Humber F.W.D. Ambulance

Dogfight Workshop, 1/48 scale

Background

The Humber F.W.D. was never going to turn heads at a military parade, but in the muddy, cratered landscapes of the Second World War, reliability mattered more than flash. Built on a robust four-wheel-drive chassis, the F.W.D. was designed to keep moving when other vehicles were stuck, hauling men, supplies—and, crucially, the wounded—over terrain that would have grounded most conventional ambulances.

The ambulance variant retained the same simple, boxy cab and functional bodywork, with just enough space for stretchers and a couple of attendants. Comfort was minimal; there was no luxury here, only practicality. Soldiers nicknamed them “Humpers,” and for those lying on the stretchers, the ride was rough—but life-saving.

Deployed across North Africa, Italy, and Northwest Europe, these vehicles became quiet heroes of the battlefield. Their mechanical reliability meant that even when roads were impassable or bridges destroyed, the wounded could still reach field hospitals. They didn’t win medals, but they carried something far more precious: hope.

This model is one in a family of three Humber F.W.D variants offered by Dogfight Workshop. It features a metal ambulance body and soft top cab.

FirstLook

Dogfight Workshop’s Humber F.W.D Ambulance comprises around 67 parts in grey 3d printed resin. The resin parts are delivered in a small stout cardboard box, with the parts inside also ensconced in bubble wrap for even more protection.

A comprehensive instruction booklet may also be downloaded from Dogfight Workshop’s website.

Print quality is excellent. There is nothing obvious in the way of striations or other imperfections on my sample.

The breakdown of the model will be no surprise to those who have a few 3d printed kits under their belts.

The kit delivers high level of detail inside and out. The driver’s cab, the ambulance rear cab, engine and drive train are all present.

Pretty much every door and hatch, including the bonnet, is separate and may be posed open, closed or anything in between.

Clean-up will be quite straightforward with parts attached to a fine network of supports that taper to almost hair-width contact points. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of these to remove, but a sharp hobby knife will make short work of the task.

The downloadable instructions are highly detailed and well-illustrated from the removal of the first printing artefact to the assembly of the very last part.

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Just about my only nit-pick is that decals are not included.

Conclusion

This is a very impressive demonstration of 3d printing. The parts count and level of detail is more what we might expect from a plastic model, but 3d printing has the potential to bring many very short run esoteric subjects to modellers’ tables.

Golden Age of Modelling?

Oh yeah.

Highly Recommended

Thanks to Dogfight Workshop for the sample www.dogfightworkshop.pl