to be much precedent
for the use of armored cars / armed wheeled vehicles in the battles staged
down there in Maryland.   Most of the wheeled vehicles which have
participated in the battles seem to have been unarmed support vehicles. 

- I'm interested in how the following vehicle types would be classified /
rated by the rules:

**** Typical 4x4 wheeled APC / IFV ****

Examples:  Panhard M3, Renault VAB, Soviet BTR / BRDM series

Typical armament:  MG up to 30 mm
Typical armor:  10-15 mm

Rating?  
20/2?

**** Unarmored 4x4 vehicle with anti-tank armament ****

Examples:  US M274 "Mule" w/106mm recoilless rifle, WW2 British 2-pounder
portee, Australian Landrover w/106mm recoilless rifle

Typical armament:  recoilless rifle, light antitank gun, ATG missile system
Typical armor:  none

Rating?  
20/1 ?

Sorry for the lengthy message, but I have several potential 1/6 scale
wheeled vehicles in mind that would work well with the truck chassis I have
and I want to understand how these types fit within the framework of the
rules.  

I understand that the focus of the hobby is on tank vs. tank combat (as it
should be), and I don't want to upset the equilibrium of things.  Just
wondering if vehicles of the types described above have a place on the RC
tank battlefield.  I'd hate to make the trip just to have my toy end up
towing supplies!

I'd welcome input & comments from the battle participants, "rules lawyers",
etc.  Looks like a great hobby!

Best regards,

John Sumrok