M109 Howitzer (I think)

[wjbrandel]

Found this partially put together in a shoe box today, so I finished it after I finished the plane. I think it's a M109 Howitzer but I am not sure

I'm sure I hade a plan for it when I started it, but I have no idea what it was so I did it as a museum vehicle.

 

[BarleyBop]

Nice save!

Can't imagine what you might find in a hat box!

"Honey, did you keep those letters from your old girlfriend?!"
---"no, but I kept her Howitzer!"

 

[Jakko]

Yep, that's an M109A1. It differs from the baseline M109 mainly by having a much longer barrel. There's also the M109A2 and -A3, which are much the same but upgraded (the -A2 being newly built as such while the -A3 was converted from earlier vehicles), the M109A4 and-A5 that were slight upgrades of the previous, and the M109A6 and -A7, AKA "Paladin", which are attempts to keep an aging vehicle up-to-date.

 

[wjbrandel]

Yep, that's an M109A1. It differs from the baseline M109 mainly by having a much longer barrel. There's also the M109A2 and -A3, which are much the same but upgraded (the -A2 being newly built as such while the -A3 was converted from earlier vehicles), the M109A4 and-A5 that were slight upgrades of the previous, and the M109A6 and -A7, AKA "Paladin", which are attempts to keep an aging vehicle up-to-date.

Thanks for the info. I don't even know how old that model is or who made it. Like I said I found it in a shoe box with two other models, but the parts of the other two are mixed together with no instructions or other information. I can't remember where I got them.

 

[Jakko]

It looks 1:72 scale or thereabouts? But I can't find anything that looks like this on Scalemates. It's not the 1:87 Roco Minitanks model, as the details are clearly different, and all 1:72 scale kits shown on the site are far too new to be this crude. It's also not the ancient 1:48 Aurora kit, because they never made anything but the baseline M109, with the short gun barrel.

 

[Edbert]

I saw a documentary on the "Paladin" a few years back, heavily used on the GWOT(tm), but a pretty amazing machine. Or, "bit of kit" if that helps.

Your representation is really good, keep building!

 

[Jakko]

Now look up some YouTube videos on the PzH 2000 Compare:

 

[duck]

The M109A6 is not an attempt to keep the self propelled 155mm howitzer up to date. The computer, GOS and digital capabilities are ground breaking. With the press of a button, the systems automatically align on data sent from Fire Direction Control, giving faster. response speeds. No more having to stop, back up on spades, emplace fire control devices, align and safe the system with two external sources. The Paladin changed the game. The M109 A7 is an entirely new chassis, based on the M2 Bradley platform. The howitzer received upgrades, as did crew survivability.

Redlegs forever

 

[wjbrandel]

It looks 1:72 scale or thereabouts? But I can't find anything that looks like this on Scalemates. It's not the 1:87 Roco Minitanks model, as the details are clearly different, and all 1:72 scale kits shown on the site are far too new to be this crude. It's also not the ancient 1:48 Aurora kit, because they never made anything but the baseline M109, with the short gun barrel.

I am thinking it is a 1/72 scale just from the looks. Who made it will probably always be a mystery

Redlegs forever

Absolutely. I never served but my Uncle Dwight was a redleg in Korea and Vietnam. Served 3 tours in Vietnam on a 105. ended his 3rd as a gun captain (not sure if that the right title, his final rank was 1st Sgt.

 

[Jakko]

I am thinking it is a 1/72 scale just from the looks.

Easy enough to find out The real M109's hull (without the gun) is 6.19 m long, so measure your model's hull and divide 6.19 m by that to find the scale.

If it's indeed 1:72, the hull should be about 8.5 cm long.

 

[wjbrandel]

Yep. 1/72 scale

 

[duck]

I am thinking it is a 1/72 scale just from the looks. Who made it will probably always be a mystery


Absolutely. I never served but my Uncle Dwight was a redleg in Korea and Vietnam. Served 3 tours in Vietnam on a 105. ended his 3rd as a gun captain (not sure if that the right title, his final rank was 1st Sgt.

He may have been the acting commander during that 3rd tour. I've actually spent most of my artillery career on 105mm, the M119. Bit different from the piece he was on. He was either on the M101 or M102. I've been deployed three times, but only once as actually doing artillery stuff.

 

[wjbrandel]

He may have been the acting commander during that 3rd tour. I've actually spent most of my artillery career on 105mm, the M119. Bit different from the piece he was on. He was either on the M101 or M102. I've been deployed three times, but only once as actually doing artillery stuff.

No disagreement here because I just don't know. Thanks for the info, what I know about artillery and the crews is very little.

 

[Edbert]

Artillery is the God of War.

(possibly attributed to Stalin correctly, maybe not)

 

[duck]

Artillery is the God of War.

(possibly attributed to Stalin correctly, maybe not)

Ultima ratio regum. (The final argument of kings)
– Inscription on french cannons, on order of Louis XIV

One of my favorites.