Benbros Mighty Midgets
No.24 Field Gun
In 1956 at the British Industries Fair Benbros exhibited No.24 Field Gun with the other TV Series models but when it was issued it did not have a TV Series box but was included in the Mighty Midget range in a red & yellow box.
The Field Gun was the fourth military model in the series (the others being No.12 Scout Car, No.13 Austin Champ and No.14 Tank). Like the others it was an excellent piece of casting but more than that, it was a working model and could fire matchsticks quite powerfully with its spring-loaded mechanism, a commendable achievement for a small toy.
Made with a single casting, the Field Gun had large metal wheels which were painted with the model. It included a towing ring but it could not be pulled by a Benbros model because, apart from the tractors, none of them had a tow-hook! After the model was painted, the firing mechanism was fitted so this remained unpainted. Unusually there was no identification on the model.
There were only two colours used for No.24 Field Gun. At first it was painted glossy olive-green and then later a dark-green in a matt finish.
Both versions are not too hard to find but the olive-green is more common.
Variation 1 : olive-green
Benbros No.24 Field Gun
Variations
(1) OLIVE-GREEN, unpainted firing lever, MM box
(2) MATT DARK-GREEN, unpainted firing lever, MM box
Variation 2 : matt dark-green
Olive green (left); matt dark-green (right)