Bobcat modified to mobile artillery

maxmwill · July 05, 2019, 12:40:49 PM

Not sure where to put this, as aviation has been my primary area of interest, but, this has been making me think a bit.

Could the lowly Bobcat tractor be modified to become some sort of mobile artillery? I realize that armor plating might make it safer, but perhaps might defeat the purpose of a rolling sniper type, small enough to go in and out of hiding places.

These things are fun to drive, with the pair of tiller sticks to control direction and speed, much like a tank, and the pedals could be used for some sort of gun mounting.

However, being typical of most modellers(but not THAT typical), I am a bit lazy, so have been looking for a Bobcat kit to play with the idea(new armor kits for spares needed), but that's been coming up dry so far.

So, a couple questions, is this plausible, and would it be practical?

Ed S · July 05, 2019, 01:08:43 PM

You would probably want to keep the weight down. Maybe recoilless rifles or multiple rocket launchers. Or a rapid fire GAU 12 type cannon.

maxmwill · July 05, 2019, 01:23:45 PM

Not sure about an MLRS, but the rest'd be easy(but beware Murphy's other law, it's never as easy as it appears).

And did a little more digging in EvilBay, and found a nifty range of cast metal Bobcats in scales ranging from 1/19 to 1/87, with one in 1/25 dressed up as an Army Bobcat.

Never thought to look at cast metal models, most of them being piggy banks, but now the possibilities have just begun multiplying like very horny and very fertile dust bunnies under the bed.

ChernayaAkula · July 05, 2019, 02:01:13 PM

Have you tried Google? I'd be very surprised if they hadn't weaponized a Bobcat in Syria/Iraq/Libya/..... They've put guns on everything!

kerick · July 05, 2019, 02:41:10 PM

Quote from: ChernayaAkula on July 05, 2019, 02:01:13 PM
Have you tried Google? I'd be very surprised if they hadn't weaponized a Bobcat in Syria/Iraq/Libya/..... They've put guns on everything!

Just what I was going to say!
They have put that Soviet style aircraft rocket launcher on just about everything, why not a bobcat?

jcf · July 05, 2019, 03:27:58 PM

" ... most of them being piggy banks ... "

Piggy bank things like the Texaco stuff are the smallest percentage of
the huge diecast market.

There are extremely detailed, and accurate, "diecasts" out there that
cost hundreds of dollars.

Weaver · July 05, 2019, 07:54:24 PM

Bobcats modified into robot military vehicles:

https://qinetiq-na.com/products/unmanned-systems/large-vehicles/

Minotaur for the US Army: https://qinetiq-na.com/products/unmanned-systems/robotic-controller-kit/minotaur/

The Rat · July 05, 2019, 09:05:45 PM

Had one at YYZ, those things are a blast to drive. Work the tillers just right, get it bouncing, and you can get all four wheels off the ground at the same time!

Weaver · July 05, 2019, 09:57:02 PM

How about replacing the bucket/blade with a platform carrying a TV camera turret with four ATGWs on the sides of it? The Bobcat could lift it up to fire from behind cover, then drop it down and beat a retreat back to a reloading vehicle.

kerick · July 05, 2019, 10:24:02 PM

Quote from: Weaver on July 05, 2019, 09:57:02 PM
How about replacing the bucket/blade with a platform carrying a TV camera turret with four ATGWs on the sides of it? The Bobcat could lift it up to fire from behind cover, then drop it down and beat a retreat back to a reloading vehicle.

You could make a diorama with it firing from behind some rubble or a concrete block wall so popular in the Middle East.

PR19_Kit · July 06, 2019, 01:38:45 AM

Quote from: The Rat on July 05, 2019, 09:05:45 PM
.......those things are a blast to drive. Work the tillers just right, get it bouncing, and you can get all four wheels off the ground at the same time!

Ain't that the truth!

I drove one while installing the world's largest wave-maker in Holland in the 80s. The sandy soil there made for LOADS of mini-sand-dunes and the Bobcat spent a lot of time airborne!

zenrat · July 06, 2019, 01:59:24 AM

Put 3 recoilless rifles on each side - mini Ontos.

Might need to look into operator comfort as the ones i've driven have shaken you to bits if you go quickly over rough ground.

Hobbes · July 06, 2019, 02:42:28 AM

Bobcats aren't the most stable platform to mount things on though, because they're so small. Install a gun with a bit of recoil on top and you'll topple every time you fire the gun.

If you really need a small vehicle, there's always the mini-excavator, which has the advantage of having a slewing platform, instead of having to skid-steer to aim your guns.

zenrat · July 06, 2019, 03:31:47 AM

Quote from: Hobbes on July 06, 2019, 02:42:28 AM
Bobcats aren't the most stable platform to mount things on though, because they're so small. Install a gun with a bit of recoil on top and you'll topple every time you fire the gun.

If you really need a small vehicle, there's always the mini-excavator, which has the advantage of having a slewing platform, instead of having to skid-steer to aim your guns.

Those things are very slow.
Might be better basing it on something like this...

...or this...

maxmwill · July 06, 2019, 06:11:21 AM

Re: Stability. Yes, a Bobcat might not be the stablest of platforms for something like a quad turret of 23mm, or larger, and an active and extensible hydraulic suspension, would be one way, and be expensive and complex, but doable. Something that might be just as good, if a bit lighter and less complex would be a set of stabilizing struts attached to the bottom, which would extend just prior to firing. Many backhoes use those when excavating to help counterbalance the bucket.

However, something like that could be better used in a jungle or forest setting, or even urban war.

And, if something else could be used for inspiration, what about the Ontos? A Bobcat similarly equipped might even be considered realistic