Maybe keep it OD or the OD with improvised black stripes, but with some dunklegelb road wheels or something.

I am really loving this "Schermpanther". Great idea and scratch-building. Now the big question....will it have a bucket?

I'm loving this!

I want to combine the Jumbo's hull, HVSS and a Pershing turret for my "47 build.

Look at Tamiya XF-73 for a lighter green shade.

Premise:

The atom bomb test failed, and Stalinist traitors inside the Manhattan Project informed Stalin he had nothing to worry about. He decided to attack into western Germany on March 1st, 1947. Goal, destruction of the Western Army, and then the conquest of western Europe. The bulk of the Stalinist armored forces will be the T-34 85, supported by the IS series heavy tanks, with the new T-44 tanks available in limited numbers.

Western Army forces are the US M4 75mm, 76mm and 105mm tanks. The M26 and M26E4 Pershing series, and the new British Centurion

Challenge:

What could be done to turn an early M4 series tank into a T34 killing machine before spring 1947?

The Western Army has 18 months, all the spare resources in the US, all the resources of the Ruhr industrial complex, access to all the guns, munitions and spare parts left over from the US and German war efforts.


About 26,000 M4, M4A1, M4A2 and M4A4 small drivers hatch tanks were built. Suppose that around 1/3, or 8,600 are available:

M4 2,200

M4A1 2,000

M4A2 2,000

M4A4 2,400

Here is what I came up with. 90% completed, a What the Hey! What If. I was going to wait until I had the turret wrapped up, but I needed to get some parts, so opted to post the nearly finished model.

I'm loving this too, was planning on doing a similar project by the British on their obselete Sherman. It would have a Centurion style suspension and Metoer engine added to the M4A4 chassis.

To be sure, this project IS a novel idea-

Once again, not to steal your thunder, and I'm just throwing some observations regarding the "1947"-scenario about, but:

a) Logically, by 1947, wouldn't it be possible that the US Army and the US War Production Board would have put priority on M26 Pershing production, rather than than re-design/re-fit or re-manufacture M4A3E8 (HVSS) Tanks with T26/M26 Turrets and German Panther-type Suspensions? Patton would have had an apoplectic FIT!!!

Cannibalizing Panther Suspensions is not out of the realm of possibility, but wouldn't that be VERY time consuming and an impractical mis-use of available M4s, M4A1s, M4A2s, and M4A4s, when every single one of these would have been required to combat the "Eastern Forces"? Wouldn't it make more sense to forego the aforementioned M4-series Mediums in favor of M4A3E8 (HVSS) Tanks..?

I suppose that manufacturing Panther Suspensions in the US MIGHT have been possible, but there again, that would have required opening up an entirely NEW Production Line, if not a new Manufacturing Plant!

A more viable solution in countering the Soviet Tank forces, IMO, could have been to manufacture M26s (Standard 90mm and/or 90mm T15E1 Gun), T29/T29E3s (105mm Gun), T30/T30 (155mm Gun), or the T32E1 (with the new 58-degree Hull and armed with the T15E1 90mm Gun)... This would make more sense to me...

b) It's a well known fact that M4A3E8 (HVSS) Shermans serving in Korea (1949-1953) were defeating Soviet-made T-34/85s on pretty much a regular basis, so doesn't it stand to reason that "Easy Eights" could have dispatched T-34/85s in the same fashion in 1947..?

Personally speaking, I don't dwell on "what if" scenarios; it's pretty well established that the United States, by early 1944, was not only a military, but also an industrial Superpower, with which the Soviets would entirely have had their hands full...

"LEND-LEASE" would have been very abruptly terminated where the Soviet Union was concerned...

Also, let's not forget that the majority of German engineers and scientists, (Wernher Von Braun, et al) had given themselves up to Allied Forces, rather than fall into Soviet hands. The Allies' taking advantage of the wealth of advanced German weaponry and knowledge against the "Eastern Forces" are a moot point, I think...

So guys, chew on THAT if you will, but ENJOY Randall's project, by all means!

Again, this is a GREAT PROJECT!!!

I'm loving this too, was planning on doing a similar project by the British on their obselete Sherman. It would have a Centurion style suspension and Metoer engine added to the M4A4 chassis.

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I'm loving this too, was planning on doing a similar project by the British on their obselete Sherman. It would have a Centurion style suspension and Metoer engine added to the M4A4 chassis.

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Weren't early Centurion Is (A41s) already being used in troop trials by May, 1945? Since we're looking at a "1947"-type of scenario, I should think that Great Britain would have had several different Marks of the Centurion in full-scale production by 1947...

Also, let's not forget that the British Army already had Comets (A34s) serving in Europe by January, 1945...

I'm loving this too, was planning on doing a similar project by the British on their obselete Sherman. It would have a Centurion style suspension and Metoer engine added to the M4A4 chassis.

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I'm loving this too, was planning on doing a similar project by the British on their obselete Sherman. It would have a Centurion style suspension and Metoer engine added to the M4A4 chassis.

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Weren't early Centurion Is (A41s) already being used in troop trials by May, 1945? Since we're looking at a "1947"-type of scenario, I should think that Great Britain would have had several different Marks of the Centurion in full-scale production by 1947...

Also, let's not forget that the British Army already had Comets (A34s) serving in Europe by January, 1945...

I know the British would have had a reasonable amnount of new advanced tank designs by 1947, I was more thinking of a way to prolong the usefulness of the 8,000+ Shermans the army still had, which would have been obselete day the former without upgrades.

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I'm loving this too, was planning on doing a similar project by the British on their obselete Sherman. It would have a Centurion style suspension and Metoer engine added to the M4A4 chassis.

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The suspension is very do able since it's bogie system like the VVSS and HVSS...again the Engine would be the big problem. But the Centurion Suspension could be done minimum with an adapter plate.

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To be sure, this project IS a novel idea-

Once again, not to steal your thunder, and I'm just throwing some observations regarding the "1947"-scenario about, but:

a) Logically, by 1947, wouldn't it be possible that the US Army and the US War Production Board would have put priority on M26 Pershing production, rather than than re-design/re-fit or re-manufacture M4A3E8 (HVSS) Tanks with T26/M26 Turrets and German Panther-type Suspensions? Patton would have had an apoplectic FIT!!!

Cannibalizing Panther Suspensions is not out of the realm of possibility, but wouldn't that be VERY time consuming and an impractical mis-use of available M4s, M4A1s, M4A2s, and M4A4s, when every single one of these would have been required to combat the "Eastern Forces"? Wouldn't it make more sense to forego the aforementioned M4-series Mediums in favor of M4A3E8 (HVSS) Tanks..?

I suppose that manufacturing Panther Suspensions in the US MIGHT have been possible, but there again, that would have required opening up an entirely NEW Production Line, if not a new Manufacturing Plant!

A more viable solution in countering the Soviet Tank forces, IMO, could have been to manufacture M26s (Standard 90mm and/or 90mm T15E1 Gun), T29/T29E3s (105mm Gun), T30/T30 (155mm Gun), or the T32E1 (with the new 58-degree Hull and armed with the T15E1 90mm Gun)... This would make more sense to me...

b) It's a well known fact that M4A3E8 (HVSS) Shermans serving in Korea (1949-1953) were defeating Soviet-made T-34/85s on pretty much a regular basis, so doesn't it stand to reason that "Easy Eights" could have dispatched T-34/85s in the same fashion in 1947..?

Personally speaking, I don't dwell on "what if" scenarios; it's pretty well established that the United States, by early 1944, was not only a military, but also an industrial Superpower, with which the Soviets would entirely have had their hands full...

"LEND-LEASE" would have been very abruptly terminated where the Soviet Union was concerned...

Also, let's not forget that the majority of German engineers and scientists, (Wernher Von Braun, et al) had given themselves up to Allied Forces, rather than fall into Soviet hands. The Allies' taking advantage of the wealth of advanced German weaponry and knowledge against the "Eastern Forces" are a moot point, I think...

So guys, chew on THAT if you will, but ENJOY Randall's project, by all means!

Again, this is a GREAT PROJECT!!!

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I think I answered most of this in previous posts. For the M-26 there was about 2,000 produced. If you increase production you still would not have enough combat ready tanks by March 1947.

I went over the top on this one, and the next will be more Sherman.

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I'm loving this too, was planning on doing a similar project by the British on their obselete Sherman. It would have a Centurion style suspension and Metoer engine added to the M4A4 chassis.

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The suspension is very do able since it's bogie system like the VVSS and HVSS...again the Engine would be the big problem. But the Centurion Suspension could be done minimum with an adapter plate.

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I agree, but did not look closer. Another factor is the length of the hull. The Centurions have a long hull, would three boogies fit on the M4A4 hull?

Now I did check out one suspension on the M4, the Porche boogies from the Elefant. Those would fit the standard M4 hull.

But, I went Panther on the model.