M4A1 Sherman - 2nd Armoured - Carentan

[grim_marmazet]

Thanks Keith,

One of the stars you sent me is on the upper deck, and looks very snazzy , also the A10 is on the rear, so the markings are almost done.

Cheers,
Rik

[littletankman]

Rik that looks awsome mate . On my full option Sherman the stars have bits worn of and it looks very good . I realy like the resin hull . And a very good paint job mate ,well done

Andy

[971wright]

Hi Now this is what a Sherman should look like, one of the best ive seen:thumbup: .Just goes to show that Tamiya arnt as good as you .
All the money they have and engineers sat on there butts doing nothing .they could have upgraded the Sherman ,suspension and turret to give us a proper full option.
Just wish someone in China would make a copy of the DMD and Mf units then sell them at a real price.I Bet the DMD and MF units are made in China.


regards pete

[grim_marmazet]

Thanks guys. Pete, this is how I think a Sherman should look too. Haha, I don't think i'm quite as good as Tamiya's engineers, I just like to have it how I like it.
Hopefully they'll see all the conversions, and produce their own version. Though it seems they're abandoning 1/16 scale RC.

I'm not sure how well a Chinese copy would work, the sounds wouldn't be quite as good quality, or be as reliable. If it was, it would probably cost nearly as much as Tamiya's! lol

Cheers,
Rik

[grim_marmazet]

I've been working on the pioneer tools, as I finally managed to get off my butt and do them.

As is obligatory, I replaced all the handles with actual wood, and stained them a nice colour;




I have also made 2 of the leather straps to hold the tools down. The straps are painted masking tape, and the buckles are made from staples! They are quite fiddly and time consuming, but look ok;


I also stained the 2 front planks a slightly different colour to look more like salvaged planks;


I still need to finish the inside of the front hatches, and finish attaching the tools, but that's for another day.

Cheers,
Rik

[littletankman]

Excelent Rik love the tools . absolutly briliant mate.

Andy

[971wright]

Hi Rik Look at it this way
Tamiya engineers have computer aided design and CNC machines and millions of yen to play with.They have been making the Sherman since the 70s upgraded it sevral times and never got it right .
You have a small work area, most of your tools are hand tools and you made a Proper Sherman on a very low buget,I think I was right this makes you better than Tamiya engineers.

Anyone else think I am right

regards pete

[grim_marmazet]

Your very kind Pete, thank you!

It would've saved me a lot of time and trouble if Tamiya had made this variant (one of the most common war time ones! ) in the first place, but where would the fun be in that? lol

Tomorrow I shall have hopefully some nearly completed pictures. I'm down to just the stowage now, and weathering. I need to make some tarpaulins, but they need to wait until I have the right stuff, and can experiment with it.

Cheers,
Rik

[grim_marmazet]

Well, my Sherman is finished! At least as finished as any of our tanks can get, lol.

I'll post some of the detail shots here, and put a thread with overall shots in the Show Off section.

I only lightly weathered the running gear, just went for dusty. The 2nd Armoured had only been in Normandy for 4 days when they fought at Carentan;


I attached the rest of the tools and added there straps;


I added a bit more to the shipping stencils, these mark the navy's shipping standard;


I finished and painted the turret .50cal. I added some retaining chains to the mount, and painted the wooden handles;



As with all U.S. tanks, the stowage was piled on. I didn't like the plastic K ration boxes, so I made some out of 1mm plywood. I know the wheels aren't the same ones as the bogies, but a Sherman should be carrying spare wheels!



I also detailed the helmets with chinstraps made from painted masking tape. I used some spare decals to do the hetmet markings;


I want to make a tarp to partially cover the deck stowage, and i've stained the rope with tea to darken it. I'm sure i'll find many more things to adjust, but for now, i'm on to my next Tamiya project, the Panther!

Cheers,
Rik

[[ICE]monkey]

great work rik , youve done a brilliant job on it, a credit to you mate , but in my eyes the only thing that lets it down is the rope , if your ever in a fishing tackle shop have a look in the carp section at the rig braids , they make great tie down rope
all the best, cliff