FEMALE & MALE LANDSHIP
Model by Franco Fusco.
The creation of a Landships to cope with the problems of trench warfare was inspired by Wiston Churchill in early 1915 with the creation of the Landship Committee.
In September 1915 the first tank prototype, Little Willie, was ready and proved the validity of the concept. It evolved in the MARK I, the first tank to enter service (August 1916)
and to see combat (15 September 1916).
The development of the tank continued with the MARK II, MARK III and the MARK IV. More heavily armoured than its predecessors, with upgraded armament and mechanically improvements, the MARK IV was to be the British tank produced in largest number (1220) during the Great War.
The MARK IV first saw action on 7 June 1917 (Messines Ridge) and remained in service until the end of the war. With the German A7V was engaged in the first tank to tank battle in April 1918 (Second battle of Villers-Bretonneux) .
420 MARK IV “Male” and 595 MARK IV “Female” tanks were produced.
The “Male” was armed with two QF 6-pounder 6 cwt and three .303 Lewis guns; the “Female” was armed with five .303 Lewis guns.
The Germans re-employed about 40 captured MARK IV tanks, organized in four companies, due to shortage of British ammunition, some "Male” were reequipped with the Belgian 5.7cm quick-firing Maxim Nordenfelt Model 1888 guns.
The Bundle will allow you to have on your table the MARK IV tank in 28mm scale.
You can choose between the “Male” and the “Female” tanks in two different colours.
One with the plain khaki brown finish (hereafter referred as “early”) and the other with the white and red recognition stripes (hereafter referred as “late”) adopted after the battle of Cambrai to distinguish friendly tanks from the Beutepanzer (tanks captured by the Germans).
The model can also be equipped with an unditching beam and a fascine, wonderfully designed and engineered by Peter Dennis, with which MARK IV tanks were equipped at the Battle of Cambrai.
Notes
The bundle consists of twelve sheets for the four models to be printed on 100 g/sm and 160 g/sm (suggested) paper, and nine sheets for the instructions.
Once downloaded, the sheets can be printed as often as you like, which means you can build any number of MARK IV Landships very cheaply.
You will need scissors, a craft knife, a metal ruler, glue, 100 g/smand 160 g/sm (recommended weight) paper, 1mm card (I recommend finnboard/wood pulp board), cereal box type card, light card, cocktail sticks and pins.
You will also need acrylic paint pens of various colours (sepia, grey, etc…) to touch up the parts, all of which are described in the included how-to section.
Don't forget to join our, very active, group on facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/peterspaperboys
Our Motto is Paper Tanks, Proper Tanks!
Enjoy