Ian Barraclough works his magic on the Hobby Boss Super Pershing as ever see this feature for his photographs.

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If you have comments or questions please post them here.

Thanks!

Nice job, looks great well done.

The fully interior is very well done, congratulations!

Wow, amazing job! I have that one in my queue right after the Asuka Jumbo.

Wow! Fantastic inside and out!

Gaz

Very nice work!

Man, that just looks super cool, with all that extra armor. WOT flashbacks. That thing screams "tank".

Excellent job....... looks way nice!

great tank subject.

Excellent, really looks like metal!

Wow, a full interior?! Great work with the model.

FYI, just generally speaking...

Re: The "Rusty" weathering- See below:

The US ARMY's 3rd Armored Division's Ordnance Unit (The Ordnance Unit was divided between CCA and CCB, Belton served with CCB at the time of this experience) received a single M26A1E2 "Super Pershing", (the only M26A1 to be shipped to Europe), mounting the experimental 90mm T15E1 Gun- (See Belton y. Cooper's "DEATH TRAPS" book. To paraphrase Cooper, "With new special ammunition", the T15E1 Gun was supposed to have a muzzle-velocity of "3850 feet per second, some 600 feet per second GREATER than the Tiger II's KwK 43 88mm Gun") Theoretically, the T15E1 was supposed to be a "Tiger-Killer"...

Belton Cooper was given the "task" of upgrading the M26A1 with "add-on armor", comprised of several pieces of inch-and-a-half boiler plate, bolted together in several different places. The extra armor which was attached to the Gun Mantlet was sourced from a knocked-out Panther's "face-plate", (I'm assuming either the Upper or Lower Glacis Plate), and "trimmed" to 3-inches thick. with a hole cut in the center to accommodate the main Gun. According to Cooper, the extra "armor" increased the tank's weight by another 7-tons, giving the actual tank a noticeable "nose-heavy" appearance. In addition, the extra 3 inches of armor attached to the Gun Mantlet caused the Main Gun Barrel to "sag forward".

After the mods were completed, this particular M26 was re-designated to "M26A1E2". To compensate for all the extra weight added to the frontal areas of the Gun Mantlet, two additional pieces of the "boiler plate" had to be attached to the existing extra armor at the rear of the Turret, to offset the Main Gun's "forward sag".

To paraphrase Cooper once again, "a crew from the 33rd Armored Regiment was sent to test this new tank, and results were satisfactory".

Just thought that readers of this interesting thread and "build" might appreciate a few additional comments to this fine thread, regarding this particular tank...

As to the "rusty weathering, given the "facts" stated above, it is entirely plausible that the additional "armor plate", i.e, the boiler plates and the Panther's "face-plate" might have rusted in the way that is portrayed on this model, as NO MENTION of painting the boiler plates or re-painting the Panther's "face-plate" is made in Cooper's book. So, we have another one of those niggling little conundrums that is open to question... Gotta love it!