Saint-Chamond Tracteur Polair - Expédition Antarctique Française 1919-1921

[Old Wombat]

Don't ya love it when a model company tries to sound super advanced..yet clearly have no idea about the lingo their using  😁

To be fair, 4D is the brand name, so, as long as they have a normal 3-dimensional physical location & the move through time like the rest of us, then the brand name is a fairly accurate description.

Ohh I don't know mate...ppl are doing are doing some really funky stuff these days

And in my job I meet far too many of them every day! 

[Wardukw]

Don't ya love it when a model company tries to sound super advanced..yet clearly have no idea about the lingo their using  😁

To be fair, 4D is the brand name, so, as long as they have a normal 3-dimensional physical location & the move through time like the rest of us, then the brand name is a fairly accurate description.

Ohh I don't know mate...ppl are doing are doing some really funky stuff these days

And in my job I meet far too many of them every day! 

   
Oh I bet you do and I'll bet many of em wished they could time travel to 😆

[RAFF-35]

Don't ya love it when a model company tries to sound super advanced..yet clearly have no idea about the lingo their using  😁

To be fair, 4D is the brand name, so, as long as they have a normal 3-dimensional physical location & the move through time like the rest of us, then the brand name is a fairly accurate description.

Ohh I don't know mate...ppl are doing are doing some really funky stuff these days

And in my job I meet far too many of them every day! 

What is it you do for a job?

[Old Wombat]

Don't ya love it when a model company tries to sound super advanced..yet clearly have no idea about the lingo their using  😁

To be fair, 4D is the brand name, so, as long as they have a normal 3-dimensional physical location & the move through time like the rest of us, then the brand name is a fairly accurate description.

Ohh I don't know mate...ppl are doing are doing some really funky stuff these days

And in my job I meet far too many of them every day! 

What is it you do for a job?

I'm an Intensive Compliance Officer for Home Detention for the South Australian Dept for Correctional Services. 

And in my job I meet far too many of them every day! 

   
Oh I bet you do and I'll bet many of em wished they could time travel to 😆

Yes Phill, almost all of them ... If they have the mental capacity to imagine time travel.

[RAFF-35]

So, after a slight pause in the build, the Saint-Chamond kit turned up yesterday so now progress can resume.

[PR19_Kit]

That'll take a lot of building, so many parts..............................   

[RAFF-35]

That'll take a lot of building, so many parts..............................   

I consider it a handicap for how long I've had to wait for the model to turn up in the first place 

[NARSES2]

That'll take a lot of building, so many parts..............................   

Ideal for a small scale armour kit. I've a couple which take the same path 

[RAFF-35]

Project update: The build is pretty much complete now. Just need to paint some final details, add the decals and finally do some moderate weathering.

[Old Wombat]

Looking good!


PS:

However, it has a trailer! David Fletcher has things to say about that!

I direct you to the 15:59 mark in this video;

Although it's now 13 years old, anyone interested in AFV's should watch the entirety of this on this link: Operation Think Tank 2012

[RAFF-35]

Looking good!


PS:

However, it has a trailer! David Fletcher has things to say about that!

I direct you to the 15:59 mark in this video;

Although it's now 13 years old, anyone interested in AFV's should watch the entirety of this on this link: Operation Think Tank 2012

Thank you very much for providing extra reasons for why this build should win the Bad Ideas GB  😂

[Wardukw]

That's looking very good bud...the details surprisingly crispy on that 👌.
I've thought about getting a 35th scale one and I'm not quite sure why 

[buzzbomb]

Nicely done

[RAFF-35]

A Tragic Account of the Lost Dumont d'Urville Antarctic Expedition (1919-1921)

The FS Persévérance steamed south through the endless grey waters, its prow breaking through the final barriers of ice as it approached Commonwealth Bay. It had taken months to prepare for this moment—to be the first French expedition to reach the South Pole and leave its mark on Antarctica.

Commandant Pierre Lemaître, standing on the bridge, looked out over the vast, frozen expanse that stretched beyond the horizon. His orders were clear: establish a scientific outpost, assert France's claim to Adélie Land, and test the capabilities of mechanized transport in the most hostile environment on Earth. But as the howling katabatic winds lashed against the ship, an unease settled in his chest.

In the cargo hold below, Lieutenant Jean Moreau and engineer Émile Perrin made final inspections of their prized machine, the Char Saint-Chamond tank. A now defunct war machine, it presented itself as a budget-friendly option for a cash-strapped post-war France to create an Antarctic exploration vehicle. It had been modified for the expedition, its metal tracks replaced with rubberized treads, its engine insulated, and its armour lightened to reduce weight. The hull was painted silver to give the tank a modern look. The expedition sponsors had convinced themselves that this hulking relic of war would revolutionize polar exploration. They were wrong.

By January 1920, the expedition had carved out Base Dumont d'Urville on the frigid coastline, a cluster of wooden huts and supply depots half-buried in snow. The Saint-Chamond was deployed immediately, its engine roaring against the wind, belching smoke into the frozen air.

At first, it performed well, hauling supplies inland, and carving a path through the ice that sled dogs struggled to navigate. But cracks in their grand plan began to show almost immediately. The tank's immense weight made it sluggish in the deep snow, its tracks frequently bogging down. More worryingly, its engine struggled in the extreme cold, requiring hours of heating before it would even start. Fuel reserves dwindled at an alarming rate.

The men attempted to traverse an ice field with the Saint-Chamond, hoping to reach a higher plateau where they could survey the land. The expedition's first true disaster came when the ice gave way beneath the tank's weight, nearly swallowing it into a hidden crevasse. Only by sacrificing much of their supply load were they able to drag it free, a process that took two agonizing days.

Dr. Louis Martel, the expedition's chief scientist, watched with growing concern. "This machine was built for the battlefields of France," he muttered one evening as he scribbled in his journal. "Not for this cursed land."

Determined not to let their setbacks define them, Lemaître made a bold decision: they would go ahead with the attempt to reach the South Pole, becoming the first Frenchmen to do so. If successful, they would secure France's place among the great polar explorers.

The Saint-Chamond, despite its failures, was still viewed as their best hope for hauling supplies on such an arduous journey. By September, with what little fuel remained, they set out across the ice shelf.

The problems worsened almost immediately. The Saint-Chamond's engine constantly froze, requiring endless maintenance. Its tracks cracked in the cold, rendering it nearly immobile. Worst of all, the thin Antarctic ice beneath them threatened to give way with each passing mile.

Three weeks in, the expedition became trapped in an unexpected whiteout blizzard. The Saint-Chamond burned through its last reserves of fuel as they tried to keep the engine running for heat. When the storm finally cleared, they faced a stark reality: the tank was dead, half-buried in ice, useless in the vast emptiness. They were still over 700 kilometres from the Pole—and now they were stranded.

With no other choice, Lemaître ordered the crew to abandon the Saint-Chamond and proceed on foot. The tank, once their great hope, was left behind, a lifeless hulk in the snow.

The first man to die was François Dupont, the chief mechanic, who collapsed from exhaustion. Then it was Jean-Baptiste Armand, the cartographer, who wandered from camp one night, delirious from hunger. When they found him the next morning, his frozen body was staring skyward, his face locked in torment.

The further they marched, the weaker they became. One by one, the expedition fell to the unrelenting ice. The last journal entry, scrawled by Dr. Martel in frozen ink, simply read:

"The wind never stops. The ice does not forgive. If anyone finds this, tell France we tried."

[RAFF-35]

My thanks go to Kit for supplying me with custom decals that really tie this build together and complete the look of an exploration vehicle