WWII Project - Another Sherman Part IV

This is the current progress on the Rubicon M4A3 76 Sherman. I have been working on this while paint drys on the M4A1 76. It certainly won't be going to ReaperCon with me, but it will be a nice project to come back to. I might take it along just as a side project to work on at the con. So much is working with enamel paints though which definitely leaves and interesting odor beyond.

This time I primed with the Badger Olive Drab Primer which went on quite nicely.

Then started the shading with the Ammo paints. I'm not sure I'm liking they way a couple of the colors are going on though. They almost feel to thin, in particularly the Olive Drab Base.

WWII Project - Another Sherman Part III

I continued on with the Rubicon M4A3 76. I basically built the rest of the tank in less than an hour. The hull detail is nice and crisp and the VVSS suspension is nicely done and integral with the tracks. The complaint I have here is that on the front of the tracks you can see the metal grousers, but they were not molded on the rear portion of the track. Not quite sure what I want to do about that. Most gamers wouldn't notice it but from a modeling standpoint it really stands out like a sore thumb.

I finished the hull and track assembly but didn't glue them to each other. I learned my lesson (again) on while painting the Trenchworx M4A1, painting the tracks while its mounted to the hull is not easy. I know this before I did it but I did it anyway. So I will keep the M4A3 tracks off till everything has been painted.

The lower hull, a considerable improvement in design from the lower hull of the PzKfw IVH's hull.

Upper hull, the molded detail is excellent, the headlights could be sharper and maybe a bit more delicate.

The tracks with the VVSS suspension, fully detailed on both sides!

The upper and lower hull have been glued together the tracks are just tacked in place for the moment.

My new favorite clipper. Much easier to maneuver around the sprues than the Army Painter of GW clippers. These are designed to clip delicate parts without breaking them. I first saw these on a model railroad site for $40 bucks, they were considerably cheaper from micro mart.

WWII Project - Another Sherman Part II

I sat down to paint and couldn't find the reference book I needed or the technique book I had been working from (I found them later on sitting on top of a rollway set of drawers that all my pigments and enamels are kept in). So in order to get something done I broke out the Rubicon M4A3 Sherman and started on that. First off there are two choices of machine guns, the gamer version and the modeler version. I opted for the modeler version. It is definitely less "beefy" than the gamer version and definitely smaller than the Trenchworx version.

During this session I managed to complete the turret. I decided to build the M4A3 with the T23 turret (two large hatches). It went together quite easily at this point. I grabbed the Trenchworx T23 turret from the M4A1 to compare and they are quite similar. I find the resin Trenchworx T23 turret to have much sharper details and I think I like their .50 cal MG much better. However, the two turrets are different. The Trenchworx version has lifting lugs on the sides towards the back while the Rubicon version lacks these. The Rubicon version has the rack for the MG on the back though. So kind of a toss up at this point.

This .50 cal MG seems almost delicate

The completed Rubicon T23 Turret

And matched up against the Trenchworx T23 turret

This is a better comparison shot, here you can see that the turrets are almost identical in size, but the Rubicon lacks some sharpness in detail, especially on the interior side of the commander's hatch.

WWII Project - Another Sherman

A shipment from Rubicon Models arrived over the weekend. Another addition to the Sherman collection. If you have kept up with the posts on my Reaper Con Sherman entry I have been having issues with the Company B decals. I really ordered this one to snag the decal set as they are not yet available separately from Rubicon.

I am quite impressed with this kit though, it is one of the most current and its a very complete model. You can build either the M4A3 76mm or the M4A3E8 or "Easy Eight" version also armed with the 76mm gun but in this case with the a muzzle break. That means that there are a whole host of extra parts with this one. Two turrets (but unfortunately only one turret base so there is no way to make use of both of them), two 76mm guns (one with and one without the muzzle break, and a 75mm gun would have been a nice option as well)and two full sets of suspension components. There are even crewman with this one, although I'm not terribly impressed with them, they definitely lack a bit of animation. There are a few stowage components but not in any serious quantity so if you want to deck it out you will need to find a couple of other sources for those. Rubicon makes an Allied Stowage "kit" but it still doesn't provide enough options or that gypsy look that many US tanks tended to have.

Value Gear Model Building Details has some sets that they claim can be mixed with 1/48th and 1/56th scale vehicles. Debris of War has sets that are specifically designed for 1/56th scale and I find those intriguing. I'll think about getting something after the bank account has recovered from the latest round of house renovation.

The bonus side is that the kit actually came with two sets of decals so I can use them on the Trenchworx M4A1 and still have a full set for this M4A3! I'm seriously thinking about whether I can build this one fast enough to enter it as well.

Rubicon really does a great job with their instructions.

Kickstarter Rewards Received - Disposable Heroes Miniatures

Brigade Games ran a Kickstarter to start a line of WWII miniatures to support their Disposable Heroes Miniatures Rules. This one closed in May and was supposed to deliver in July. They were only a couple of months late on this one which is not to bad but the communication really needed to be better.

I think the miniatures look quite good and the M4A3 is a new release from Company B. I haven't built a Company B tank so I'm looking forward to that. I'm not sure when I'm getting to these but I would like to move them up in the queue since I'm trying to actively work on the World War II project while filling in gaps with the other projects.

Here are a few pictures. 

What came in the box. I bought a platoon of US, a platoon of Germans, along with some support weapons and a few extras. In this case American and German NCOs, and extra German LMGs so I could field the German squads as Panzer Grenadiers.

Packs of the German Platoon, 35 figures, including the platoon HQ figures.

US NCOs, yes all the heads are separate so you have a few options to make the minis look a little different.

German LMG crews

M4A3 from Company B

Not thrilled with the casting lines on the tracks, fortunately most of that is hidden

The turret and all the white metal detail parts. Definitely more than a simple kit with cast on details. Looking forward to making this one.