Matador Models 1/76 6-inch Howitzer

The 6 inch Howitzer was taken into service in 1915, and was one of the most important British artillery pieces of the war. In 1918 some 4.000 of them were in use, and at the end of the war these guns had fired over 22 million shells. Among other things, they were also used as armament in the British Armys Gun Carriers, the worlds first SP Gun. (The Howitzers were modernized in the 20-ies, and were last used in action in 1944, and the year after they were declared obsolete. For more info on this gun, click here!)

The Matador kit kit is packed in a small cardboard box, and comes in 11 white metal parts. You get to choose between two types of wheels, the standard spoked variety, and the Modified B No. 12 wheel, designed for better handling in mud.

The casting is adequate, but not great, in fact it's a notch below the standard that you usually get from Matador Models. There is quite lot of moulding flash on the wheels. The accuracy is good, compared with plans in Tankette no. 30/1. 

The detailing is OK , but sparse. There are no rivets on the side of the carriage, and there are some finer details missing from the topside. The recoil spade has no lower part, but that will hardly be noticable, at least as not as long as you model it in emplaced position. The barrel is a little crude and will require sanding.  The kit comes with a set of good plans. (Anyone in need of references could look up Airfix Magazine the June 1982 issue, where there is a fine article on the gun, including an excellent set of plans.) 

I for one will use my 6 inch Howitzer in the Retromodels Gun Carrier. Another idea would be to equip it with so called Boydell Feet, wooden shoes in order to improve mobility in mud. The kit can be bought from the Scale Link site