Squadron Diamond T 4-ton Truck

Diamond T 4-ton truck is father to the post-WW2 M-series truck. It was designed and built to fill the needs for a prime mover during WW2.

As it became increasingly apparent that the United States could not avoid getting involved in World War II, the U.S. Army stepped up its efforts at modernization and industrial mobilization. Toward this end, the Quartermaster Corps ordered a series of 4-ton 6×6 trucks from Chicago-based Diamond T Motor Car Company. The chassis of the artillery prime mover was adapted for use a dump truck, a long-wheelbase truck to transport bridging equipment, and what would become the U.S. Army’s standard medium wrecker during WWII. 

The design of the Diamond T was so successful that it is widely recognized as the forerunner of the Army’s post-WWII M-series trucks, which were utilized for 50 years. For this book, the finest preserved examples of the classic Diamond T were sought out and extensively photographed, resulting in a volume packed with 227 color photographs augmented by five period black-and-white photos. 

Source: AFV News

What do other people think of this book ?

The release of this book should be a very handy reference for those who want to build the announced Diamond T 4-ton Truck by Mirror Models Ltd.  Squadron Signal and David Doyle provide the reader with a huge amount of information and splendid photographic coverage in this book. 

Source: AMPS Armor

The Walk Around format limits the author to photos of existing, restored vehicles.  The great news with this book is that there are plenty of photos of almost every conceivable detail modelers could want.  The cabs are well documented, inside and out, and even underneath the vehicle.  Mr. Doyle has pointed out instances where a modern, non-original item has been added, so the modeler doesn’t add it to his WWII-era model.  A problem with this format is the fact that not all variants have been found and photographed.  There is just one photo of the dump truck, and just two photos of the engine, each in period black and white.  One photo shows just one of the brackets for installing an M36 machine gun mount, but otherwise the front and rear cover illustrations are your only other references to two different machine gun mounts.  Some of the older Walk Arounds included line drawings to clarify certain details, and more illustrations that showed more examples of the vehicle with camo and markings in service.  I miss them. 

Source: IPMS USA

I would say, if you love military trucks, then Diamond T should be in your list already. This walkaround book will help you in the building process.

Image Credit: Squadron Signal