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Backdated Nichimo M4A1

The Upper Hull

I started to use the upper hull (I know this is sounding redundant) but didn’t like the molded on tools, so I took them off with a Dremel tool and attempted to re-texture the area with the techniques from FSM’s article using glue. Take my advice; use an old model you don’t care about or sheet plastic to practice on until you perfect the process. So yes, I screwed it up and now have a practice hull. I purchased a TW resin M4A1 hull with direct vision slots. It came without the rear engine access and air vent covers so I scratched them from sheet, used office staples for the handles and I am really happy with this part over all the rest of the kit.

I had to cut the sponson tops off of the lower hull and replace them with a sheet plastic one to make the resin hull fit the lower. I used Auto body filler (in the red tube) for the gaps. I really like the red stuff, but you need to put in on a disposable palette and ensure it is mixed up before putting it on a model. If it is not mixed, the resin will soften the plastic and you’ll end up with a mess. It doesn’t shrink and produces very little air bubbles and sands very easily too. All paints seem to stick, so you should have no finish problems. The halves were glued together and the seam smoothed with putty and wet sanded. I painted the white on the upper edge of the lower hull and then masked it off following the pictures in my references for camoflage scheme FM-5-20B. I scratched the vision covers, hatches, lights, filler caps, rear corner hull vents, and lifting eyes. Some of the tools came from a TW kit, but I scratched the engine crank handle from brass rod and electrical wire insulation for the handle. PE added some detail to the hatches, front light guards, rear vents, sand skirt attachments and chains for the filler caps. I scratched the rear light guards from thin sheet brass and front fender mounts and ventilation covers from sheet styrene. I gave a little damage to one of the sand skirt mounting strips and that completed the hull.
 

The Turret

I used the Nichimo turret, but substituted a CMK barrel and early M34 manlet. I added lifting eyes from brass rod and a sheet styrene shell ejection port and artillery spotting sight vane. The antenna mount came from electrical connector pins and small spring and the antenna from brass rod. The antenna is removable for transport and storage. I scratched the vision periscopes from a piece cut from a light blue-green tinted toothbrush handle and styrene sheet for covers. Staples were used for the stowage hooks on the rear of the turret bustle and grab handles on the hatch. I replaced the kit .50 cal MG with a Verlinden .30 caliber one.

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