Alright....another one for the shelves.
As stated in earlier posts, this is Dragon's M4A1 with Verlinden's T1E3 Mineroller conversion. Completed tonight and posted for your comments.







This was an interesting build, lots of fun and makes a great addition to anyone's Sherman collection. :-)

hi

it seems you've did some nice work. if i may say your decal show's off on your model. but i like it man.
how much did you pay for those minroller ?

with kind regards
dmd

A really interesting subject. I can see a little problem with the decals, that in my view are a bit too much visible. Congratulations!

great job dude

I love people who make these kinda less ordinary tank where the battlefield is drenched in
are you going to put it into a dio or something
great job
what will be the next project

Nice build Robert, it really puts that piece of kit in scale when you see it on the front of the tank. I think it looks real good. Well done.

Roger

Very nice. The finish on the minerollers is great. You can almost feel the weight!

This is a great build. I agree with Faust - I love seeing these variants. Very cool.

One tip on your next kit. On the decals cut as much of the clear film away from the decal as possible. On the 3rd photo the star on the hull shows a bit of the film. Another trick to reduce that is to apply a gloss coat over the area before applying the decal.

Great build - I do really like it. You can be proud of this one.

Thank you all for your comments they are much appreciated. Yes the decals kinda show a little too much....I'll try to dust them up a bit more so they are not as visible. As far as the price goes Dmd....I purchased this conversion about 7 years ago and don't really remember how much it cost but I see it is still available though but didn't check the price. It builds up quite well with only a couple of additions. The one thing you have to be aware of is warpage in the rollers but it is a fairly easy fix. No dios for me Faust....not enough space on the shelves. Next project is still undetermined.....I have quite a few starts so I'll just have to pick one and go with....maybe my M4 with Dozer Blade...maybe.

Thanks again everyone

Nice job here. Also nice to see something unusual. I have never seen the real thing or even a photo of one, but I imagine it must be some monster. It can hardly be the most effecient of mine rollers as it must be hard to steer the sherman with all this in front.
I have noticed sometimes when a photgraph is taken and a light shining awkwardly it shows up the transfer of the decal which is hardly visible ordinarily. Hopefully this is the case. But a bit of dusting may help.

Sherm:

This is a neat subject!

What struck me the most was the paint job on the rollers. So realistic--- the things actually look like "heavy metal".

Also--- interesting rear deck work. I've always put lots of stuff on the back ends of my Shermans, but I like the overall tarp look that you have here---again its something a little out of the ordinaire. This is a nice tank.

Thanks for the pics and the opportunity to comment.

Steve aka WeWillHold

Very Nice.I built the same thing a while ago but I used the "shudder" Nichimo M-4A1.
But it came out good.Now,had the DML M-4A1 been available,I would have used that.
All in all its looks fine.

That's realy a cool lookink tank !
Of course, I wouldn't like being in one of them. It might draw a bit of attention...
I like the metal effect on the roller very much !

Nice! I've always wanted to do one of these, but haven't found a good deal on a kit so far.

One little stowage observation: The camo net looks like it could easily be fouled in the drive chains or articulation points. (And I'm not sure a little old camo net would do much to hide big old Aunt Jemima!) Unless you have a photo of an actual vehicle that you are modeling with that net in that position, I'd leave it off. My 2 cents -- if you're happy, I'm happy.

The FOX says....WOW.
That is a good Sherman.......Like the metal effect you managed to achieve. Drybrush???

Thanks once again for your comments one and all.

Bob, I wasn't modelling an actual vehicle...I just liked the look of the net on the front. I'm going to have to be happy with it there...far to much work to remove it and correct everything beneath it now.

Martin, the method that I used to weather was as follows:
1. dry brushing with Modelmaster Steel
2. lighter dry brushing with Modelmaster Rust (only in selected areas where rust would build up)
3. pencil lead - I used to work as a draftsman and have quite a stock of mechanical pencils and a lead sharpener. Whenever I need gound lead...I just sharpen another pencil until I get enough lead for my project. I apply it with the greatest of scientific skill....I use my finger.
I dip my finger in the lead, rub any excess off on a handy piece of paper, then apply it to the model by rubbing it on any "metal" surfaces. I repeat this procedure until I get the desired result. I also use this to metalize my tracks.
4. pastel chalk - my final weathering step. I liberally apply the chalk with a fan brush then scrub it into any nooks and crannies with a ratty old Testors brush that I have. Heavier wherever dust would lie.

That would be it. Glad you guys liked the beast.

This was a good sherman. And I think it is around $40.00 American for the kit.
Great job Robert
:-)

Really nice to see a kit get finished. So about how much time do you think?

Hard to put a time to it Jeff, I started building this kit 5 or 6 years ago and then fell into a period where I didn't touch a kit for 5 years. It were both good kits to work on and were basically complete, a little PE here and there, a bit of plastic card work on the rollers (cleaning teeth). I'll probably spend the next 4 months just finishing kits I started oh so long ago. All I really know is it's so good to back and to actually finish one (what a treat). :-)

Hi Sherman freak,
great model, it's good to see more US armour being model and especially something even rarer like this. Just goes to show Olive drab aint necessarily so. Keep up the good work , all the best , regards Kenny.

Hi Sherman freak,
great model, it's good to see more US armour being model and especially something even rarer like this. Just goes to show Olive drab aint necessarily so. Keep up the good work , all the best , regards Kenny.

Looking good!!! Quick question though, how did you make the minerollers look metallic like you did? They seemlessly blend the green , rust, and silver and I wanted to know your technique.

Hi Jeff and thanks for your compliments.
Earlier in this post I described the methods that I used to achieve the look on the rollers. The only thing that I could add to that is that the pencil lead is what achieves the metal look and really ties the whole works together. It really picks up any imperfections in the casting of the kit and also in the painting and seems to just enhance the overall look. Try it on an old kit sometime. Just burnish the pencil lead on with your fingertip, I think you will like the results. I certainly do. :-)