Hobbyboss German KARL-Geraet 040/041 on Railway Transport Carrier - 1:72

[Paul A H]

German KARL-Geraet 040/041 on Railway Transport Carrier

1:72 Hobbyboss

 

 

Mörser Karl was a German siege mortar developed in the late 1930s by Rheinmetall and named after General Karl Becker. Seven examples were completed, bearing the names Adam, Eva, Loki, Odin, Thor and Ziu (the seventh was a test version and was not named). Although few in number, these huge weapons were present at some of the key events in World War II including the sieges of Brest-Litovsk and Sevastopol, the Warsaw Uprising, the Battle of the Bulge and the fighting at the Remagen bridge. The mortar was capable of firing a 24 inch shell over six miles. A single example is preserved at the Kubinka tank museum, Moscow Olblast, Russia.

 

For thirty-or-so years, modellers of small-scale armour had precisely one kit of this fearsome siege weapon to choose from. Happily that kit was made by Japanese firm Hasegawa and despite its age it has held up well. Nothing lasts forever though, and a decade or so ago, Hobbyboss released a new kit of this interesting type. Given the four decades that separate the old kit from this new pretender, it should come as no suprise that both the part count and the level of detail displayed by the newer kit are on a whole new level. Open up the box and it is immediately obvious that this is a Hobbyboss kit. The parts are scrupulously well-packed and extra foam has been used to safeguard the most delicate mouldings where needed. Overall there are fifteen frames of grey coloured plastic, as well as flexible tracks and some small metal details such as springs. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Construction of the mortar begins with the chassis and running gear. Hobbyboss have provided a chassis with eleven steel rimmed road wheels, which means the kit can serve as a basis for chassis numbers III (Thor), IV (Odin), V (Loki) and VI (Ziu). Chassis numbers I (Adam/Baldur) and II (Eva/Wotan) had eight rubber rimmed wheels and so cannot be built using this kit (note - a version of the earlier chassis with rail transporter was released by Hobbyboss in 2008. The top of the chassis includes plenty of detail and parts such as the radiator cover and exhaust silencers are moulded as separate parts. The flexible tracks look pretty good, but it would have been nice to have plastic tracks as an option. Once the hull is complete, constructions turns to the mount for the mortar. The four springs are needed here, so try not to let them ping off into the ether! Two options are provided for the mortar itself - the short-barrelled 600mm Gerat 040 and the long-barrelled 540mm Gerat 041. The mount is actually relatively straightforward to assemble - somehow I thought it would be more complex. Once complete, the gun can be added to the mount and the mount to the chassis. One of the most delicate parts of the whole kit are the finely moulded handrails that run the length of the chassis on either side. Unsurprisingly, these are the last parts to be added in order to complete the Karl itself. 

 

 

 

 

 

Now the mortar itself is complete, construction turns to the rail carrier. Alongside the parts for the two carriers, you get a four-section length of Hobbyboss's familar trackbed (not pictured). This comes with ballast and sleepers moulded in place, but separate rails and fish plates. I would highly recommend purchasing some model railway ballast to add detail and variation to this parts, as well as hide the joins in the plastic. The rail carriers themselves aren't too complex to assemble. Each has 10 wheels, with the axles and suspension components moulded separately. Buffers and couplings are included, as well as hydraulic equipment and stowage boxes for tools and other material. Two huge rivetted frames are provided to mount the Karl on the two rail carriers, with pins provided to hold the whole thing together. I guess these could be left unglued in case you ever wanted to remove the mortar from the rail carriers. With that, the monster is complete. The painting and marking guide shows chassis V (Loki) in overall field grey. The decal sheet is by no means huge, but it does include markings for the rail carriers. 

 

 

 

Conclusion

 

I'm not sure why Hobbyboss have decided to re-visit their range of Karl kits now, but it's nice that we finally have a version of the later chassis complete with rail carrier. It will make a great model when paired with the BR57, perhaps in a diorama with the weapon being readied for unloading. Whatever you decide, you can't deny that it's nice to have a modern kit of this interesting subject. Recommended.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of

 

[davecov]

Nice review, Paul. I wish I had seen such a review before I bought the version without the Railway Transport Carrier at the start of this year. I didn't know that there was this version. Shame as I am currently building the HobbyBoss Leopold Railway Gun and have the HobbyBoss Dora sitting in my stash. My Karl-Geraet Mortar is shown below with the 1/72 HobbyBoss MunitionsSchlepper and a 1/76 Matchbox Wespe while all three were under construction:

 

Dave