Kanyiko

The photographs have gone AWOL during the server migration, but they are currently being sternly talked to by the admins, and as soon as they have served their time in the brig they will be on again. (... what I mean is, the threads have been migrated but the pictures haven't yet.)

My first entry for the year... well, over at the Military Vehicles thread, I'm working on the new Airfix Sherman Firefly, but when the forum was taken offline I decided on putting it aside for a moment and working on a small project involving another Sherman. Two years ago I happened upon the then-new Heller Sherman (M4A2 Sherman), and after building one out of the box, I made a second one and modelled it after Sherman T152656, a Sherbrooke Fusiliers Regiment tank which landed at Juno Beach on D-Day, and fought all the way into Germany on VE-Day. However, while modelling it, my eye fell on a beautiful picture showing it in action in Falaise: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/Canadian_Advance_Falaise_Ruins.jpg A month ago, at my local shop, my eye happened to fall on a new Vallejo scenery kit simply named "French Street", and its resemblence to the Falaise picture struck me immediately. So presenting here is a 2019 model (the Heller M4A2 Sherman) but in a 2021 diorama, using the Vallejo kit and a couple of Zvezda figurines.

Okay, I've decided to slightly depart from the script. Looking into the spares box, I found parts from a build two years ago of a Sherman issued by a "certain competitor from Trun". They issued a Sherman (different marque) with options for the single-cast or three-part gearbox cover, and since I used the single-cast part, the parts for the three-part cover were left unused. /media/tinymce_upload/2b26c31115343e34b1c57aed8ba728a6.JPG Now, a quick fit shows that while the parts don't 100% correspond, they do correspond closely enough, however some minor cutting and filing is require to fit the "Trun" part to the Airfix kit. /media/tinymce_upload/4591b9447923e32c3b0f8dc90580936b.JPG This leaves the lower hull more or less assembled now - time to clean up the seams and slap some paint on it...

Hi Paul, Yes, that would indeed have been a fine thing. Personally it's one thing that nags at me with starter kits - perhaps it would be wiser to add the parts to the kit anyway, but omit them from the instructions in the starter kit (or add a separate part in the instructions 'for advanced modellers', in the same manner as is done in this kit with the simplified track and suspension assembly) Going through some period pictures myself ("Antwerpen Bevrijd", Gazet van Antwerpen, Standaard Uitgeverij, 2004; "De Bezetting van Antwerpen in 1000 foto's", Jean Dillen/André Vandewynckel/Joris Wuyts, Davidsfonds Uitgeverij, 2015; "België 1944", Peter Taghon, Lanoo, 2015), the general rule of thumb seems to have been: appliqué armor for M4A4 Sherman V; no appliqué armor for Sherman Firefly Vc. Some pictures exist of Fireflies with appliqué armor; in the above books I am able to identify the following two (more are shown, but it is impossible to identify the individual tanks): - T232754 (3 RTR, 29th Armoured Brigade): hull appliqué plates & driver hood plates, no turret cheek plate - T262952 (Irish Guards): hull appliqué plates. No driver hood plates apparent, turret cheek not visible. EDIT: Checking back and cross-referencing, it appears these appliqué-armored Shermans are in fact Sherman Firefly Ic's, based on the Sherman M4 (regular hull) rather than the M4A4. For the Sherman Firefly Ic, both normal and hybrid hulls were used; the latter are more easily recognisable, but the former can be easily confused with the Sherman Firefly Vc. The easiest way to tell them apart is looking at the tracks (usually rubber chevrons on the Ic vs metal tracks on the Vc); and the distance between the bogeys. Anyway, back to the build. No plastic has been cut yet, right now is the time for deciding which tank to go for. And after some careful consideration, I've decided to go for 'Belvedere' of the Staffordshire Yeomanry, 27th Armoured Brigade, if only because it is easier to get visual information on. A quick trawl through the internet turns up a couple of interesting pictures of this particular tank. This is possibly the most well-known picture of this particular tank, T212680 'Belvedere', taken at the eve of Operation Goodwood. First of all, it allows for some interpretation of the camouflage on this particular vehicle, and yes: it does appear that this tank was painted in a two-tone camouflage. The darker areas on the hull are notably darker than the unlit parts of the lower hull, and they are apparent both on the hull and turret. This seems to support the suggestion that the tank was painted in a two-tone black over olive drab scheme. However, another thing this picture allows is to look at this particular tank's stowage. A quick analysis appears to show the above. Two different models of track links appear to be present on the front glacis, however I am going to take some liberty there and only use the ones which are available in the kit (the T62 model as used on the M4A4). Lengths of track appear to have been welded onto the turret - a common practice after the first encounters with Tigers and Panthers in Normandy - and with the presence of the pistol port, it seems more logical that the length of track on the turret left side was shorter than that used on the right side. So I'll probably use part D7 on the left side of the turret, and D12 on the right side. The tarps and camo netting will have to be scratched. So, time to start the build now, I guess...

So... 2021 is half a month old, and I finally managed to get my hands on the new Sherman Firefly. This will be my first attempt at an in-build report, so first of all, let's see what the box contains. /media/tinymce_upload/44d21a16072c8af1028f66bc3164988c.JPG And the answer is, of course: a Sherman Firefly Vc. The Sherman Firefly was a conversion of the Chrysler-built M4A4 variant, which was the variant equiped with a Chrysler A57 Multibank engine. As such, the M4A4 had both a longer hull than other M4 variants, and a slightly wider spacing between the bogies. Sprue A contains the main hull parts, breaking down as two lower hull halves (top extending into the upper hull; hull bottom, gearbox housing, rear engine doors, differential covers and the upper hull. Even though the kit is for a Sherman Firefly, the first thing I notice is that the armor cover for the hull machine gun (deleted on the Firefly variant) is not moulded onto the hull - is Airfix planning to issue a variant with parts for the regular M4A4 Sherman V as well? The lifting rings have been moulded separately, and the engine bays have the smoke dispenser moulded on, which is a good thing. Sadly, I can also notice one or two minor issues: - The hatches have been moulded as one part and can only be represented in closed position (this is also true for the turret); - The gearbox housing falls a bit short in detail. In real life, the gearbox housing on the M4A4 was the early model, consisting of three separate parts which were bolted together; the seams are moulded slightly too thin, and the bolts are missing from the part. - And other than the shovel, all of the tools have been moulded onto the hull. Sprue B contains the turret parts, smaller hull details and the simplified VVSS suspension. The simplified suspension certainly is a nice addition to this kit, as not everybody appreciates fiddling with small tank suspension parts *cough Churchill tank cough*, however in the case of this Sherman I'm not going to use it. The turret is a good representation of a Sherman Firefly turret, with the extended radio bustle and the added loader hatch, modifications which were added during the conversion to the standard D50878 turret. Again, I can't help notice some minor omissions: - The muzzle brake is moulded with closed holes. This is easy to rectify, but still a bit surprising. - While the headlights are moulded separately, they come without their protective cages. More surprisingly, the rear lights are missing in their entirety. - The lifting eyes are missing on the turret. - And, a rather annoying omission: none of the hull or turret appliqué armor plates are included. Sprue C contains all of the parts for the (non-simplified) suspension. The parts breakdown is noticable for its ingenuity, and certainly is a step up from the method used on other Shermans in this scale. The tracks themselves appear to be steel chevron T62 links; the drive sprocket is the forged type; and the roadwheels and idler wheel are of the stamped, six-spoke variant - correct for Chrysler-built M4A4 Shermans. Lastly, Sprue D contains additional parts. These include the pistol port for the turret; the cast part commonly welded over the hull machine gun opening on Sherman Fireflies; the tool box used on Royal Army M4A4s; and various attributes such as the spare links and their holders for the front glacis; separate spare links; spare road wheels, ammo boxes and a jerrycan. I'm not entirely convinced by the jerrycan (which appears to be the same part as in the British Airborne Willys Jeep) and a bit disappointed that no kitbags or other personal belongings are included (a common sight on British Shermans), but overall these parts are all nicely moulded. With all that said, I guess the next step is to start the build...

You mean, something like this? ;) https://www.airfix.com/us-en/narrow-road-bridge-broken-span-1-72.html Loving how your build's progressing. I just purchased one myself, and I'm thinking about making it my first in-build review on this site. :3

2020 will be the 80th anniversary of the 'serious' war (as opposed to the 'Silly' war), so I would like to propose some appropriate releases: - 1/72 Fairey Battle (correct new mold instead of a rebox of the inaccurate vintage one) - 1/72 Blackburn Skua and/or Roc - 1/72 Gloster Sea Gladiator I/II - 1/72 Westland Lysander - 1/72 Henschell Hs 126 (rebox) - 1/72 'early' Messerschmitt Bf 109E (E-1 to E-3) - 1/72 Curtiss H-75 Hawk A modern Aichi D3A1 would be welcome, but 2021 seems a more appropriate date for that particular one (80 years since Pearl Harbor - with a P-36 Hawk derived from the above-mentioned 2020 H-75 kit...? 😉 ) Not wanting to skip out on some more 'modern' British Classics, I certainly would like to put forward the De Havilland DH.103 Hornet and De Havilland DH.112 Venom, and perhaps some scaled-down versions of the Gloster Meteor and Hawker Hunter toolings...

@T2B - the kit I purchased is the diesel-engined civilian version (Ju 86B/Z), so unfortunately the military crew are 'out' for that kit. Sadly, it has a few parts too much in common with its military version - the center wing section comes with cut-outs for the bomb bays and crew entry hatch, as well as a partial cut-out for the ventral gun turret which obviously didn't feature on the civilian versions. It also doesn't come with a cabin interior, luckily I still have an unbuilt (civilian) Ju-52 lying around, so I can use that as a pattern for some scratch-built seats... @js - Actually, I live in Belgium, so a part of the kits I acquire go through German distributors, which are subject to German law. As a result, these kits are often 'censored', i.e. swastikas and SS-markings are routinely either removed or blotted out by marker pen (depending on the actual importer). /media/tinymce_upload/fec43467da2af893d7ffd53711f2bcc6.JPG Included above is the censored set of instructions and decals - as you can see, the SS license plates both on decal sheet and instructions, AND surprisingly also the 'Opel Blitz' lightning logo on the instructions have received some attention of the censoring pen, even though the latter has nothing to do with Nazism. (In fact, the 'lightning' logo introduced on the Opel Blitz truck series nowadays still features in the Opel company logo). Also included for illustration purposes are a decal sheet by Eduard, which shows how some companies abide with German laws: they include both partial swastikas, as well as a set of whole swastikas so located on the decal sheet that they can easily be removed by a censor. As a curiosity, I've also included the decal sheet of Revell's 1/72 scale 88-mm Flak 36; rather exceptionally for a recent Revell kit, it actually includes an option for a gun with SS license plates, although the instructions simply identify it as 'unknown unit, Russia, 1942'.

@JS Actually, it's a very common practice for kits that are distributed via a German distributor - which is a downside one frequently encounters as a modeller on this side of the puddle. Not only swastikas, but also markings of SS-units are routinely subjected to such treatment. As a result of this, different marques have adopted different approaches to this when laying out their decal sheets - Eduard and Tamiya, for one, always make sure that any swastikas and SS-markings are printed in such a way on their decal sheet that they can be removed with a single cut by German censors. However, other manufacturers which do not take this approach routinely find their sheets rather crudely censored for the German market. /media/tinymce_upload/69ed5ce6eba3300b077846f94dfbc98a.JPG The above pic shows the instructions and decals as included in the kit - notice the marker-censored SS-plates and - yes! - 'Opel Blitz' lightning marking on the picture of the hoods. Oddly enough, no such censorship marks for the 1. SS-Pz-Div LAH markings, though. As illustration I also included two decal sheets from other kits in that picture that show what I mean - namely the 'censor-cut' lay-out of a recent Eduard kit (70103 Avia B.534 Early Series Dual Combo), as well as a rather surprising decal sheet of a relatively recent Revell kit, namely that of their 8.8 cm Flak 36 kit, which circumvents the censorship by including a two-part numberplate decal for SS number plates (with the runes included in two separate parts); the separate instruction sheet also rather cryptically describes the gun as 'from an unknown unit in Russia, 1942' - even though the sheet also includes the unit markings of the 3rd SS Panzer Division 'Totenkopf' for that paint option. ... used up my 'beginners quotum' of two posts for the day, so I'm afraid I won't be able to reply after this one for the next 24 hours. 😳

@Paws4thot: Hi! I thought I recognised the username! XD @JS: Thank you so much for the advice. It'll be needed, as I'll be attempting some 'Blitzbuilding' in the near future. I already did, in fact, but the Revell/ICM Opel Blitz is an entirely different beast with its own peculiarities... @T2B: I know the feeling, oh how I do know the feeling. I never properly inventorised my military vehicle kits, but when it comes to planes, my 'to build' stash currently stands at about 600 aircraft (I'm just about to finish a Revell/ex-Matchbox Noorduyn Norseman). ... *sigh* The stash made another unforseen growth. Went into a modelling store to see if I could find something, only to discover they were throwing out all their non-Revell kits at a 50% discount. Sadly the only Airfix kits present were the old Harrier GR.7 boxings (which I didn't pick up as I already have the newer kits) and a Heller/ex-Airfix Puma (also in the stash); I did pick up some Italeri kits, though. Add to that an order that I had already placed but not yet collected, and this is the full list: 1/72 Italeri 162 MiG 37B 'Ferret E' (Yes, I know it never existed, but at 50%, it was too big of a steal not to...) 1/72 Italeri 1029 Junkers Ju 86 1/72 Italeri 1117 Junkers Ju 188 'Rache' 1/72 Maquette MQ-7206 Airco DH-9A 1/72 Roden 710 Opel Blitz 1/72 Roden 720 Opel 3.6-47 Omnibus I noticed the Roden Opel Blitz (freight truck) comes with only a partial and mutilated decal set - the instructions offer 6 decal options, but the decal sheet only offers 3 sets of numberplates, one of them 'censored by marker pen' as it belonged to an SS-unit. (The censor apparently did some overtime, as they not only censored the SS-markings but even the engine hood Blitz logo on the instructions) HOWEVER - I wasn't planning on using the set decals, but I felt it was an issue that needed addressing.

My very first post on the forum, so I guess I'll better make it count. Starting from January 1st, I filled in some holes in my stash (cough!). Airfix: 01079 Airco DH-4 - picked up three of them from various sources, including one with a resin set for a DH-9 conversion. It's 2018 this year, after all! 01081 Spad VII A01087 Fokker E.III Eindecker A02339 Willys Jeep A03311 WWI RAF Vehicle Set 61062-3 Sopwith Pup Non-Airfix: 1/35 Revell 03247 'German Staff Car Type 82E' (Volkswagen - MPM rebox) 1/35 Revell 03250 'German Truck Type 2,5 - 32' (Opel Blitz - ICM rebox) 1/35 Revell 03270 'German Staff Car Kadett K38 Saloon' (Opel - ICM rebox) 1/35 MasterBox MB3557 'Women at War: Germany, Luftwaffe Helferinnen' 1/72 Aoshima 9 Kawasaki Ki-61-I Tei Hien 1/72 AZModels AZ7374 Morane-Saulnier Type H 1/72 AZModels AZ7525 Gloster Gauntlet 1/72 Bronco GB7008 DFS 230B-1 1/72 Eastern Express 72161 Nieuport 11C-1 (Toko rebox) 1/72 Eduard 70103 Avia B.534 Early Series Combi Kit (Avia B.534 Series 1 & 2) 1/72 Fujimi 722641 Mitsubishi A5M2a 1/72 Italeri 118 Waco CG-4A 1/72 Kovozavody Prostejov KPM0064 Piper L-18C Super Cub 1/72 Revel 03954 De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter (Matchbox rebox) 1/72 Revell 04116 Fokker Dr.I 1/72 Revell 04384 Breguet Bre.1150 Atlantic 1/72 Revell 04903 Vickers Wellington Mk.II (Special Hobby rebox) 1/72 Revell 04947 Douglas DC-4 Skymaster 1/72 Roden 045 Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5a 1/72 Roden 723 Opel 3.6-47 Blitz Omnibus Stabswagen I desperately need to improve on my stash/built ratio though, as the former is currently outnumbering the latter a bit, even for this year with 29 acquired/6 built... 😳