Benbros Mighty Midgets

No.31 Covered Truck

Benbros used the AEC and Bedford cab & chassis castings as the basis for three more additions to the Mighty Midgets with No.31 Covered Truck being the next. Representing a canvas tilt over a dropside lorry, the body included a lot more detail than the earlier Delivery Van (No.23).

The AEC version was issued before the Bedford variation appeared and was painted metallic green with silver trim on grille and headlights. The wheels were unpainted metal on nail-head & crimped axles which continued on all the AEC variations. 'Benbros' and 'Made in England' were cast under the chassis.

After the first issue, the AEC shared four colours with the Bedford variation, metallic blue, orange-red, red (or crimson-red), and mid-blue, so they may have been in production together. Silver trim continued to be applied although it was sometimes omitted on metallic blue AEC models.

With the Bedford cab & chassis, Benbros gave No.31 Covered Truck a bit more colour variety. The first version was metallic blue with unpainted metal wheels (round-head & crimped axles) with silver trim on grille, bumper and occaisionally the headlights.

Next there was an orange-red Bedford variation with metal wheels and silver trim, and then a run of crimson-red models, also with metal wheels but with a gold tint to the grille trim. 

The Bedford version was the only Covered Truck to be painted beige. Two versions of this were produced, the first with red trim and unpainted metal wheels, the second with silver trim and black plastic wheels, and this variation often has a cream underside.

The last three Bedford models all had black plastic wheels starting with another crimson or dark-red variation, then a pale-blue variation followed by another which was a much darker blue. These were all finished with silver trim on the front.

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Both AEC and Bedford models were sold in the same Mighty Midget boxes with an illustration of an AEC covered truck on them. 

No.31 Covered Truck was possibly not very popular because it is quite hard to find except for the orange-red AEC. All the Bedfords are scarce and both the beige and the blue variations with black plastic wheels are rare.  

AEC Variation 1 : metallic green, umw

AEC Variation 2 : metallic blue, umw

AEC Variation 3 : orange-red, umw

AEC Variation 4: crimson-red, umw

AEC Variation 5 : blue, umw

Benbros No.31 Covered Truck : AEC colours

AEC metallic blue - with & without silver trim

Benbros No.31 Covered Truck

Variations

All models had Mighty Midget boxes

AEC

(1) METALLIC GREEN       umw

(2) METALLIC BLUE          umw

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(3) ORANGE-RED             umw

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(4) CRIMSON-RED           umw

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(5) BLUE                            umw

BEDFORD

(1) METALLIC BLUE           umw

(2) ORANGE-RED              umw

(3) CRIMSON-RED            umw

(4) BEIGE    RED  trim        umw

(5) BEIGE    SILVER trim    bpw

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(6) DARK-RED                    bpw

(7) PALE-BLUE                   bpw

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(8) DARK-BLUE                  bpw

Bedford Variation 2 : orange-red, umw

Bedford Variation 3 : crimson-red, gold trim, umw

Bedford Variation 4 : Beige, red trim, umw

Bedford Variation 5 : Beige with cream underside, silver trim, bpw

Bedford variation 6: dark-red, bpw

Bedford variation 7: Pale-blue, bpw

Bedford variation 8: Dark-blue, bpw

Red Bedford colours: v2 (left); v3 (centre); v6 (right)

Blue Bedford colours: v7 (left); v8 (right)