M51 super Sherman build

[sapper23]

Yeah I'm already playing with that and was also thinking those casting marks might hold some sand...

 

[BarleyBop]

I haven't done enough armour, or inspected up close, to comment on casting marks. But I have tried drybrush as Kevin mentioned - both lighter and darker than the base colour, sometimes going back in with the base colour - I liked the slight stipple effect of rough mettle you can get. If you are afraid to try it on your model - grab a scrap or 'extra' from the shelf and try stuff on that! I agree, this stage can be very fun, especially if you know there is a path to 'undo'.

 

[sapper23]

Yeah you guys of course have some good points there.. I just did some of what you guys said then I just finished adding a yellow wash to the casting marks. And now I'm making a sand wash for it.

 

[sapper23]

Umm

 

[sapper23]

I feel like I'm trying to do or step outside my box here doing this ... Going back to start and going to just detail it as per usual and not try something new or get super creative here lol .. the great reset .

 

[BarleyBop]

yup, if it doesn't feel right, only you know where that line is...
... sounds like you've already pushed the envelope, and that is a win in my book!

 

[sapper23]

Yeah I think that is too much weathering for me. I can weather it with out doing that and make it convincing and look the part .. without making it downright dirty. Thers a line there I think and perhaps your right or I just found mine for the time being..

You have seen my work, not bad not pro level though. I am happy where I am for now with things.

 

[Jakko]

If you are afraid to try it on your model - grab a scrap or 'extra' from the shelf and try stuff on that!

Or the underside of this model. I often use that to test things I want to use on the upper side but am not yet sure about. All you need is to try a small patch there.

 

[sapper23]

Here is where at today ... I'm waiting on a specific wash in mail but will continue work... It's coming along in the direction I want though.

 

[BarleyBop]

Looking great! Detail in around the cupola and hatches really nice.

 

[Jakko]

I just realised Academy got the orientation of the commander's cupola slightly wrong On the model, the glass at the front gives a view mainly of the back of the housing for the gunner's sight, but on the real tank the whole cupola was rotated counterclockwise a bit, so that the sight is largely between two of the glass blocks in the cupola.

Sorry, looked at too many photos of Shermans over the years — hardly anybody is going to notice this, I think

 

[sapper23]

I just realised Academy got the orientation of the commander's cupola slightly wrong On the model, the glass at the front gives a view mainly of the back of the housing for the gunner's sight, but on the real tank the whole cupola was rotated counterclockwise a bit, so that the sight is largely between two of the glass blocks in the cupola.

Sorry, looked at too many photos of Shermans over the years — hardly anybody is going to notice this, I think

Poop ... Oh well I'm going to say it's right and go look at some pictures now.

 

[sapper23]

I looked up the Tamiya and the dragon model version of kit and shows it as same. Can you show me what you talking about? Got a picture?

 

[Jakko]

This photo from the Sherman Minutia Website shows it pretty well:



Notice how none of the windows in the commander's cupola is directly behind the gunner's sight.

On the 75-mm turret, the cupola was fitted to have one window directly at the front, but on the 76-mm, it was turned slightly off-centre like the photo shows. Probably, this is because the 75-mm turret has the gunner's sight set more to the right relative to the cupola.

Looking at Academy's instructions, I get the impression there are no locating tabs for the cupola at all, which makes it much too easy to turn it the wrong way. On the real tank, the cupola was bolted to the roof, with twelve bolts off the top of my head, so it can be fitted in any orientation, provided it's in steps of 30 degrees

But like I said: who's going to notice, other than people like me, who spent too long looking at Sherman pictures? Your typical military modeller will see nothing wrong with it, I'm pretty sure.

 

[sapper23]

Yeah I was looking at different sites info after you said it and there were actually a lot of different things and changes up there and the Israelis actually had three different versions going on up there between hatch's so on so I think it sort of depends on that as well.

 

[kevin]

Here is Tamiya's M-51 I built a few years ago. There was no option of cupola positions. It makes sense, though, good eye Jakko!

 

[sapper23]

Slowly but almost there.

 

[Jakko]

Yeah I was looking at different sites info after you said it and there were actually a lot of different things and changes up there

Hatch orientation is pretty fixed, though

But if you want an interesting future model in this respect:



This is an M4A1 (76 mm) tank of the US Army in Europe in late 1944 or early 1945, but it has had the commander's cupola and loader's hatches swapped. The commander's hatch should be as on your tank, while the loader's hatch on these early 76 mm tanks had two semi-circular doors — but here, they're the other way round. I suspect the crew (or at least the commander) were used to the older types of 75 mm Sherman, and the commander preferred the type with two doors.

Here is Tamiya's M-51 I built a few years ago. There was no option of cupola positions.

That's odd, I would have expected Tamiya to do better … It's difficult to find photos of actual M51 Shermans that show that the hatch was not fitted like this IRL, but there are some, like this one:

 

[sapper23]

Great pic