Brad - Thank you for the link clarifying the tail lights.

Don - I completed the first track run using your idea of white glue to add strength to the track connectors and I'm happy to say it worked perfectly. The run was fragile, but I had no difficulty fitting it to the model, bending it around the drive sprocket and idler, and removing and straightening them for painting. My hat is off to you for coming up with that approach.

Hey gang! When I first joined Armorama, my first campaign was a Sherman campaign. Actually, it was the first build after returning to the hobby. It was my intention to join but I had other things on the go so I delayed. Anyway, I have signed up.

Here's my choice for this campaign.



As you can see it's the M4A3 (105) with VVSS suspension. I built an M4A2 for the Campaign in the Pacific so I hoped that this one would go easier. Nope, it has the same issues as the other Dragon VVSS chassis'. The bogies and all their parts don't fit together all that well but I was kind of prepared for that. Had to trim one overly long locating pin on one of the halves and file a few sections for everything to fit. Pictures of the start of construction.





Glued on two bogies on each side to make sure everything fit level.



When they dried I fit the centre ones. The hull top is just placed on for effect and to see what needs to be trimmed. The rear plate is also being built at this time.



Cheers,
Jan

I need some help painting the tools on my model. There's an axe, shovel, pick-axe head, and two long crowbar type items, but I'm not sure what to paint as wood vs. metal. Can anyone direct me to photos of a build showing the tools painted properly?

Bill, if I understand you correctly, of the two crowbar type thingies the shorter one would be the handle for the pick axe. Check out Jim Carswell's March 10 post on this thread page and you will see the correct material/painting.

You could always just paint them all OD as that is aparently what they were on the original. I for one like to add the natural metal and wood effect as it gives some color.

Cheers!
Stefan

More progress! I took these pictures yesterday so things are actually a bit further along now. Rear plate and transmission housing are attached, tail lights on, as well as a few other hull details. I managed to get the turret well under way and lots more details have been added since these pictures.







The lower front tow point broke while removing it from the sprue so I had to piece together another from some spare parts.



Many of the parts are bordering on microscopic and good old dragon has them attached with sprue gates that are thicker than the part. But, one has to love the challenge.

Cheers,
Jan

Bill, chances are the tools left the factory either in OD or in raw wood and oiled steel (50/50 odds?), but your tank was repainted at least twice so all bets are off. Any tools might have been removed during painting, but it's just as likely they were left in place and sprayed to match! (I've even heard tell of modern AFV crews having to use razor blades to scrape paint off the periscope glass after their tanks got resprayed...) However, the tools probably got frequent use so any paint would have scraped off fairly quick - I'd go for a "used" look of bare weatherbeaten wood and abused metal with a base of OD tinged with dull grey/brown steel where the paint is scraped off and possibly a little dark brown rust along the edges. For inspiration, go out to the shed and look at old garden tools and the way their wood and metal "age" with use.

The shovel and axe have wood handles, and the shorter of the two "crowbars" is a wooden pickaxe handle. The longer one is a metal crowbar.

Tom

Tom - I decided I liked the small splash of color that the wood handles provided ... but based on what you wrote it seems unlikely the tools would have remained in their original wood and steel state.

And a general question for everyone - How are the Legend stowage sets? They look easy enough to use, but do they turn out realistically? Also, for items that would have been mounted (e.g. stowage on the turret sides) how do the sets reflect this?

some small and slow update

enhanced the surface texture with mr surfacer 500....


i replaced the idler wheels mounting with brass rod... still cant figure why DML design the short rod 'shaft'..


paintd the return drums OD instead of black..added some chipping too



painted with Mr Color OD..gloss coat and decal





next step weathering....

Zaidi

A small update on progress. It's getting there; note I have yet to add the metal strip on the offside.

I am going to have to catch up on the discussions on this campaign a bit. The lower hull is painted, but it is too dark.

Zaidi, nice DV, looks familiar...

Andrew, looking good so far. I've never seen that stowage box on the fron before.

As for me, I'm calling mine done. M4A1 Sherman DV as seen in Alsace in 1945.




Cheers!
Stefan

Stefan,

nice one...and congrats on finishing the line



some small update...not much was done except for the flat coating and some highlights prior to weathering... small parts (tools, etc) are painted as well






Zaidi

Stefan - Nice job. Maybe it's just the camera angle but the turret machine gun looks huge in your second photo!

I've been slogging away on my Polish Mk. III. The Panda Plastics tracks took forever to clean up, but then went together very quickly and easily. Both track runs have been test fitted and painted and are now ready for some oil and pigment washes. I also painted the tools and road wheels. The decals gave me more trouble than I expected - no matter how much Micro Set and Sol I used, some of them didn't seem to come out right. I'll see how they look tomorrow once they've had a chance to set completely. In the meantime, a few progress shots (taken in bad light):

added some initial chipping.... took 2 hours just for this






after seeing these photos, i didnt like it....

Provence, a M4A2 of the French 2nd Armoured Div. Will touchup the weathering later so I am calling it done. Dragon kit with Archer decals. Had problems with the decals so built it to represent a battle/ travel worn veteran in the fall of 1944.

India - Nice job on an interesting subject. There are some cool marking options available for French Shermans, but you don't see too many. Congrats on crossing the finish line.

I've continued working on my Polish Mk. III and got the tracks on this afternoon. "Styr" served in Italy, so I figured a muddy finish was in order. I haven't made mud before, so I followed Adam Wilder's article from this site and mixed Tamiya Buff, Dark Gray, and Red Brown paint together, then added plaster of paris, MIG pigments, and water. After the first application dried, I repeated the process with darker pigments to show damp mud. Then I stippled on dry pigments to blend things together and secured them with MIG pigment fixer. I like how the tracks have turned out, only now I wish I had done a better job with the basic construction of the kit.

The right side. The unpainted track connector along the bottom run will be weathered to match the others.



The left side.



Front view. I tried to leave the tracks darker down the middle to reflect damp mud with partially dried mud along the outer edges.



Hope you like it, but either way all comments are welcome.

hey all...

another update with my sherman DV...
i tried on the filer application. I did a homemade recipe with oil paint thinned with mineral spirit. First color is burnt seinna and next is blue. Filters are still wet when i took these photos.

Tracks are temporarily installed.










comments and suggestion are welcome


Zaidi

Alright, I'm back in the game! I'm building in Afghanistan!! My order from Sprue Brothers arrived today. I'll be building Dragon's M4 DV, most likely OOB.

For entertainment purposes, I opened the box and posed it dramaticaly with helmet and rifle


Now to order paint....

Chris

Great work here guys !

I'm about to put primer on the Polish 1st Div Sherman V

@ Stefan - the paint came along quickly there and the sandbags are looking great ! The Camo is first class !!! Congratulations A great project !!!

@ Timothy - thanks for the extra pics

@ Bill - I like the OD, and the show through Camo is a little different ! Bravo ! Now that you've near the end all of your hard work is paying off. Are you doing some figures too ?

@ Jan - welcome to the Campaign, good start

@ INDIA11A - nice progress and dust, make sure you post pics in the Campaign Gallery.

@ Zaidi - very fast progress !! You have got through the painting etc very quickly. The chipping is a tad harsh IMO, it's hard to know exactly how much was on VERY weathered Shermans, but from all reports the paint was quite robust. Perhaps a wash will curtail the chipping a little ? The tracks will need to be tightened so try to get them tight along the top (no sag) when you fit them permanently. Keep up the good work mate !!

@ Andrew - Good progress, I use the same process, paint the lower hull, then fit tracks, then I do the upper hull

@ Chris - great photo. Keep up the great work over there (including modelling) mate

Cheers

Paul

Hey Paul,

thanks for your comments... yeah i did agree with u about the chipping.. it's way too much... i will cover it with another wash and OD later.

About the tracks, yestreday i try to fix them. I found out there there is still loose when i attached it tightly with the idler and sprocket. There will be little sagging in between the 3 return rollers. How can i fix this problem??

if there is better solution, pls sharing

thanks

Zaidi

Paul - I like how it's coming out, but I seem to have made my usual mistake of going too dark with the base coat (i.e. not taking into account the darkening effect of washes, filters, etc.). I've also made a number of construction / accuracy errors, but as a Sherman newbie I can live with them. Now if I can just get Rafal Jankowski to do a detailed SBS of the Polish Sherman he made for the White Eagle campaign I'll be in business.

Zaidi - If you think the chips are too much you could always finish your model as an older vehicle (e.g. one that has been sitting around after the end of the war). In other words, play up the chipping rather than try to subdue it. Just a suggestion ... I'm no expert on chipping.

Bill try a VERY light wash to minimise the darkening effect - that may do the trick.

@ Zaidi - try to remove a couple of links from one end of the track run and re do the attachment hole in the last link left when done.

CA glue will hold the run together.. Before you do that, dry fit the tracks again and see how many link will need to be removed to make a nice flat fit across the return rollers.

Paul

Paul,

will that possible for DS track... i'm afraid the cut surface wont hold the tensile strength ....

Zaidi, I did it on my OddBall Sherman where I took two links out of the each loop - the end with the holes.

I Shaped the end to fit correctly into the section with the pins (I shaved off the pins). Then a glued with a good quality CA (Super glue), let it sit for a day and then fit the tracks (after paint touch up).

You must be careful not to take too many segments out though.

The result looks good but .................. dry fit, dry fit, dry fit !!

Hope that helps mate

Cheers

Paul