Glad you are okay! 

The M109 is looking really good! 

US Air Force released news flash 5 hours ago. In an amazing first, an artillery cannon took out a cruise missile.

An M109 Paladin 155 mm howitzer made history recently by shooting down a fast-moving maneuvering cruise missile with a “hypervelocity projectile” able to travel at speeds up to Mach 5, [or about 3,800 mph] according to an Air Force announcement. Historically, armored vehicles such as tanks, howitzers or infantry carriers have not operated with an ability to destroy fast-moving, long-range cruise missiles, yet the successful demonstration breaks new ground.

The shoot-down, which took place at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, destroyed a “surrogate” Russian cruise missile target using the Air Force’s Advanced Battle Management System (ABMS).

In development for several years now, ABMS represents an Air Force technical initiative to engineer a “meshed” network of otherwise disconnected sensor “nodes” throughout a theater of combat operations. While an Air Force program, the effort is intended by all estimations to inform the Pentagon’s broader Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) technological system.

The concept with JADC2 is to integrate sensor-to-shooter capabilities across air-land-sea-space and cyber domains in real-time, decreasing latency, expediting attacks and bringing new dimensions to “joint warfare.”

Excerpt from article by Kris Osborn, Managing Editor of Warrior Maven and The Defense Editor of The National Interest.

Who said you can't teach an old-dog new tricks?

Harold

Gamera

YOW!!! Glad you guys are okay too!!! 

We got a bit of rain from the recent hurricane but that's what we consider 'extreme' weather! 

 

YOW!!! Glad you guys are okay too!!! 

We got a bit of rain from the recent hurricane but that's what we consider 'extreme' weather! 

TigerII

These SP guns are coming along very nicely. I love the interior on the A2. I need to make a tank with the interior like when I used to make the old 1/48 scale Bandai Panzers. Enjoy what you can of your vacation but be safe Harold. Semper Fi Brother!

 

These SP guns are coming along very nicely. I love the interior on the A2. I need to make a tank with the interior like when I used to make the old 1/48 scale Bandai Panzers. Enjoy what you can of your vacation but be safe Harold. Semper Fi Brother!

Please stay as safe as possible. Just got back from Yreka California where the smoke was so thick I thought I was back in So Cal in 1965. Thick smoke for 1120 miles each way.

Be careful and stay safe.

Bish

HeavyArty

They are both coming along nicely.  Great work so far.

 

 

Thats another nice looking piece you have there with the A3.

  

No M109A3 here.  The second one (short barrel) is a straight M109.  It is the first version in the series and predecessor to the M109A2, which is the one he is building w/an interior.

 

Thanks for the correction Gino.

 

Harold

8:30 AM Tuesday, September 8, 2020

10:15 AM Tuesday, September 8, 2020

HeavyArty

They are both coming along nicely.  Great work so far.

 

 

Thats another nice looking piece you have there with the A3.

 

 

No M109A3 here.  The second one (short barrel) is a straight M109.  It is the first version in the series and predecessor to the M109A2, which is the one he is building w/an interior.

 

Thanks for the correction Gino.

They are both coming along nicely.  Great work so far.

Thats another nice looking piece you have there with the A3.

No M109A3 here.  The second one (short barrel) is a straight M109.  It is the first version in the series and predecessor to the M109A2, which is the one he is building w/an interior.

That's coming along great!!! 

And the Matador and Bofors look cool!  

Thats another nice looking piece you have there with the A3. Loks very differant with that short gun.

And looking forward to seeing what you do with that matador, your deffinetly knocking out the AFV Club kits there. But remeber, it doesn't have to be done by the end of the year, so please don't rush anything.

Harold, All your detail work looks great and it sounds as if you have your projects stacked up pretty good. You have a great vacation!

Gamera

Harold: That ammo looks great!

 

M109A2:

As I mentioned a short time ago, I decided to replace the Black Dog resin 155mm ammunition with AFV Club styrene because the quality of the Black Dog product was not equal to the AFV Club M109A2 model.

I purchased two AFV Club ammunition kits #35017 and used part of one kit to rebuild the ammunition storage box. Please see photograph #3 below. I also removed the resin rings in three locations for up-right ammunition storage on the deck to make way for styrene ammunition. See photograph #2. This was a lot easier than I thought it would be, but since I had most of the interior hand painting completed, I decided to repaint this area by hand also.

I still need to paint the Smoke and Illumination projectiles, then give all the ammunition a clear satin coat and decals. Gino has kindly provided artwork so I can print my own projectile and powder canister labels. When the ammunition is finished, I can continue the turret and remaining exterior hull assembly. I painted enough High Explosive (HE) projectiles to have three crates of ammunition for the M54A2 cargo truck I plan to build next January.

I also rebuilt the loader-rammer from styrene because the resin parts were very poorly made. See photographs #4, Resin Rammer and #5, Styrene Rammer below.

#1

#2

#3

#4 Resin Rammer

#5 Styrene Rammer

M109 L23:

I completed assembly of the new AFV Club kit #35329 and its ready for primer. See photographs #6 - #10 below. The assembly is like the M109A2 and it went together without a problem. Since I do not have an interior kit for this model, I closed all the doors and hatches and will paint it in the U.S. Army Vietnam period olive drab. As you can see, I did add Friulmodel metal tracks and a Eureka wire tow cable which I feel give the model a realistic appearance.

The painting of this model will need to wait until I return from vacation. This year with all the restriction on travels my wife and I are planning to spend an extended period at our place on the Pacific Coast. Since I am limited in what I can do on vacation I plan to finish the styrene ammunition and start the next project. 

#6

#7

#8

#9

#10

British Army Group Build: 

I joined the British Army Group Build with Bish and other modelers from our FSM Forums. My project will be the AFV Club AEC Matador, World War II artillery tractor. See photographs #11 and 12 below. I have until the end of the year to finish this model, but I will get a head start on vacation. I also plan to build the British Bofors 40mm Anti-Aircraft gun during the Christmas holiday to go with the Matador. See photograph #13.

#11

#12

#13

Harold: That ammo looks great! 

Captain: Ohhhhhhh, cool video!

Sergeant

Thank you CapnMac82, this is the most complete video I have seen of US Army artillery from the Vietnam War. If I was 50-year younger, I would do it again.

Harold

Not a problem.  I shared that one around a bit.  Particularly an HS & university buddy who was assigned to a Pershhing Battery near Ulm.

And to my ROTC buddy who was in a Marine M-110 battery before moving on up to retire an O-5

In my while as a beachmaster I had to get a bunch of those over the littoral and onshore (and back again).

Seeing althose guys in OG-107 and M-56 takes me back, too.

Thank you CapnMac82, this is the most complete video I have seen of US Army artillery from the Vietnam War. If I was 50-year younger, I would do it again.

Harold

Saw this today--a 1966 review of Field Artillery

Which may get some Red Leg juices going, too.

Along with some "hey, why aren't there kits of" questions, too.

Gamera

That looks great! Love how the tracks came out.

 

I also received some Evergreen Scale Models stock to rebuild the rammer in styrene on the M109A2 barrel and breechblock assembly. The resin loader-rammer was very rough and poorly modeled as you can see in the second photograph below. I would not bother with it except the rammer is easily seen through the turret door.

Harold

That looks great! Love how the tracks came out. 

HeavyArty

AFV Club currently offers all the major versions that make it pretty easy to build all the other versions by mixing and matching different parts from their existing kits.  Here is a rundown.

M108: AFV Club kit

M109: AFV Club kit

M109G - Germany: AFV Club kit

M109A1
Replaced the M126 gun (M109 gun) with a longer barreled, 39 caliber M185 gun.
To model: Use the M109 kit and replace the barrel with one from the M109A2 kit. Alternately, use IDF M109 Rochev 1983 kit and leave off all IDF parts.

M109A1 Rochev (1983) - IDF: AFV Club kit

M109A2: AFV Club kit

M109A2 Doher - IDF: AFV Club kit

M109A3
Rebuilt M109A1 to A2 standards; only external differences to an A2 are flotation bolts left on hull sides and lugs left on front lower plate.  To model: Use the M109 hull, but leave off the parts for the flotation collar on top of the hull under the front of the turret.  

M109A4
M109A2s and A3s with added NBC protection and a few other improvements; all intenal, no external differences to A2s.

M109A5
Replaced the M185 gun with the M284 gun (M109A6 gun). To model: Use the M109A2 kit and replace the barrel with one from the M109A6 kit.

M109A6: AFV Club kit

M109A7: Panda kit

Your best bet is to stick w/the AFV Club kits.  They are light years ahead of the old Italeri kits.  All the others are reboxes of Italeri's molds, with some minor updates in the Tamiya kits and usually some stowage and/or figures added.  The Kinetic A2/A3 isn't that good (about the same as Italeri) and is soft on details.  Riich Model never released thier A6.

I doubt Panda will come out w/an updated version, but who knows. 

The engine can be used on any version of the M109 up through the A6.  The engine layout didn't really change.

 

Harold

AFV Club currently offers all the major versions that make it pretty easy to build all the other versions by mixing and matching different parts from their existing kits.  Here is a rundown.

M108: AFV Club kit

M109: AFV Club kit

M109G - Germany: AFV Club kit

M109A1
Replaced the M126 gun (M109 gun) with a longer barreled, 39 caliber M185 gun.
To model: Use the M109 kit and replace the barrel with one from the M109A2 kit. Alternately, use IDF M109 Rochev 1983 kit and leave off all IDF parts.

M109A1 Rochev (1983) - IDF: AFV Club kit

M109A2: AFV Club kit

M109A2 Doher - IDF: AFV Club kit

M109A3
Rebuilt M109A1 to A2 standards; only external differences to an A2 are flotation bolts left on hull sides and lugs left on front lower plate.  To model: Use the M109 hull, but leave off the parts for the flotation collar on top of the hull under the front of the turret.  Also use M109A2 turret. 

M109A4
M109A2s and A3s with added NBC protection and a few other improvements; all intenal, no external differences to A2s.

M109A5
Replaced the M185 gun with the M284 gun (M109A6 gun). To model: Use the M109A2 kit and replace the barrel with one from the M109A6 kit.

M109A6: AFV Club kit

M109A7: Panda kit

Your best bet is to stick w/the AFV Club kits.  They are light years ahead of the old Italeri kits.  All the others are reboxes of Italeri's molds, with some minor updates in the Tamiya kits and usually some stowage and/or figures added.  The Kinetic A2/A3 isn't that good (about the same as Italeri) and is soft on details.  Riich Model never released thier A6.

I doubt Panda will come out w/an updated version, but who knows. 

The engine can be used on any version of the M109 up through the A6.  The engine layout didn't really change.

Gino, I just finished reading the review and build you did and Robert Skipper did on the M109A7 Paladin from Panda and it looks like a winner with some modification. Do you think Panda will come out with new tooling to correct these issues that Robert mentioned? I also checked Scalemates for manufactures of other M109 versions:

1. M109 L23 - Tamiya and AFV Club

2. M109A1 - None

3a. M109A2 - US Army version - AFV Club, Italeri and others

3b. M109A2 - Doher version - AFV Club

3c. M109A2 - IDF Rochev version - AFV Club

4. M109A3 - None

5. M109A4 - None

6. M109A5 - None

7. M109A6 Paladin - AFV Club, Academy, Italeri, Tamiya and Riich

8. M109A7 Paladin - Panda

Can the Real Model resin engine kit be used in the M109A2 Doher or IDF Rohev versions?

Harold

Gino, thank you for providing background information on the engine size and the M109A7 Paladin. My goal is to build every version of the M109 available. My M109A2 will have the interior and one of the others I hope will have that cool engine kit you reviewed. As time goes on, I hope to have five or six M109 versions.

GreySnake

The interior is really coming out nicely, looking forward to more.   

 

 

Sergeant

Thank you Gino for clarifying the difference between the AS-90 and M109A2 engine. 210 hp is a big difference, about 30% more power. I am surprised the US Army did not use a larger engine too.

You have to remember when the vehicles were designed/made originally.  The M109 dates back to the late 1950s.  The engine has been upgraded over the years, but you are limited to engine size based on hull size.  On the other hand, the AS-90 was designed in the late 1980s.  It was designed with a larger engine in mind.  The hull/engine size of the M109 and its inability to keep up with Abrams and Bradleys on the battlefield is the reason for the new M109A7 Paladin.  The A7 has an all-new, wider  hull using the Bradley engine, transmission, running gear, and tracks.  The turret is an improved A6 turret.  The Bradley/M109A7 engine is the same Cummins VTA-903T diesel as the AS-90.

M109A7 Paladin

Panda offers the M109A7 in 1/35.

I did a build review of it at Armorama:  https://armorama.kitmaker.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=Reviews&file=index&req=showcontent&id=15016

It is pretty nice out of the box, but apparently it still has many of the prototype features as opposed to what is currently being fielded.  There is a great thread at Armorama now that shows what can be done to bring it up to the fielded version:  https://armorama.kitmaker.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=SquawkBox&file=index&req=viewtopic&topic_id=286988&page=1&ord=0

HeavyArty

Sergeant

Bish, if you are following this thread, I found a cool item to consider for your AS90 build. It is actually a review that Gino did in November 2013 on an Real Model resin M109A2/A6 engine kit. Please check with Gino, but I believe the engine in an AS90 is similar if not the same as the M109A2/A6. A 660hp V8 diesel engine from Cummins, coupled to a ZF Gear Ltd. automatic transmission.

Unfortunately, it is not the same engine.  The AS-90 uses a Cummins VTA903T V8 making 660 Hp, while the M109 engine is a Detroit Diesel 8V71T V8 engine making 450 Hp.   As both are V8 diesels, they may look similar enough to put in the AS-90 though.

 

Bish, BK, Ogrejohn and Gamera I really appreciated your comments and input. I completed steps 1 through 11 and I am working on 12 through 17 to complete the hull. I already have the Friulmodel tracks assembled, so I should be able to start on the turret by Friday.

Harold

She's coming along great!!! 

And good thing you have Gino, it's an engine- they pretty much look the same to me!