by waynemc65

1/72 WW1 German 15cm sFH 13 kurz

The schwere FeldHaubitze 13 (kurz) was a WW1 German heavy Field Howitzer (sFH) introduced in 1913 as a development of the previous standard heavy howitzer, the 15 cm sFH 02. Improvements included a longer barrel resulting in better range and a gun shield to protect the crew. The term "kurz" (short) was used to describe this version after further development increased the barrel length again, from L/14 (14 calibre short barrel version), to L/17 in the “lang” (long) version. The lang, L/17 version was still in service in second-line units of the Wehrmacht in WW2, and some were mounted on captured French Lorraine vehicles to create self-propelled artillery.

This model includes parts to for the gun in either deployed (firing) mode or in limbered (for towing) mode. The difference between these two is in the gun trail – firing mode has the lock bar stowed on the trail; limbered mode has the lock across the trail to support the rear of the barrel slide assembly. I had some difficulty printing the trails, so I added a pair of strut supports when I printed mine. These files are included for those who might find them helpful. Also included are illustrations of the assembled model in both modes.

Parts files (all filenames start with “1-72 German 15cm sFH 13” and end with rev number:
-cheeks ; print as it sits. Be careful with the handwheels on the left side when you remove supports.
-lower spade : rotate this to suit your printer. I rotated it to near vertical.
-shield : print vertical as it is.
-trail lever : I printed mine near vertical, but never found really good orientation.
-trail-firing-supports : this has my supports added. print as it is, then remove supports.
-trail-firing : for those who can add custom supports and do not like my supports.
-trail-limbered : for those who can add custom supports and do not like my supports.
-trail-limbered-supports : this has my supports added. print as it is, then remove supports.
-tube assembly : I printed it horizontally as it is. The bottom was a bit rough, so I sanded it smooth. The trunnion ends are rounded and pop into matching cavities in the cheeks part.
-upper spade : I printed mine in near vertical orientation.
-wheels : print as they are. You might need to drill out the holes for the axles like I did.

For those who wargame in smaller scales, I included both models in 1/150 scale. These are single-piece models with thickened parts to improve printability. I printed them in PLA at 1/150 very nicely.
Wayne

Print Settings

Printer brand:

XYZprinting

Printer:

da Vinci Jr. 1.0 Pro

Rafts:

Yes

Supports:

Yes

Resolution:

0.1mm

Filament_brand:

Hatchbox

Filament_color:

gray

Filament_material:

PLA