Greetings all,

I'm hoping to start to build my M7 Priest next week. Just though I would ask if there is anyhting particular to watch out for with this kit?

It will be the main passenger in my LCM and if I've read my history correctly will be a vehicle of 14th Fd Regt RCA who landed to provide artillery support for the Fort Garry Horse and North Shore Regiment at Nan Red.

Both the 14th and the 19th Fd Regt RCA provided fire support.

Would anyone know the correct AOS and Div sign for the 14th Fd Regt RCA, which was part of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division.

Thanks as always in advance.

Cheers

Al

Edit/after thought - off topic

I've posted this on Model Shipwrights but I don't know how many of you visit YET!!!

It's a link to the Combined Operations RN site and has lots of information about all manner of LCs involved in beach landings and the units that seviced the operational requirements of the various landings throughout WW2. Lots of useful information and a very informative read.

http://www.combinedops.com/RN%20Commando.htm

Cheers

Al

Hi Alan ...The Italeri Priest is a very late type and I don't think was used by the Canadians.(we switched over to the sextons quite soon after Normandy)..You really need to change the transmission cover and the suspension to at least the straight return roller arm...There are also a few differences in the interior set up and I think even the engine access hatches were different ,but I don't have my documentaion here with me...if you want more info I can certainly look into it for you ...I just need to get a few books back from a friend ...

good luck on a really cool project

Rick

Hi Richard,

Thanks for the reply. Any information would be much appreciated.

Much of the vehicle will be hidden by the boat, unless it ends up on the beach which is possible so I better try and get it as right as I can, costs permitting.

Thanks for your help. Any info for the AOS etc would also be very useful.

Cheers

Al

As far as backdating the Priest here are some things I did. The transmission cover I replaced with one from a Tamiya Sherman. I think that just about every Sherman kit out there gives you a choice of covers, so you might have one in the stash already. The suspension came from a Tamiya Lee. I think it's still less money buying a Tammy Lee just to get that suspension, than some resin kit. The only issue with it is the wheels, they have the wrong number of spokes. I used the kit wheels, but you have to sand them down a bit to fit in the Tammy bogies. The early Priests didn't have the higher sides, so you have to cut them down, along with removing the hinges that are molded into the kit. The same goes for the M.G. mount, the early model didn't extend down as far.

It's a fun kit. So far it's the only kit I've built twice, one late OOB, and one early as I described above.

here's a good decal sheet for you ....
http://www.quartermastersdepot.com/storeimages/35070.jpg

Rick

Greetings all,

Thanks, information flowing in thick and fast.

Hi Derek, I still have RA decals from the Fingerprint Design Set so I can use them. Thanks for the sorting the number.

Hi Richard, thanks for the link on the decals and the info on the kit, should give me the right placement.

Pause: Thought it might be a good idea to open the box.

Hi Rodger/Richard, Re: the necessary changes, just to make sure I've got it::

1. needs 3 piece transmision - I have spare Tamiya one.

2. Could I use the old Tamiya Grant suspension set? I know there is a difference but not sure exactly what it is - more Sherman things!!

3. Wheels - kit ones are OK - 5 spokes? I have plenty of 5 spoked Tamiya ones which might fit the Grant suspension better?

(also notice that the M4A1 has two sets of suspension and wheels, could I use one of those?)

4. Re high sides, do you have a picture/idiots guide I could look at? Same detail re hinges. I assume you're refering to the hinged plates that sit towards the back of the top hull sides?

Finally thanks to one and all for the help and information, great - I might get it started this weekend.

Cheers

Al

I do believe Bob Kerr did a backdate last year ..maybe he'll see this thread and cue in to help out or why not try to PM him ...

Rick

Here I am!

Alan: I did a very similar conversion -- You can see some shots in my gallery.

I did a little write up in MS Word for the AMPS Nationals I can send you through e-mail, plus I might have some other goodies for you if you are serious about doing this. Drop me a PM or e-mail.

Hi Bob,

Picked up you PM before I saw this. That's brittiant thanks very, very much.

Just going to checkout your gallery.

Cheers

Al

Edit:

That's a seriously impressive workshop you have there and your kits look great. Where did you source the fire extinguishers for you DUWK? I have to go and do 'work' related things now but I'll have a closer look later. M7 looks cool but then so do all the rest - maybe I should give up now LOL, LOL.

Cheers

Al

Alan here's an article by Vince Pedulla that backdates the kit to El Alamein but it might be of some help.
http://home.cfl.rr.com/modelerv/preist.html

Hi Pat,

Many thanks for that link, it will be very useful.

Cheers

Al

Nearly, Tamiya cunningly made the axle holes of their M4 wheels larger than anyone else's and slightly larger than their own M3 bogies. As I found out when making the M3 into a slightly later version. The holes aren't hugely bigger, just enough to make the fit sloppy.

David

Hi David,

There's always something else lurking about LoL, LoL. I've got Tamiya and Dragon spares, hopefully one set will fit.

Just brought the old Grant out of retirement and had a look at the suspension unit. OK got the difference now. Suspension units came off very easily, I must have built that one about 15 years ago whenI first started.

Question - were the Tamiya 6 spoked wheels just wrong or right for the Grant but just wong for the M7. Should I keep them or bin them?

Cheers

Al

Watch out for this as all the RCA Priests that landedon D-Day had had wading trunks and additional side armour added to permit them to wade ashore. This gives theeffect of significantly higher sides than normal. ALso note that not all the "Early " Priest mods may be necessary as these were issued to RCA units from US stockls pretty close to D-Day and would be from the middle batches of Priest production.

Here are a couple of Pirest photos I've found on the net:
http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://web.inter.nl.net/users/spoelstra/g104/1cacr/pics/priest_kangaroo3.jpg&imgrefurl=http://web.inter.nl.net/users/spoelstra/g104/1cacr/m7_05.html&h=407&w=600&sz=31&tbnid=65VZNgqoJEqfYM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=133&hl=en&start=2&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dpriest%2Bm7%2Bcanada%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG
http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://www.geocities.com/dieppe_berlin/1Canada/1-Armoury/SPGuns/sp_priest.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.geocities.com/dieppe_berlin/1Canada/1-Armoury/spguns.htm&h=472&w=640&sz=84&tbnid=DXjm9p-jOdBO_M:&tbnh=99&tbnw=135&hl=en&start=1&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dpriest%2Bm7%2Bcanada%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG

The first photo is of Priest Kangaroos, but as these were made from the RCA Priests, the mods you see tot he hull sides are for wading and not specifically for the APC role. I can see the M3 style bogeys and the 3 piece differential cover as well.

HTH

Paul

Hi Al

Tamiya's six-spoke wheels in their M3 series always were fiction.

I've spent many happy hours Frankensteining Sherman bogies and the Dragon wheels will probably need reaming out before they fit on the Grant axles. They (and their Italeri ancestors) have the smallest holes in the size range. Academy's are somewhere in the middle, so they don't fit on either Dragon/Italeri or Tamiya without fiddling.

Thanks to model manufacturers for reinventing the wheel

David

Afternoon David,

Thanks for that. Yip, check all three types and they all have slight problems. Sellted on the Italeri wheels and just drilling out the centers now. The Grant pretty much came apart in my hands it's that old.

One wheel on my wagon, 11 more to go.

Thanks to everyone, you havev all been brilliant.

Cheers

Al

Hi Paul,

Nearly missed you post there. That's a very relevant point. I've look at what few pictures I have and the vehicles from Italy onwards all seem to have the high sided arrangement which would make sense as they were driving them ashore from LST and LCMs.

That's one bit of sawing and filing taken care of, the wading gear is another issue I'll need to look at. The pictures I saw of them being driven to shore in Italy just show the vehicle but the landings in Normandy would have been another matter - more research required.

They do still seem to have the 3 piece transmission and early suspension so I'll proceed with that part.

Well spotted sir, not so easy to put them back if you've just hacked them off!!!

Cheers

Al

'Two wheels on my wagon'

:-H

Edit, Just been looking at that class model - really good. One other thing - now the wheels are sorted is tracks?

I have spare tracks from the Dragon M4A1, does any one know where I can get extra track connectors? Do Dragon do such a thing?

Well, I'm sorry to say that the high sides you see in the kit and in the Italian photos are NOT what I was talking about. Priests landed on D-Day had _additional_ plate added to the sides to increase their wading depth. They also had extensive trunking and the like added to allow them to wade in to about 6 feet of water (maybe a bit more). The first photo I sned of the Kangaroos shows this additional material as sticking up above the normal level of the cre w compartment.



No, you still have to saw off the later, taller sides in the kit and then add the wading gear back on top of that. Sorry.



Yep.

Sorry to be the bearer of more work. :-)

Paul

Hi Paul,

Ah 'b-----r' - I'll have to have a look at that again - don't know if my skill level will cope with it, but I'll see. Out with the saw.

For the trucking (deep wading gear) I was thinking about the AA kit for shermans - any thoughts? This one isn't going to get built very quickly.

Anyway - '12 wheels on my wagon' and I better get back to it. Pity ,the fold up armour at the back looks quite good.

I'll have to search for some more pictures.

Thanks for all you help.

Cheers

Al