54cm Mörser "Loki"
Gerät 041
Dragon Kit No. 6181
1/35th Scale
In Box Review by Terry Ashley
As you would imaging most of this kit is from the first kit with a few minor alterations and additions plus the addition of an etched sheet for some finer details, therefore most of my comments on the “Karl” also apply hear.
The alterations from the first kit include the lower hull tub which now has the axles moulded in the lowered travel position but still retains the incorrect torsion bar arrangement.
Some of the other sprues have minor modifications such as new top sections of the hull ladders and a few other small parts added.
A new sprue H is included which includes the longer exhaust extensions and a two part 54cm shell plus other smaller parts.
The etched sheet as well as the barrel rifling has the circular screen for
the engine intakes, the driver’s instrument panel and sections for
the top of the large barrel trunnions. These are supposed to represent the
many bolt heads missing from the kit but the etched parts offer little other
than locations for adding your own bolt heads.
There are also numerous tool clasps which will add some small detail definition
to the kit and some other smaller detail parts.
Conclusion:
As with the first kit this will no doubt build into an impressive model
due to its size but again includes the same simplifications and basic level
of detailing.
But as the other threatened kits in the “Karl” game have not materialised then I guess this now becomes irrelevant as these two Dragon kits are the only game in town so if you want a kit of this impressive vehicle then this is it.
One small thing to watch is the boxart shows "Loki" in the firing position, but this would need the suspension in the raised position (hull lowered) and not in the travel position as in the kit, if you have both kits you can use either hull for whatever mode you are modelling the kit in.
Click on thumbnails for larger view
New Sprues
Sprues from original kit
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| "Bertha's
Big Brother Karl-Geraet (60 & 54cm)" by Thomas L. Jentz ISBN 0-9708407-2-1  |
AFV Modeller
Magazine |
| German Heavy Mortars Schiffer Military History Vol.39 ISBN 0-88740-322-0  |
Allied & Axis No.9 Ampersand Publishing  |
Page created 16 August 2003
