M1152 Humvee Armor With Spare Tire Bumper

This conversion kit includes parts to convert a Rico Minitanks Humvee into a more modern, armored variant. You will need a Roco/Herpa humvee kit as a starting point.  For best results, I recommend either the special forces (no doors/roof) or ambulance variant as these do not have a rear door that would require precise trimming to fit the new rear door correctly.  Parts included are: main body armor (pickup style), front grill, raised intake, new rear bumper with spare tire holder, spare wheel and tire, and four new 24 bolt wheels.

To use this kit, start by cutting the pieces from the sprue.  Clean and paint all parts in accordance with Shapeways guidance for detailed plastics.  Be careful - especially around the side mirrors and rear door hinges, as these parts are delicate.

Main body - you must first shave the area outlined in the attached photo of all raised details such as the rivets, hinges, and air vents. If you are using a Roco ambulance body, the front doors must also be removed.  The panels can then be glued on to cover the rear seat areas.  NOTE that the two sides are different, the driver’s side will have stiffeners on the bottom in the shape of an “H” while on the passenger’s side they are shaped like “I I”.  Both install with the slanted edge towards the rear and should be placed as far back and toward the center of the vehicle as possible.  The body armor then fits over the Roco body.  Clear plastic sheet can be glued to the inside of the body for the windows if desired.  If so, I recommend painting the body parts and gluing on the clear plastic prior to gluing to the Roco body.

Front grill - simply use the new front grill in place of the kit’s front bumper (this also holds the frame the the body).

Extended air intake - simply glue this to the existing air intake.

Rear Bumper - glue this to the existing rear bumper, lining up the holes for the pintle hook.  Either of the Roco pintle hooks (open or closed) can be used with this bumper.  NOTE: if you are using the spare tire it is recommended you glue this to the bumper prior to mounting the bumper on the body.

Spare tire - glue this to the new rear bumper.

New wheels - Make sure to thoroughly clean all support material from inside the axle holes (I use a dental pick type tool).   If this is not done, the axles will not insert fully into the wheels.  Once this is done, the wheels simply replace the originals, using the existing rubber tires as well and axles.