Ampersand's Gun Trucks

I have always had a fascination with Vietnam War gun trucks and so when Ampersand Publishing had this one in their coming book list, I was quite pleased to see it released. The book is part of their Visual History series, which means lots of lovely photos of the subject. What I really like about the Ampersand books is that not only do they choose high quality images, but the landscape format allows for them to be printed in a large size without crossing the 'ditch' in the middle of the book.

The gun truck came about from a need to provide convoy protection on Vietnam's very dangerous roads. Supplies were mostly transported from ports to forward bases by truck and after having several convoys decimated by VC attacks early in the war, it was decided that the best way to protect these formations was to armor and arm trucks. This was very much an in-country modification and the truckers learned what was best by doing. In the end, it turns out that a double wall of armor plating in the bed along with as much firepower as could be found was the way to do it. These trucks tended to be a little unwieldy thanks to all that armor rather high on the truck, but the concept worked out great. Some trucks even used the bodies of M113 APCs as shown in the image below, though these were even more dicey to drive thanks to a lot of weight aft. 

Initially, the 2.5 ton trucks were used, but later the 5 ton versions were found to be a better match to all the weight. Even the small 'Mutt' and the larger M37 personnel carrier were armored, but not to the extent of the larger cargo trucks. Apparently lessons learned in Vietnam were forgotten for the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, but were quickly relearned and even more so.

The book begins with a history of the four types that were armored and includes those weapons most frequently carried. Then there are sections on each of these vehicles, full of great period photo, most of them in color. We are fortunate that one truck was pulled out of action in 1971 and saved for posterity. It is this truck, at the Army Transportation Museum at Fort Eustis, VA that provides the close-up images for which this series is noted.

In all, it is a great read and something that gets modeler's interested in reproducing one. Enthusiasts will also find the book to be a great read and one they will want on their shelves. Highly recommended.

 February 2016

Review copy courtesy Ampersand Publishing. Get yours today at this link.

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