Introduction

One of the things that distinguished Allied from Axis armored vehicles in World war two was the amount of stowage carried on the exterior. Some allied tanks looked like veritable gypsy caravans with everything except the kitchen sink tied on somehow (Though if you looked hard enough you’d probably find a pic of a Sherman with a kitchen sink attached.) Modelers can add this stowage from their spares box together with tarpaulins made from sheets of putty but there has been a trend in recent years for companies like Legend to produce stowage sets to fit specific vehicles. So we get large bundles of stowage items cast together to give a more natural look to the stowage.

The Kit

The M7 Priest stowage set is designed for either the Italeri or more recent Academy kit and comes in the obligatory stout cardboard box bearing a colour photo of the stowage in place on the Academy M7 kit. Further photos of suggested placement of stowage are on the Legend website.

It contains the following

1 large tarpaulin covered bundle for the engine deck
A row of boxes on a log shelf complete with holding brackets for the glacis plate.
1 large box.
1 open wooden crate containing a lantern and some bottles.
A rolled camouflage net.
2 large closed wooden crates.
5 US M1 helmets -4 with nets, 1 without.
A large sack and crate cast together.
A large tarpaulin shaped to fit the front right of the superstructure.
1 Large rolled tarp.
3 different medium tarps .
2 Oil cans.
2 buckets.
8 .50 cal ammo boxes.
2 bedrolls.
4 US Jerricans (Petrol) with separate handles.
3 US Musette bags.
4 US Canteens.
3 wine bottles and a lantern.

The set is more geared to be used with an American crewed M7 though many of the bits and pieces can be used for British and Commonwealth vehicles. All of the parts are very crisply cast cast in a cream colored resin and the detail is excellent. There are no air bubbles in my set that I can see.

I have both the Academy and Italeri Priest kits built into sub assemblies and I would say it is better to have the set ready before you build your M7 as the glacis plate stowage is not a drop fit and some of the “Grouser boxes” should be left off if using it.

The large bundle for the engine deck can’t be used to disguise the lack of the two large mesh vents, with their steel guards on the Academy kit, since the vents were there to prevent a build up of fumes from the gasoline tanks so logically even with stowage piled around them there should still be access to them, it is more suitable to a later model without the vents and it’s a terrific piece of casting as you can see from the accompanying photos.

The big drawback to Legend stowage sets (And Legend are not alone in this) is that some of the pieces come with quite large resin plugs which have to be cut away. No doubt these are needed as part of the molding process to give those crisp air bubble free castings but some serious work with a razor saw is needed before your stowage is ready to be mounted on the vehicle.

Conclusion

This is a really good set which with a little bit of elbow grease will make your M7 come to life.