This is an Austin Mk IV armoured car from the First World War. It's somewhat overshadowed by the better known Rolls Royce and Lanchester armoured cars, but is distinguished by its unusual twin turret design. This was specified in the Russian order responsible for their production; most were sent to Russia, where they served during WWI and afterwards in the Civil War, along with a further number built in Russia by Putilov. The chaotic fallout of the Civil War resulted in small numbers of Austins of various types taken into use by a fair number of the new states which sprang up in the wake of the Russian Empire's collapse. Furthermore, a number of the last Russian order were held back and equipped a battalion of the British Army which operated quite effectively in the last stages of WWI.
The model is by Model Box of Ukraine, in 1:72 scale. They usually produce kits in 1:35 scale, but do seem to have brought out a handful of Great War subjects in the smaller scale. Of course it's tiny, less than 7cm long. I built it in a day, it's not complicated but has enough going on to make it interesting. There are one or two incredibly fiddly parts to take care with, notably the tiny lamps which go on the sides of the turrets. If you lose those, I doubt you'll find them again. The box and instruction booklet seem well presented, but I admit I did wonder after a while if the people responsible for the instructions, the decals, and the box's very attractive layout of the large number of marking schemes had ever actually sat down with each other. The latter does demand some head scratching while you figure out which you want to do, and how to go about it. I liked this scheme, for a British car, because of its battleship grey upper portion. There are three other British schemes, along with some Russian ones, and even Australian and Japanese examples. I think there is another boxing of this kit which concentrates on Russian examples.
This particular model will reappear by and by in a diorama I have in mind, set in and around a 1918 airfield.
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