When it comes to model making, the old Gerry Anderson shows never fail to come up with interesting subjects to work on. Anyone who knows me and my hobby will clearly see that I do tend to end up building this type of model time and time again.

The 1969 show UFO is no exception. Years ago, I built models of both the Moonbase Interceptor and SHADO Mobile, from the series UFO. Both were sadly taken apart for renovation and ended up in my spare parts box. They were fairly small and built to the best of my abilities, using whatever parts I could find. The Mobile was built of plasticard, with car cam belts for the tracks!

It’s been a secret wish to build a proper mobile for a long time and with the power of Ebay, that wish became a realit as I happened across an original Tiger Joe toy tank. This is a 3 foot long tank, which was used as the basis for a lot of vehicles in the Gerry Anderson shows including the Crablogger from Thunderbirds, various models from Captain Scarlet and Joe 90 and of course the SHADO Mobiles from UFO. I bought this thing and had it shipped over from the ‘States (to the UK), for the sole purpose of robbing it’s tracks and wheels for my Mobile model. Whilst waiting for the tank to arrive, I began trying to track down the other model parts that were used on the original studio mobiles. Some of these kits are still available today, such as the Airfix Scammel Transporter and James Bond Autogyro. Other kits were more difficult to find, as they have long since been discontinued. I eventually managed to get a Revell Gemini Capsule, which provided a lot of parts, the rest of the bits, however, would need to be scratch built.

When the Tiger Joe arrived I was terribly disappointed. For some unknown reason, this version had mostly drive wheels, with only 2 standard wheels. This resulted in my cutting the ‘teeth’ off of 4 of the wheels and casting up a further 2 wheels, to achieve the required 8 wheels. However, the cast ones were eventually replaced after I swapped a pair of teethed versions for some smooth ones with a kind modeler who had a spare set. The main body of the mobile was made from MDF wood. The curved parts were sanded down and coated in glass fibre – as I noticed the joins would crack apart due to the flexing of the wood. The ‘cab’ was made from plastic sheet. The edges where filled with Isopon car body filler and sanded smooth. The chassis was made from ABS plastic sheet. The original Tiger Joe axels were used, after being cut down in length to suit. These where the threaded through holes/slots drilled into the chassis. Foam was fitted over the 4 centre axels, to serve as ‘suspension’. This was held in place by a plastic plate glued into the chassis. The front, rear and exposed bottom sections of the chassis were then decorated with various kit parts. The rear panel was also made up, using the correct parts (where available), suitable alternatives where not. Turning my attentions back to the bodywork, the ‘chin’ area was built up from MDF with Isopon car body filler. The large vent (above where the cab goes) was filled with a piece of alluminium mesh, from the local car accessory shop. Also, the cab was placed in position and the lip around it’s edge made from more filler.The cab was then given a few coats of primer and sanded with wet and dry to get a nice smooth finish. However, the font of the cab seemed just too square, so this was cut apart and sections removed until the shape was correct. This was then decorated with the various kit parts. The windows were made by simply heating clear plastic and bending it around a piece of brass tube until the correct bend radius was achieved. The plastic was then offered up to the cab and the windows drawn on and cut out. The windscreen wipers and detail parts were scratch built.

With all of the detail parts fitted to both the cab and the body, the entire model was sanded down with wet and dry and sprayed with grey primer. Thin strips of masking tape were fitted to the body (as appears to be on the original studio models). More coats of primer were sprayed on and then the entire models was sprayed in metallic blue car spray paint – the closest colour I could find to the original. The wheels and chassiswas also sprayed in this blue colour. The tracks were painted matt black. Letraset rub down transfers were used for all of the markings and panel lines drawn on with a black ball point pen. The panel lines were then emphasised using black pastels. White and red trimline tape was used for the various stripes on the model. The windows were then added to the cab and glued into place. Letraline tape was then fitted around the windows to hide any join lines. The headlights were made up using parts from the Airfix Footbridge – which appear to be what was used on the original model. The cab interior was made up from plastic card and various kit parts for detail. I happened across the driver when I purchased a large toy truck for parts for another model I’m working on. The most surprising thing is, I believe he’s the same driver that was used in the original studio models of the Mobile!

And there we have it. However, I’ve still got the large SHADO decals to go on the side, once I track down some suitable lettering, as well as a few other bits and pieces. I’m sure it’s be finished in due time.

Image: Right front view

Image: View through the front window

Image: Inside the cabin

Image: The body shell

Image: The body shell front

Image: Boxy bit

Image: A door

Image: The cab from front

Image: The cabin inside

Image: Cab roof

Image: Wheels and things

Image: The drive section

Image: Filling with foam

Image: Finishing the bottom

Image: Little bits

Image: Little bits together

Image: More little bits

Image: Coming together: Left side

Image: Coming together: Front

Image: Coming together: Bottom

Image: Coming together: Front left quarter

Image: Coming together: Front right quarter

Image: Coming together: Right side