Well, the newest kit to arrive on the build/review pile is the Cyberhobby Israeli M50 Super Sherman. I love IDF tanks and jumped at the chance to build and review another one of these cool dinosaurs once again. The kit comes with the Dragon IDF soldiers set as well. I don't know as much as some others in regards to the Sherman, so I pulled together my references to aid me with the history etc. as I get going on this full build. The release of this kit is really a re-release of the Dragon offering with different tracks (DS) and the inclusion of the figures. The DS tracks are a welcome change from having to assemble the tracks on the older kit. Been there, done that and didn't care for it all that much. Thanks for following along as I once again build this beast and provide a blow by blow of the account. Thanks for following along.. "Q"
The box top

My references

Kit sprues





Hollow Center guides in styrene...

3 Lengths of DS track...unsure as to why 3, but I guess I'll find out once I get there....


Markings for adding the support/return rollers to the lower hull called for in step 3 have been added with a red fine tip Sharpie.
Having a digital caliper on hand makes this task considerably easier for those of us "metrically challenged" More to follow soon.
Thanks, "Q"

The IDF must have done some serious 'cobbing' together of Sherman parts. Here we have a small hatch hull with HVSS.

Still, looking forward to a beautiful build non the less.


- Jeff

If you look at the instructions it shows you have to cut the one up to lengthen the other two. This M50 is based on a M4A4 hull, so it is longer than the normal Sherman hull.

The super Sherman was a mean machine

Does that kit have the updated M4A4 hull or the older one with the length issues? These Orange Boxes are really good values too!

Chris

Thanks for the question Chris. Even with my references I can't tell. The IDF made so many changes to these machines I think it would be possible to know what was common practice in regards to these machines and if Cyberhobby/Dragon got it right.. The hull appears to be the same as what came with my older kit. Will check that out if I can find the old build. In the mean time.... I'll keep eyes open and if I can come up with anything definitive, I'll be sure to post it. Thanks again, "Q"

He is not asking about IDF mods to the real tank, he is asking about the problems the old DML M4A4 had. Yes Chris it is the newer M4A4 hull.

Thanks Tony - thats what i was after......

Chris

Thank you for letting us share it, I'm planning to buy it.

Some pre-turkey consumption progress....
Suspension and lower hull completed. One of the mounting pins was removed before installing as it didn't allow for the mounting plate to fully seat onto the hull.

Before-

After-

A small section was removed from the ends of each of these to allow the parts to fully seat here as well...

Bogies assembled and installed. Not a lot of attachment area for these things. Ensure these dry fully before handling or moving on to installation of the road wheels...

Small areas removed from upper hull as per instructions...Need to replace a couple small areas just below the hull MG port...No biggee...

Upper hull with a few of the pieces installed and front fenders removed for install of the wider ones a bit later...


More to follow soon. Thanks, "Q"

Matthew,

I have the Dragon Premium M51 ISherman kit that I will soon be putting together for the Sherman campaign and although your building the M50 version I will be following your build with interest. These SUPER SHERMAN'S are my favorite flavor. I hope that someday one of the leading manufactures will be putting these out in 72nd scale. Very good start on your SBS build log!

Happy Thanksgiving
-Eddy

Thanks for following along Eddie. I dabble in 1/2 scale stuff from time to time. I recall that Trumpeter did an Israeli Super Sherman in 1/72. I thought I had one on my shelf at some point, but can't seem to locate it.. I would love to see some small scale offerings of the newer Merkava's show up at some point too. Time for some post Thanksgiving progress....
I've gotten the lower hull pretty much complete minus the BII (pioneer tools etc) and such. Just waiting on some putty/filler to dry so I can continue with that. The fit of the upper and lower hulls wasn't the smoothest I have dealt with either. There was a considerable gap at the front where the bolt line of the transmission and the upper hull met. I had to use some copious amounts of new words, and bit of Cyano-Epoxy (CA on steroids) to get things lined up closer. Once all was said and done, a small amount of red putty was used to fill the remaining gap. The fit of the front fenders was somewhat hoky too as they didn't want to line up with the rest of the fenders that run the length of the hull. The instructions also didn't show a positive placement of these longer fenders...above or below the bolt line on the lower portion of the upper hull. I checked my references and found they should be below the bolt line. This worked out well as the bolt heads provided a "stopper" that the fenders could butt up against. There was a bit if warp in my upper hull that cause the left side fender to sit proud of the hull by about 1mm on one end. Another shot of the Cyanoepoxy and all was well. A few bumps in the road to building, but overall things are progressing smooth enough....
Back deck goodies added....

Travel lock and other goodies.....

Lower/upper hull mating problem after the CA Epoxy was added.....

and after adding the red putty...


Fenders attached with a few of the support bracket mounting holes plugged...

Turret construction began with the upper and lower turret halves and the mantlet cover...Still needs a bit of dressing on the seams of the mantlet cover

Some minor surgery was needed to remove a step. Covered with Mr. Surfacer 500 and will be worked out once dry/cured...

The mantlet cover pieces fit very well...

Right side fender attachment was worse (gap) than the left side, but easily fixed... Will need to add small attachment brackets from sheet styrene later...

Driver and bow gunner armor plates added. Will add weld beads along bottom portion of plates once they are dry....

Overall shot of the hull and turret...


More to follow soon. Thanks, "Q"

Not having a Dragon M4A4 I am not sure of the new and old versions.

Saying this, the Orange box M50 is exactly the same as the old Dragon M50 kit with the exception of the DS track and figures. The lower hull is not meant for the HVSS suspension as can be seen in Matthew's build photos.

Not sure if this helps

The sprue is marked as M4A4, but I can't tell you if it is correct or not as even with my references I can't find any definitive info to compare the pieces to. The attachment points for the HVSS bogies is about as minimal as I have ever encountered on a kit. As large as the bogies are, I would have thought there would have been more surface area to attach them to. I already snapped one off dealing with the transmission cover. Luckily that was the only casualty thus far. "Q"

All the major assembly is complete. All that is left to do is add the center guides to the tracks and assemble the road wheels then she will be ready for paint. I spent the day dealing with the turret and adding the boxes and water racks to the hull. The only real issues I have with the turret is there is no positive locating spots for the smoke grenade tubes or the ammo/pistol port on the left rear of the turret. I took my best SWAG at it based on the pictures I have of a restored M50. Looks pretty close by my eye. There is a metric s**t ton of parts left over too which will be a nice addition to the spares box. The surgery required for lengthening the tracks was pretty straight forward only requiring 7 track pads per side. A couple of quick presses with a #11 blade and it was over almost before it began. Will let the joints where the tracks were added dry over night then test fit them around everything. Just a few minor pieces to add yet. All the big stuff is taken care of.....Here is where she sits as of 2024 hrs MST. Thanks for following along. "Q"

Nice build so far Matt.
Strange with all the missed fitting parts on Dragon's part.
To bad Tamiya would not do one.
How about Tasca are they planing on a M50?
Good job.

Thanks for the kudos Jeff. As this is just a re-boxing of their earlier release, the parts fit doesn't strike me as that odd. It isn't horrible, but it isn't up to par with some of their other releases or other manufacturers. Negative knowledge if Tasca has one in the works. Hoping to get to the paint booth in the next day or so. Thanks again, "Q"

She is now wearing her first coat of paint. Will shoot the road-wheels tonight, finish up the tracks and then move onto decals and weathering. Thanks for following along...."Q"

Hi Matthew great work with this dinosaur What have you used for the base coat?

Jaymes

Hi James. Thanks for the kudos. Model Master Israeli Armor Sand/Grey is the color. I base coated it with a coat of Tamiya Neutral Gray cut with lacquer thinner first to find any sore spots. Luckily everything was fine as is. Currently working on installing the center guides for the tracks. Pretty labor intensive as there a whole lot of them to install....one at a time. More to follow soon. Thanks, "Q"

Matthew,
Theres an easy trick when using these newer tracks. Leave off the outer road wheels and retrun rollers until the end. Paint/weather the tracks, then slip them onto the model then install the outer wheels. I think the DS Tracks are about 1 pad too long. Have you glued the idler mounts or are they still movable? that should help tacking up the track slack......

Looks good.
Chris

Thanks for the tip Chris. The idlers are in place. There was no way to make them movable even if I left them loose. The instructions are hoky about them too. They have you cut off the mount where the idler would attach to them and replace them with very small rods that are about .040 in diameter. No way near strong enough to hold the tension the track would place on it. I replaced mine with some large diameter tubing sleeved one inside the other and slotted into the back side of the idler itself. It doesn't move at all now. I plan in routing the tracks over the idlers and road wheels, then inserting the sprockets into the tracks. I can then use some Cyano-epoxy to nail the sprockets down. If the tracks are too loose I'll have to figure that out when I get there. I might be able to cut a block out then cement the tracks on the bottom of the road wheels...then bury that area in the dirt of a base....we'll see, Thanks, "Q"

Doing a great job Q.

Problems with Dragon instructions are nothing new and they continue to throw up problems even with there lastest kits. I think they need to have a word with their proof reader checking the instructions. They also need to have test shots built before releasing the kits to make sure they have caught all the problems and excorcised the demons before releasing the model to the general public.

Keep up the great work Q, although I think glueing all those guide teeth in place may put this one off my list for the moment. Still recovering from my Panzer IV AUsf.B and Stalingrad T-34...

Regards
Warren

A quick update before bed....I finished the tracks and got them installed. The tracks were 3 tracks too long. Not a problem, a couple passes with a #11 blade and the were the correct length. I got them wrapped around the sprockets, idlers, and road wheels and secured on the bottom. Here's the rub..the sprockets stick too far out from the hull, yet they can't be moved further inboard at all, so the tracks take on a somewhat "V" shape when viewed from the front. It looks fine in profile, but from the front or back, it looks like hammered A**. There is no way to fix this without having to move the suspension bogies further out from the hull. With the minimal amount of gluing surface available that isn't going to happen easily. I thought I may have missed something during the build, but rechecking my progress against the instructions shows I didn't. It is a case of poor engineering. It is like the hull is about 1-2mm too wide at the top causing the sprockets to stick out too far. I'll shoot some pics tomorrow and get them posted so you all can put a visual to things. Other than this, I have really enjoyed the kit. It is gloss coated and awaiting decals and weathering.....
Thanks, "Q"

Here is the knock-kneed stance I spoke of... The sprockets are as tight against the drive housings as they will go too.... argh,, "Q"