M30

	- U.S. 4.2 Inch Mortar, M30 - "Four-Deuce"
	Korean War, Vietnam War and beyond

	The Kit:
	This is the Tamiya kit in 1/35 scale and is molded in styrene plastic.

	The Details:
	The only item added to this kit was the elevation handle from a spare traversing handle from another kit. The sight was drilled out at the lenses and painted white and then Micro Mark Krystal Kleer was added to represent the glassed in areas. I also drilled in the mounting holes in the baseplate to emphasize these a little more.

	The Extras:
	The sandbags were made out of a self-hardening clay, cut to size and pressed out with a piece of cotton T-shirt.
	The M16A1 is from DML, and to this I added the rifle sling and 'hardware'.
	The bomb shipping container was scratched-built from Evergreen tubing.

	Base and Groundwork:
	The base is oak and is 3-1/2 inches in diameter, stained with a natural stain and sealed with multiple coats of Polyurethane. The groundwork is Sculptamold with fine yard dirt mixed in and sprinkled on.

	Painting, Weathering and Finishing:
	Acrylic paints and flat coat were used throughout. Artist oils thinned with an odorless brush cleaner and thinner were used for the washes.

General Mortar Info:
Standardized in the United States as the M30 in 1951. This weapon first saw combat during the Korean War. There the M30 served along side the M2 4.2 Inch Chemical Mortar of World War II fame that it would gradually replace.
The M30 provided heavy mortar support for ground operations in Vietnam, beginning with the earliest deployments of United States Forces, and remained in that theater for the duration of the United States' involvement. It would also serve with distinction with the Republic of Korea (ROK) forces committed to Vietnam as well as with the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN).
The M30 4.2 Inch Mortar had been phased out of U.S. service in the 1990s in favor of the newer NATO standard 120mm Mortar, M120/M121.
In the U.S. Army Mechanized role, the M30 was transported by the M106 series of Mortar Carriers. The M106 being part of the M113 Family of Vehicles. This vehicle provided the crew basic protection from small arms fire as well as from shell fragments and also has an amphibious capability with preparation. However, the M106 had to stop and set up to fire the weapon internally through open roof hatches. The weapon could also be dismounted from it's carrier as shown here.


Actual Data:
	Cannon, M30: 156.50lbs.		Sight Equipment:	M34A2: 4.00lbs.
	Baseplate Assembly (M24A1 shown): 193.00lbs.			M53: 5.25lbs.
	Baseplate Assembly (M24 obsolete): 221lbs.
	Bridge Assembly: 169.00lbs.
	Standard Assembly: 59.50lbs.
	Rotator Assembly: (Cast Magnesium) 57.50lbs.
	Rotator Assembly: (Welded Steel) 89.00lbs.

Elevation:	Minimum: 45° (800 mils)		Rate of Fire:	18 rounds per minute maximum for the first minute.
	Maximum: 58° 42' (1,045 mils)			9 rounds per minute for the next 5 minutes.
	Minimum (higher range): 51° 42' (919 mils)			3 rounds per minute sustained.
	Maximum (lower range): 52° 30' (933 mils)
Traverse:	125 mils.


TM 9-261A	FT 4.2-H-2	TM 9-1015-215-30P	TM 9-1015-215-12	FM 10-545 TO 13C7-10-201


FM 23-92	TM 9-1015-215-10	TM 9-1015-215-10	Le Mortier De 106,7mm Modele 30

Ammunition Types:

M329	M329A1	M328A1	M335A2	XM630


M2		M3

Ammunition Crate:

Designation	Type	Specifics
M329A1	HE	Range: 920yds min, 5,650yds max. Weight: 27.07lbs. Effective Area: 40 x 20m. Propellant: M36A1. Ignition Cartridge: M2A1. Burster present: NO. Filler: TNT.
M329	HE	Range: 870yds min, 5,420yds max. Weight: 27.07lbs. Effective Area: 40 x 20m. Propellant: M36. Ignition Cartridge: M2. Burster present: NO. Filler: TNT.
M3A1	HE	Range: 870yds min, 4,620yds max. Weight: 26.95lbs. Effective Area: 40 x 20m. Propellant: M6. Ignition Cartridge: M2. Burster present: NO. Filler: TNT.
M3	HE	Range: 870yds min, 4.620yds max. Weight: 26.95lbs. Effective Area: 40 x 20m. Propellant: M6. Ignition Cartridge: M2. Burster present: NO. Filler: TNT.
M328A1	SMOKE	Range: 920yds min, 5,650yds max. Weight: 28.66lbs. Propellant: M36A1. Ignition Cartridge: M2A1. Burster present: YES. Filler: WP.
M328	SMOKE	Range: 870yds min, 5,420yds max. Weight: 28.66lbs. Propellant: M36. Ignition Cartridge: M2. Burster present: YES. Filler: WP.
M2A1	SMOKE	Range: 870yds min, 4,620yds max. Weight: 24.91lbs. Propellant: M6. Ignition Cartridge: M2. Burster present: YES. Filler: WP.
M2	SMOKE	Range: 870yds min, 4,620yds max. Weight: 24.91lbs. Propellant: M6. Ignition Cartridge: M2. Burster present: YES. Filler: WP.
M335A2	ILLUM	Range: 400yds min, 5,490yds max. Weight: 26.7lbs. Effective Area (M): 1,500 dia. Burn Time (S): 90. Rate of Decent (M): 5 mps Propellant: M36A1. Ignition Cartridge: M2A2. Burster present: NO.
M335A1	ILLUM	Range: 640yds min, 5,290yds max. Weight: 26.7 lbs. Effective Area (M): 800 dia. Burn Time (S): 70. Rate of Decent (M): 10 mps Propellant: M36A1. Ignition Cartridge: M2A1. Burster present: NO.
M335	ILLUM	Range: 640yds min, 4,800yds max. Weight: 26.7lbs. Effective Area (M): 800 dia. Burn Time (S): 60. Rate of Decent (M): 10 mps Propellant: M36. Ignition Cartridge: M2. Burster present: NO.
M2A1	GAS	Range: 870yds min, 4,540yds max. Weight: 24.67lbs. Propellant: M6. Ignition Cartridge: M2. Burster present: YES. Filler: HD.*
M2	GAS	Range: 870yds min, 4,540yds max. Weight: 24.67lbs. Propellant: M6. Ignition Cartridge: M2. Burster present: YES. Filler: H, HD, HT.*
XM630	Tactical CS	Range: N/A min. 5,650yds max. Burn Time (S): 60. Propellant: M36A1. Ignition Cartridge: M2A2. Burster present: NO. Filler: CS.


Propelling Charges:

M6	M36	M36A1	Arrangement of Propelling Charges

Fuse Types:

	TSQ, PD, VT	Fuse Combination Table	M18 Fuse Wrench	PD, MT

Personal Experience:

I had the opportunity to train with the "Four-Deuce" while stationed at Ft. Polk, LA in 1972, calling in Fire-Missions with the M30. It was there that I also got to witness first hand the misfire procedure when things went wrong...

One of the tubes on line had a round that failed to fire. The crew immediately called out a 'cease-fire' and headed for the nearest tree line. After about three minutes or so waiting to see if the round would fire off on its own, one of the crew members came running out of the tree line and side-jumped on the tube, collapsing it down to about +15°. He bounced off, hit the dirt, the tube elevated back up to its pre-set elevation (or close to it) and the round finally went out. The round headed down range, impacting safely and slightly off target. Once that danger was cleared by range control, the fire missions continued on without any further mishaps. The ammo being used on that particular day was White Phosphorous.


Sources:
Weapons of the Korean War
United States Army Chemical Mortar Battalions
Mr. Michael H. Pruett - United States
Mr. Paul Truhe - United States
Mr. John Devine - United States
Mr. David Albert - United States
Mr. Tom Bebbington - United Kingdom