Etienne Posted May 10, 2018 Author Share Posted May 10, 2018 23 hours ago, Hewy said: They say its all in the detail, and you've certainly done a great job so so far, be happy you're not putting the duck bills on those bronco tracks, i still have flashbacks of mine😫 Glynn Hi Glynn, thanks for your comment ... and about the duckbills, I'll have to for the M4A3 😱 12 hours ago, AgentG said: Looking good no matter what references indicate! 3rd tank Battalion used rebar extensively in some companies. D Company had a rebar rail completely surrounding the rear deck and rebar jerry can holders. Most, if not all, tanks on Iwo Jima left the lower half of the wading trunks in place. It protected the radiators which are in the hull overhang of M4A2 and A3's with liquid cooled engines. G You're right, AgentG, even Co.A tanks had rebar jerry can holders ... at leat most of them, but not on the rear deck 😉 That's why I plan to redo the #7 tank of Co.A with the correct rear stack and the jerry can holders ... as per the photos I found too late 😥 Any way, today I made some progress around the Italeri M4A3 ... I began with the turret and reworked the loader's hatch springs ... mine are a bit too long, but it was a good practice for further projects ... then added foundry marks and a bracket for a .50 MG or barrel, still have to find a photo of it in use 🤔 I just need to add the episcope cover and the search light mount ... and then will begin the specific USMC features : episcopes "armored" protection, welded penny nails, etc. On the back of the turret, the other bracket for the .50 MG/barrel, and completed storage gun mount with lock and welds !! Many handles everywhere, bolts, periscopes ... many tiny parts and last but not least the footsteps on the differential cover. Cheers, E 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AgentG Posted May 10, 2018 Share Posted May 10, 2018 Here's one of my older 3rd Tank Battalion builds. See the rail around the rear deck? That was a D Company modification. That's what I'm referring to. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ripaman Posted May 11, 2018 Share Posted May 11, 2018 Love all the detail Etienne just looks the part. Regards Richard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted May 11, 2018 Author Share Posted May 11, 2018 7 hours ago, AgentG said: Here's one of my older 3rd Tank Battalion builds. See the rail around the rear deck? That was a D Company modification. That's what I'm referring to. Hi G, don't worry, I know exactly what you're talking about ... specific feature of Co.D 3rd Tk Bn indeed 😉 I plan to build a Co.D Sherman in the future ... but have to find something that looks like rebar, simple styrene rod seem a little bit shapeless in my opnion ... anyway, nice build, TWS stacks, I guess ? E 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted May 11, 2018 Share Posted May 11, 2018 Great detail there Etienne, especially the loaders hatch springs. What are you going to use for the periscope brush guards? Try the ones from Shapeways. They are nice and thin, but delicate. They also come complete with the prisms. John. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted May 11, 2018 Author Share Posted May 11, 2018 18 minutes ago, Bullbasket said: Great detail there Etienne, especially the loaders hatch springs. What are you going to use for the periscope brush guards? Try the ones from Shapeways. They are nice and thin, but delicate. They also come complete with the prisms. John. Thanks John ... still have many details to add on the turret (loader's hatch lock, searchlight bracket ... probably the MG locking system on the rear turret, and so on) ... surgical modelling 😷 There will be no episcope brush guards ... the Marines replaced them with fieldmade "armored" cover ... here is my inspirational picture 😉 E 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted May 11, 2018 Share Posted May 11, 2018 They look like the character Pinhead in the horror movie Hellraiser! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrancisGL Posted May 12, 2018 Share Posted May 12, 2018 A super detailed work !, I regret not having seen it from the beginning, I love the color you have already given to one of the Shermans ... Cheers Etienne 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted May 13, 2018 Author Share Posted May 13, 2018 (edited) 23 hours ago, FrancisGL said: A super detailed work !, I regret not having seen it from the beginning, I love the color you have already given to one of the Shermans ... Cheers Etienne Thanks Francis ... have no regrets, that's what WIPs are intended to 😎 This week end production, then I'll closed the bench for the week ... many details (foundry marks, episcopes covers, again welds) Then I had to build the rear wading stack ... by chance, there'll be no front one, they were quickly jettisoned by tank crews 😉 As I wanted to make a dented one with shrapnels/bullets holes, I made the rear panel out of brass. Not completely satisfied for the moment, let's see what it will look like when primed 🤔 In addition, I think it's a little to short ... M4A3's stacks seem shorter than M4A2's, it's relatively obvious on pictures, but I guess I went too far ! One thing to remember for the next build ... Here is the whole beast, waiting for the drivetrain and many other details 😎 As you may know, 4th and 5th Tk Bn's tanks on Iwo Jima were cluttered with sandbags to protect the upper hull from mortar shells essentially ... I needed sandbags that would adapt perfectly to the shape of the hull, so no resin aftermarket parts, no plastic ones ... I decided to go the milliput route and learn/practice, and I have to admit that it's relativaly easy, takes some time but the result is nice, in my opinion, way better than the photos might suggest !! That's all, folks ... cheers, E Edited May 13, 2018 by Etienne 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted May 13, 2018 Share Posted May 13, 2018 Great work there Etienne. Good choice using the brass sheet. It's a lot easier to incorporate battle damage into it, rather than plastic. The sandbags look good also, but can I pass on a tip that I read in an article once? If you make any more of them, while they are setting, lightly press a piece of bandage material onto them. It gives them the hessian sack look. John. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted May 19, 2018 Author Share Posted May 19, 2018 Hello, as I said in a previous post, the wading stack was undersized ... I spent a couple of hours studying photos from different viewing angles and check dimensions, but that will be useful for future builds 😎 So I discarded the wong stack and rebuild one with correct dimensions ... with a similar brass panel The Sherman also received its drivetrain ... an hybrid of Asuka and AFV Club drivetrains , I found the later for cheap but it's not very good dimensionwise so I used what I had in my leftover bin 😉 The project is progressing slowly ... Cheers, E 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ripaman Posted May 20, 2018 Share Posted May 20, 2018 Good to see some brass work on your build Etienne like all the small detail you have added will look good under a coat of paint Regards Richard 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted May 20, 2018 Share Posted May 20, 2018 13 hours ago, Etienne said: So I discarded the wong stack and rebuild one with correct dimensions ... with a similar brass panel Still looks very good. It's shaping up well. John. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted May 20, 2018 Author Share Posted May 20, 2018 (edited) 8 hours ago, Ripaman said: Good to see some brass work on your build Etienne like all the small detail you have added will look good under a coat of paint Regards Richard Thanks Richard 😉 There's many details I still have to add ... this morning I built the front fenders and the gun lock, 2 hours of meticulous work, this Sherman is not going to have a coat of paint so soon 🤪 2 hours ago, Bullbasket said: Still looks very good. It's shaping up well. John. Thanks John !! Edited May 20, 2018 by Etienne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted May 21, 2018 Author Share Posted May 21, 2018 Hello, last update before another week out for work ... I finished the front end (fenders, gun lock, brushguards and the siren with wiring), then the armored cover for the several episcopes on the hull and turret and finally some details on the rear of the turret 😎 Cheers, E 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hamden Posted May 21, 2018 Share Posted May 21, 2018 More splendid attention to the smallest detail! Roger 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted May 27, 2018 Author Share Posted May 27, 2018 Hello gents, believe it or not, it took me nearly 3 hours yesterday to install the 16 penny nails around the TC hatch ... I used stretched sprue, nearly .2mm in diameter so a little bit overscaled but still nice 🤪 Then I build the frames over the other hatches, that will receive chicken wire and today I installed the tracks on the turret and sprayed a coat of primer to see the imperfections and flaws ... Cheers, E 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robw_uk Posted May 27, 2018 Share Posted May 27, 2018 That's great work.... The additional armour and the "nails" are really unusual... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted May 27, 2018 Share Posted May 27, 2018 Some great work there Etienne, especially with the porcupine nails and the soldered wire around the hatches. I've got a Bison decal sheet for the Pacific Shermans, but I'm going to take the cowards way out and avoid the one with all the nails. John. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted May 27, 2018 Author Share Posted May 27, 2018 (edited) 2 hours ago, robw_uk said: That's great work.... The additional armour and the "nails" are really unusual... Hi Rob, they were seen on most of the 4th and 5th Marine Tank Battalions tanks on Iwo Jima ... the Japanese didn't have powerful tank but they had some very effective antitank guns and the Marines very early understood that the Sherman's armour was a little on the thin side !! As usual, they used fieldmade solutions ... nails for instance, but they also installed wood planks on the sponson sides, I'll do that with balsa sheets. 1 hour ago, Bullbasket said: Some great work there Etienne, especially with the porcupine nails and the soldered wire around the hatches. I've got a Bison decal sheet for the Pacific Shermans, but I'm going to take the cowards way out and avoid the one with all the nails. John. Hi John, I have to admit that I dreaded the "nail" process ... I didn't count them, but there's a lot of them !! However, I like the result ... you too, I guess 😉 I still have a lot of work on this M4A3 ... wood planking, sand bags, etc. If you really want to build a PTO Sherman, you can do another campaign than Iwo Jima ... of a 3rd Tk Bn on Iwo, as I already did, no nails there 😋 Cheers, E Edited May 27, 2018 by Etienne 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrancisGL Posted May 29, 2018 Share Posted May 29, 2018 The result is magnificent, the work has deserved the effort, those add-ons bring a very interesting touch, and the nails in the lid, is definitely a super-real detail ... Cheers Etienne 👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted May 30, 2018 Author Share Posted May 30, 2018 21 hours ago, FrancisGL said: The result is magnificent, the work has deserved the effort, those add-ons bring a very interesting touch, and the nails in the lid, is definitely a super-real detail ... Cheers Etienne 👍 Thanks Francis, still much to do around this project ... finish the hatches protections, add wood planks on the sponsons sides, sandbags, crew's paraphernalia and so on 🤔 E Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris B Posted May 30, 2018 Share Posted May 30, 2018 Looks great. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ripaman Posted June 1, 2018 Share Posted June 1, 2018 Having you and John show your builds of the Shermans is fantastic do find them outstanding and love all the detail which has been added Regards Richard 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beefy66 Posted June 1, 2018 Share Posted June 1, 2018 Just catching up with this one great details like the hedgehog spikes on top. beefy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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