Modern US Artillery

The artillery kit options are getting better, but they are still pretty slim.  The M119 is available from Mouse House Miniatures out of Australia in resin.  It is pricey, but nice.  Redleg12 (Mike DelVeccio) built a really nice example here a while back.

Italeri makes the m109A6 Paladin.  It is a pretty nice kit.  Italeri has made pretty much the whole line of 1960's to present SP Arty kits.  They have the M107, M108, M109, M109A2, M109A6, M110, M110A2.  They come in and out of production from time to time.  Keep an eye out for them on eBay.  The Paladin is the only one currently in production.

Trumpeter's M198 comes in two versions; early and late.  They are actually the same kit though.  All the parts are the same.  The early version has you leave off a couple parts.  The late version has a longer hydraulic reservoir and a gauge package for the brake system.  Either can be built as an early or a late model.

A B-FIST can be easily converted from a standard Brad.  The only real external difference is the back of the TOW box is blocked off with a flat plate, and there are two antennas added to the rear light guards.  I did one a while ago with a full interior.

More here.Unfortunately, there is no kit of the M777 yet.  That would be a nice model.  As to the NLOS...I am glad its gone.  It was not an improvement over the Paladin.  

If you want to go a little historical, there are nice kits by Dragon (M2A1 105mm) and AFV Club has a nice M102 105mm.  AFV Club also does a nice M40 155 SP from the Korean War time-frame and both an M59 Long Tom (155) and M115 (8") towed WWII pieces.  Dragon has also announced an WWII M7 Priest (105 SP), and Italeri and Academy have a Priest as well.  There are lots of other really nice WWII era arty kits out there as well.  It just depends on what you want to focus on.

There's also Dragon's MLRS, not an easy kit to build, but is an artillery piece that's been around for decades and as a kit, almost as long.

Academy also does an M981 FIST-V for the old school FSOs.

Another "artillery" piece is the old Tamiya M106 4.2" mortar; there is a conversion to make it into a modern M1064 120mm mortar carrier.

The last one that comes to mind is the new Pack 75. Kind of still in use by installations and divisions for ceremonial salutes, changes-of-command and the like.

I've seen the MLRS at the store and seriously considered buying it.  I didn't know about the "modern" and "early version" for Trumpeter's M198.  That might be a good kit to pick up.

I saw that Dragon was going to make an M7 Priest.  I'm sure I'll get that eventually.  That used to be my favorite MicroMachine toy when I was very young...

HeavyArty, you're talking about the NLOS Cannon.  I'm rather glad that was cancelled as well and the Paladin PIM will be the Army's new standard.  I was deeply involved in the NLOS Launch System (guided missiles).  It just got cancelled as well.  I suppose a model could be pretty easy to make with just an LMTV with a couple boxes on the back.  The concept was sound and certainly the future of the artillery, the missile itself was quite faulty.  Reports say it hit 2 out of 6 missiles fired in the Army's test, but it was really 1out of 6 since one only hit the target's treads.  Heh, one of the misses is still completely unaccounted for at White Sands... we don't know where it went; might've hit an intervening crest.

First welcome to a fellow redleg!!

My younger brother Gino already gave you most of the low down and Rob gave you some more ideas. Here are my builds of the "modern" towed US artillery

M119

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M198

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As my younger brother Gino states there is no M777 yet. Going the other direction....AFV makes an M102 (my generation 105mm). Discussing earliers weapons invokes a much longer answer. If you are interested you can PM me as US Artillery and AFVs is all I model and collect!!

On the SP side, there is the Dragon M270 MLRS and Italeri M109A6 1055mm. Again lots of other variants and earlier models

Rob mentioned the M106.....the Tamiya kit is the early version. You can buy the kit and get a resin conversion to the M106A3 and the 120mm mortar.

Welcome aboard.

Rounds Complete!!