Sdkfz 222 Light Mortar Carrier

[Buzzbomb]

I needed some inspirational stash stalking. As there are load of new kits out there, a cull of older, yet highly whiffable models was the order of the day.
I saw lots of candidates and go to thinking about how even in wartime vehicles get outmoded for front line work, yet sometimes get converted into something else.

So I grabbed these, the venerable, yet still appealing Tamiya Sdkfz 222 and the still quite nice 81mm Mortar set.


Why not a light Mortar Carrier. The 81mm Mortar was fitted to the Sdfkz 251/2 so what about a smaller, more nimbler version for Recon Troops.

So off we went and in a short while we ended up with this as a hacked proof of concept


Still some thinking to go through, access, ammo.. you know practical stuff.. but this is whiffing

[taiidantomcat]

Cool idea. I always liked the mobile mortar idea

[Zaskar24]

Love the idea!

What about a lightly armored ammo box on the small back deck between the engine and fighting compartment? Not ideal for speed but out of the way of what will be a cramped fighting compartment.

[Logan Hartke]

Considering the SdKfz 250 replaced the 222 family in most roles and the SdKfz 250/7 variant was setup exactly this way, I think this seems perfectly natural. The Germans loved to "standardize" on one chassis and crank out a dozen variants to fulfill all the various functions necessary in a unit. Had the SdKfz 222 served a bit longer and not been replaced, then this would see quite plausible. It could even be an interim depot-level conversion of SdKfz 222s that were being replaced pending the introduction of the 250/7 variant.

Cheers,

Logan

[Camthalion]

cool idea. 

[Zaskar24]

Or reverse the mortar so that it fires over the rear deck. That way the ammo is to hand in front of the mortar and it can be used to cover retreats. A far more likely task for a vehicle like this since fighting is a light recon units last choice.

[Old Wombat]

Well, considering what they did with the LT vz. 38/Pzkpfw 38(t), why not?

Looks good, as usual! :)

Waiting for more.

[Buzzbomb]

the good think about this kind of small model is they come together pretty quickly.
I went with the mortar over the rear plan..great idea Zaskar. It makes sense on quite a few levels.
Whipped up some quick ammo bins and used some parts provided in the kit as well for smoke rounds or whatever.


Got the interior roughly like a 222 but it is going to be squeezy

next will be some ingenious folding seating arrangement.. perhaps.
I think one of the batteries might have to move

[Jeffry Fontaine]

What about mounting the mortar to a smaller base built into the floor?  This would give you a wee bit more room inside the vehicle.  The base can then be mounted on the outside of your vehicle.  For an example of what I am describing, the M125 81mm Mortar carrier based on the M113.

[Story]

Zaskar has an excellent point here.

Or reverse the mortar so that it fires over the rear deck. That way the ammo is to hand in front of the mortar and it can be used to cover retreats. A far more likely task for a vehicle like this since fighting is a light recon units last choice.

Furthermore, seems like the preponderance of the load-out would be smoke rounds (to cover these movements)  - note that the body of the round is Maroon.

[Story]

What about mounting the mortar to a smaller base built into the floor?

Or why not just a spare wheel and hub from a 37mm PaK? That'd give instant 360 degree traverse, and if they were mounting the guns w/ cradles on halftracks that'd leave plenty of perfectly good carriages.

There's a little lever you can use to raise & lower the axle. For the mortar job in the up position, base-wheel rotates freely. Down position, it rests on steel blocks so the mortar recoil doesn't mess up the bearing races inside the wheel.



Hmmm. Looking again at the 222, there doesn't seem to be enough room for 360 degree rotations. This idea might be better for a bigger chassis.

[Story]

I think one of the batteries might have to move

What about one of these (or one per side) for close-defense? Racks for the ammo boxes on the outer hull, edge of the turret race.

[Zaskar24]

Glad to be able to help buzzbomb. For a unit like this the most likely use would be to cover the rest of the section when it comes time to retreat. This way the vehicle is already facing in the correct direction to advance in retrograde between stops to drop smoke rounds to help screen the rest of the section in it's retrograde advance.   

The interior build so far is looking really good. An MG-34/42 on a race around the fighting compartment might not be a bad idea to provide self defense in tight situations.

[Claymore]

Wow, looking good and such a simple but believable whiff. Really looking forward to see how this one turns out. 😎

[Old Wombat]

It's a war-time contingency build, it's allowed to be a tight fit!


Lovin' it! :)

[Buzzbomb]

So at the end of the weekend we are just jetting along

Went for a raised protection layout and a bog standard 251/250ish MG shield for the self Defence MG


Initial paintings. For crew seating I went for some bench type cushions over the baseplate, which also mean that they can sit either way for travel or to service the weapon in a sitting position.. as lousy as that would be for a Mortar

The will be some repainting as some of it is OTT... waaaay OTT.

[Buzzbomb]

Thanks for the great comments and feedback.
So here we are... finished. Except for the bits I have not finished like the figure and the forgotten Aiming markers.

So to the model, this basic thing before painting


First up the markings.
I have been and avid reader of the Red Gambit series by Colin Gee http://www.redgambitseries.com/ (available on Amazon Kindle), which I have mentioned here before.
It is an alt history of the Red Army attacking the Western Allies in August 1945. One of the key things is the reformed German Federation providing forces to the allied cause. However the American/UK Politico's will not have a bar of the Waffen SS formations. However the French do see them as a very viable force and using a bit of political nouse, sign them up into the French Foreign Legion. So these markings are based on doodlings on the Red Gambit site, giving a French look with a touch of German colour.






On to the next project I suppose, unless I actually finish this one completely... 

[Zaskar24]

That looks great bb! The French markings over the West German colors looks good. The backstory is also good and one I might use for some ideas I have. I really have to pickup Red Gambit one of these days. It has only been in my Amazon cart for a couple of years now.

[Old Wombat]

As the French had little concern about enlisting ex-Waffen SS (other branches of the SS they weren't so keen on) into the Legion IRL, it works fine for me.

Sweet little build there, Brian! :)

[Frank3k]

Awesome job! The camo really makes it un-German. The interior is nicely done, too. The groundwork is great; did you make the grassy base/vines, too?

[AXOR]

Great model,I really like the balanced weathring. 

[Claymore]

Very nice indeed good Sir.  The Red Gambit series is an excellent base for all manner of whiffs. Looking forward to your next project.  :)

[GTX_Admin]

 :)

[apophenia]

Very nice build ... and love the Red Gambit/Légion étrangère angle  :)

[Story]

Very nice build ... and love the Red Gambit/Légion étrangère angle  :)

Ditto.

[Camthalion]

Nice work