There is a saying that amateurs talk about strategy, while professionals about logistics. Well, I try to keep it in mind when I’m planning travels, trips and journeys. It is also one of my favourite part of building armies, for some reason, to make and paint non-combatant vehicles and units, even if they have a minimal or no role in wargaming with most of the rule systems.
One of the truck most widely used by the Hungarian Defence Forces (and the Police too) is the H14 made by the Hungarian Rába Jármű factory. It was designed in the 1990s as a 4×4 truck and is constantly modernised. The basis of the vehicle are the MAN’s cabin and the Rába’s chassis. The H14, with the other types (H18 and H25, which are 6×6 trucks) fulfils the NATO standards and is used to replace the older Ural 4320 and other ex-Warsaw Pact vehicles. With the latest modernisation it is possible now to reinforce the drivers’ cabin with bullet-proof plates. Besides having normal platform for persons or cargo there are different superstructures made for it.
The H18, I used it as a reference for mudding my model [raba.hu] 
The H14 in service of the Police [policecars.hu/MBen] 
The blueprint of the H14 [raba.hu]
After the short introduction the first question is if some of the companies produce a Rába H14 (preferably in 1/100 scale). Well, my research showed that the answer is no. Next step is to look for some other models that I can convert. I am a big fan of the Butlers Printed Models manufacturer, even if their early 3D printed models were a bit lower quality, but the great price and wide supply compensate it. On their list is the MAN KAT 1 both with opened, flat or covered back. I’ve ordered a covered back as a prototype for conversion. Besides the chassis, the biggest differences are in the cabins. During the planning phase I decided to only pay attention to the cabin, because, in my opinion, the chassis will not be seen during a game and I’m not trying to make an exact replica.
The first thing to do was removing the MAN sign from the front and I painted a black oval to replace it later. The second is the position of the spare tyre. In case of the MAN it is fixed on the side of the cabin, while in the H14 it is rotated by 90 degrees and is between the cabin and the platform’s tilt. As I don’t really have any suitable cutting tools, to remove the tyre, modify the back of the cabin and glue the tyre back, I’ve decided to leave it at the moment as it is. I will look for some equipment and maybe on the next one I will modify it. However, there is a difference on the other side of the cabin too. Behind the driver’s side glass, the MAN has two solid panels, while the Rába has one ribbed panel at the end. I modified it in a way that I reamed 3 (I couldn’t fit 4 into that little space) ribs by a grinding machine. After the painting I realised that I should have burnished it a bit more, so that is another thing for the future to change. You might be surprised that I just accept these deficiencies, but I think it is more important to have a finished model which looks OK in 1 meter distance, than to work on it for months and maybe reach the same result. I think it is important to know your limits both in building and painting and try to be happy with the little results too, or you will lose spirit after looking through all the first class armies made by professional painters.
The spare tyre that I should rotate 
The not so perfect side panel
Another headache was the right colour. At the end I sticked to Vallejo 70.924 Russian uniform, highlighted with a drybush of Russian uniform mixed 50/50 with Vallejo 70.884 Stone grey. The tilt was painted with Vallejo 70.887 Brown violet. I washed the whole model with black wash and used to Vallejo 70.819 Iraqi sand to dirt the chassis, the tyres and the tilt. I didn’t want to have a massively dirty vehicle, and looked for some reference on the web.
All in all I am happy with the end result and plan to make some more H14s and H18s for my HDF project. I already have some Ural 4320s and UAZ 469s (the first from Zvezda, the other from Butlers Printed) which painted to use by HDF or Soviet army in Team Yankee. Both the Ural and the UAZ are still used by HDF, although in a decreasing number.
At the moment I still don’t know where this project is heading, how should I base my future minis and what conflict with which ruleset should I use.
Sources:
https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/R%C3%A1ba_H14
http://www.raba.hu/jarmu/katonai_jarmugyartas.html
Minis with moustaches 
One thought on “HDF – Hungarian Defence Forces: The Rába H14 truck”