Matador Model's 1/76
British Horse-drawn Water Tank
 

On the Real Thing

Well, for the first time I have found a model kit that has left me stumped when it comes to info on the real thing! The original, the "Cart, Water Tank, Mk I" is obviously in the vast collections of the IWM, so I feel of course fully confident about the  authenticity of this.

Suffice it to say, that this must be one of the most un-glorious war vehicles that you can imagine, but at the same time in no way unimportant. As we all know, amateurs talk tactics while professionals talk logistics: and if there is one commodity second in importance only to ammo in war, it is WATER. Soldiers can last for many days without food, but even a single day without water will reduce the efficiency of the men drastically, soon making them incapacitated. And this Water Tank was of course very important in its own right, and as such had more influence on the war than many innovative and new machines of war.
 

The kit comes packed in a small but sturdy black card-board box with orange label typical of Matador. And as always with Matador it comes with an excellent plan, showing the construction of the kit, step by step. (And you need it: especially when it comes to the different taps and pipes.)

The kit itself consists of 28 parts in white metal. Also the kit comes with two riders, one in early-war soft cap, the other one in Brodie helmet and gasmask case. They have no horses to sit upon, which seem a bit strange, but I'm sure you will have no problems in scrounging a couple of nags from some other source.)

So what can you say: the design of the kit seems well thought-through, and quite an effort has gone into this little kit. I assume that the accuracy is high. To see the model built, click here! 

This kit can be bought directly from Matador using their very good own site.
 

Verdict

I like this little gem of a kit! It shows how serious they are, the guys at Matador, when the put such an effort into portraying something so un-glorious as a water-tank cart. Well done!  Recommended!!!