RC Tank Warfare community hobby forum

Sherman to Firefly






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ALPHA

Glacis angles differ subtly.. None- Firefly hull shapes ( from marks never used to produce Fireflies..eg. M4A2, M4A3 etc.,) are incompatible with Firefly model-making,in terms of accuracy.. but such things can be overlooked.

43rdRecceReg wrote:Glacis angles differ subtly.. None Firefly hull shapes are actually incompatible with Firefly models, for the sake of accuracy..

HMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM ...I read that several times...Have no idea what you be talking about 43
Unless you are referring to the difference between the welded Firefly and the Composite...if you are ...then you are on the right track even the tail of the tank is different....
One noticeable difference besides the length of the tank is the loaders hatch

The Brits also installed support brackets on the VC model the VI had none

Was used to support a type of Camo...Something called a "Houseboat"
Some close up shots of the brackets


holes for the antler mounts


this is mounted next the the lift ring on the front glacis ..next to the lift rings


this on the side armor plate ...three on each side
As far as I know...regular M4 variants never had these mounted ...I would guess that the Firefly was to be kept secret
I found a photo once...the photo was of four soldiers holding up a mock up of a Matador truck....never found it again


I would surmise that to a recon plane..it might have resembled this

ALPHA

The Composite






The Welded


The Submerged



ALPHA

Yep, I be referrin' to the Composite and Welded (extended versions), me hearties. Ahar.. For the sake of clarity, and addled aged brains, I've edited my original entry

43rdRecceReg wrote:Yep, I be referrin' to the Composite and Welded (extended versions), me hearties. Ahar.. For the sake of clarity, and addled aged brains, I've edited my original entry

Typical Corporal thinking there 43.... .......
I might add...the diagram you shared...is of the M4 Sherman Variants and not those of the Firefly
Unless you are talking about the Hybrid Firefly with the stock M4 hull



ALPHA

A couple of nice drawings of the Firefly with boathouse mounts



ALPHA

A different tail variant of the Firefly

also a different Cupola...mounted on some polish Fireflies




ALPHA

Just to point out, you keep mentioning the hybrid/composite and the extended M4a4, but there was also a std length M4 welded hull version, the IC...

ALPHA wrote:Sherman to Firefly






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ALPHA

My, this is going to be an epic..like "War and Peace', or Proust 'Remembrance of things passed" ...but my initial observation was based on the glaring difference between the 47deg. glacis of Fireflies Nos.'2'. '13'. and '4' and the
60deg. glacis of the 2 bog standard Shermans. Clearly, the massive 17-pounder ,the welded on extras, and the picnic box (radio) grafted onto the rear of the turret, are also stand out features...
From what I've read (and it's not a lot...on the Sherman, anyway), Fireflies were only based on the original M4 with fully welded hull, and this mutated into the Sherman 1c Firefly. Equally numerous were the M4A4s..with extended stern. These morphed into the Sherman Firefly Vc, and then the Sherman Hybrid M4 (Composite) partly cast/partly welded also became the Sherman 1c. No other versions were used, but apparently this has been disputed. Apart from detail changes to hatches, MG post, and other cosmetic facelift scars, etc., the Sherman Firefly was still a Sherman toaster, with a massive British anti-tank gun fitted..'toaster', or roaster, that is, until water jacketing was used for ammo to reduce in-house incineration..
Personally, I'm not keen on the Sherman. It had a high centre of gravity, affecting stability, and a high profile relative to overall size in the Landscape (like its predecessor, the M3 Lee), making aiming an almost leisurely pursuit for german 88s, whether from an anti-tank position, or from tiger turret. I can already hear the howls of protest and rage from Sherman fans...but it's also a fairly ugly tank! Pity the War office couldn't get more Comets out there earlier!
However, since my Dad and my Uncle were both in armoured units during the war, they would have been familiar with the Firefly...and the bog standard Sherman. If I had a model, though, it would have to be the to Vc Firefly to reflect their experience