O is for Once Upon a Time, in June! Miliflats AVF's

Google AI, is not happy, not only is it not happy, it tries to hide the frustration that's angered it, by bullshitting for England! Just because everyone's talking about AI, just because the stocks are high (Larry Ellison has just knocked Elon Fuckwit off the top spot of the who-can-solve-most-of-the-world's-problems-with-their-small-change-but-isn't-going-to list), don't for one moment think it's any better than it was when I was getting fuck-all useful, out of ChatGPT a while ago!

 

The question was - Miliflats Plastic Flat Military Vehicle Models?

 

The Answer was -

 

" "Miliflats" is not a known type of military vehicle or a widely recognized term in the context of military vehicles; however, it may be a misspelling or misunderstanding, as the results instead point to well-known manufacturers of military vehicle model kits, such as Trumpeter, Italeri, Takom, Airfix, Zvezda, and Revell. These companies produce scale model kits of various military vehicles, including tanks, trucks, armored personnel carriers, and more.

 

If you are looking for specific military vehicles, you may want to search for the types listed by these manufacturers, such as: 

• Tanks: M1A2 Abrams, M4A3E8 Sherman Tank
• Trucks: GAZ-66, Oshkosh JLTV, Airfix WWII British Army 30-cwt 4x2 GS Truck
• Armored Vehicles: Sd.Kfz. 251/22 Pakwagen, M2A3 Bradley
• Other: BAE Systems Amphibious Combat Vehicle, Universal Carrier Mk.I"

Absolute garbage, 'Takom'? BAESystems? Heeheehee! And - in fact - there ARE a few mentions of Miliflats on a couple of forums, but Google doesn't care, because with or without AI, Google is shit now, and it has been for quite a while! Anyway, the few mentions I could find were basically asking the same question and not getting much in response!

 

So, rather new to Blog and Internet, but shouldn't be new to Hobby, as they were advertised and reviewed in the modelling press when they were issued (1979/80/81'ish?), by Inkpen Art Productions (MIke Conniford), who also produced the independent rivals to the Bellona and Profile AFV drawings, for modellers, converters and scratch-builders in 1:76th, but I can't remember what they were called.

 

If I recall correctly, he made a few poured-resin, or whitemetal (?) solids - 3D models -  as 'Inkpen', which presumably didn't do that well, then announced Miliflats, the flat alternative to army building for war gamers. It's all in the archives, so it'll be right on the A-Z pages, if nobody puts us right here! But, for those looking, here at least is an illustrated guide to Miliflats Flats!

 

 *****     ****    ***   **  *  **   ***    ****     *****

 

Among my first acquisitions on the day (Plastic Warrior magazine's toy soldier show in June), because Adrian had kept them to one side for me, were these, and after the rant against the machine and potted-history (which may be inaccurate) above, I'll keep the blurb light!

 

Poorest image first, but I think this is a Canadian Ram Tank, and the only Canadian subject seen in this lot, which is probably not complete, but other than a Skink tracked AA vehicle (?) what other Canadian stuff might be there? There are a few CMP types further down under WWII/Commonwealth!

 

American subjects (there's another 6x6 further down!) include an M8 Armoured Car, what is probably a Studebaker 6x6 Truck and a Priest (which might be a defrocked British Sexton!).

 

The Germans get a Panther and a Kubelwagen!

 

Allied transport, I'll try not to make a fool of myself trying to ID these, but CMP type cab, front-left, while back-left may be a post war/Cold War Guy or AEC (Militant?), Bedford Q-something front-right, and back right is a mystery, I'd expect a Bedford O-bonnet, or a Diamond-T, not that stumpy thing . . . is it American, FWD? Gantry-crane I think, field-engineering!

 

Smaller soft-skins, mostly painted for the Western Desert, and two more possible Canadian patterns. Clockwise; Austin Ambulance, one of the Quad artillery tractor designs, Bedford MW and a question-mark!

 

Commonwealth Recce vehicles, with an AEC A/Car, a Home Guard 'Beverette' of some kind and something South African, I think?

 

Post-war Panhard is the only French subject?

 

While West Germany gets two Unimogs, 

but the British Berlin Brigade can have them too!

 

Instrument of Genocide

It fires down at women & children, farmers and olive-trees.

 

The Soviets get three - BTR60, or 60BP, the tank may be the T72, or relatively unsuccessful T80? While the other one is a BTR-50 variant, I think?

 

Bedford MK's, office, GS and GS with water bowser.

The bowser tanks weren't painted and should be all-over black.

 

The earlier Bedford RL's, from the front Wreaker/Tow Truck, Office, Radio-shack, GS, GS with trailer and GS with water bowser.

 

US, Cold War, M151 'Mutt' at the front, M113 APCs in the middle, GS, M106 Mortar Carrier and M577 Command Post, with a truck behind which could be one of several WWII or post war 'Duce-and-a-half' trucks, I have no idea which, but suspect it should be up with the WWII stuff as a GMC or Chevrolet?

 

The models are a simple sheet of poured-resin, probably pulled/smoothed into a rubber mould, the resin seems to be undercoated a basic charcoal colour, and military paint is then applied to the sculptural side. Most of the labels have fallen off, as the glue dries out, and while some are obvious, and others have catalogue codes, some, like this one are more cryptic!

 

Land Rovers, Series 3 LWB's; ambulance, GS soft-top and hard-top and Lightwieght's, soft and hard, with and without trailers. several models were broken, but this was the only one I couldn't encourage to stand up, and the Bedford RL pick-up truck, was being held-together with saliva!

 

Seems to be an early Challenger (or Shir I/II?) and BARV

 

Missing are Spartan APC, Scorpion and Scimitar CVR-T's, which should leave . . . anti-clockwise - Samaritan ambulance, Striker ATGW's, Samson (recovery/engineering) and Sultan (command)?

 

Clockwise from front-right - Saracen, Humber 'Pig', Ferret, turreted Ferret and Fox

 

This is interesting, as I think it's a short-lived gap-filler between the Bedford MK's and today's 'NATO' MAN trucks, and could be a militarised late Bedford, Iveco or LDV? Answers on a postcard - or in the comments!

 

Like the people looking for info' on the forums, I had been after these for years, even decades, and it's nice to now have such an eclectic sample, many thanks to Adrian Little for thinking of me when he saw them.

 

And the real annoyance - in a few years time, maybe in only months, despite my keeping the text down, Google AI will have a full, and reasonably accurate answer to the original question, without crediting me or the Blog, or paying for the lifted data. If anyone happens to have a bookmarked site with decent info' on these, let us know, and I'll put the links here.