- British 6-Inch Medium
Trench Mortar -

Base and Groundwork:

The base is cut to 4-1/2 inches square x 3/4 inches thick and is oak. The wood was stained with an oil based penetrating stain and then sealed with multiple coats of polyurethane. There are four self-adhesive felt pads and the date of completion marked to the underside of the base.

The groundwork is a mix of Sculptamold, wood glue (aliphatic resin glue) and water. This was applied, working quickly to the contours desired, pressing in the boot prints and allowed to dry thoroughly for a couple of days.

Static grass was used sparingly and applied over thinned white glue (PVA).

Painting, Weathering and Finishing:

Acrylic paints and flat coat were used throughout. Winsor and Newton Oils thinned with Terponoid Odorless Brush Cleaner and Thinner were used for the wash effects. Colored artist pencils were sparingly used to aid in the weathering and various shades of  pastel weathering chalks were dusted on as well.

The alignment stripe on the tube is a SuperScale decal from the spare decal drawer.

General Mortar Info:

This particular version of the 6-Inch mortar cannot be verified. If it was an actuality, there is some question as to whether the 'Toffee Apple' chemical/gas bomb being depicted here was ever available as a 6 Inch munitions. (It was common for this type/shape of bomb to be used with the British WWI 2-Inch Mortar.) Also, the HE bombs included appear to resemble French WWI Pneumatic Mortar Bombs more than typical 6 Inch Bombs. There is also the question as to whether the Firing Mechanism being shown here on this model is correct or not for this mortar. The firing device that is being shown here was however, typical of the Newton-Stokes method of firing a mortar where the bomb is dropped down the tube and a blank cartridge is fired from the modified rifle that in turn ignites the charges attached to the bomb fins. British mortars were in some part, hurriedly placed into production for the First World War (very few mortars of all types were in the inventory at the outbreak of the war), and perhaps varied as far as any standardization might have gone. I have no means to verify any dimensional information and the only hand drawing of a British 6 Inch Mortar known, varies slightly from what this kit depicts.

Actual Mortar Data:

The 6 Inch mortar was also produced in the United States and was originally accepted into service as the Mark I and would eventually evolve into the Mark II and Mark III upgrades. Data listed below is for the U.S. Mark I. (Note the obvious differences between what is being shown here from the model.)

Mortars (Units) Produced, US Manufacture:

Ammunition (Rounds) Produced, US Manufacture:

          For the year 1918: 368

          For the year 1918: 292,882

          For the year 1919: 492,404

          Units shipped overseas: 48

          Ammunition shipped overseas: 0