The Iron Works seems to have been reopened for business Looks like fun

Christmas comes early, because I’m getting almost everything I want in this build group. We have American, British, French, and German air power, British, German, and American armor. We are few but mighty!

Thanks for taking on the Sherman, Louis! We’re telling the story!

Today was a productive day at the "Iron Works"... Even though this isn't a Grumman, it was heavy.

I focused mainly on the hull. So far the fit has been spot on.

Here is how the rear looks right now. The air cleaners, track tensioners, rear grill doors, tow pintle and rear idlers have been installed.

On the front end of the hull, I installed the three piece casting that covered the transmission on the real one. Here you can also see the sprockets, and tow attachment points have been attached now.

This is an overall side view of the lower section of the hull. I have yet to add the suspension bits. These still have to be assembled.

On to the upper hull section:

This photo shows the rear upper deck, with the tail lights and guards added. The engine covers have also been installed. I'm leaving off the OVM tools until after the OD Green has been sprayed on.

Here's a close up of the front portion of the upper hull. I decided to add a crew this time, even though my figure painting skills leave a lot to be desired...

In this photo you can see the bow gun, headlights and guards, along with the hatches in the open position.

This picture shows the upper and lower hull mocked into position. These parts will not get glued together just yet...

It is starting to look like a Sherman ! I'm stoked.

The only thing I don't like about this kit is the open area under the side sponsons. The area that is just above the tracks... It can be seen very easily in this photo.

But once the track has been installed, and the side skirts added, hopefully this will not be too noticeable.

Please stay tuned for future updates. Thanks for following along so far.

As usual, comments are encouraged.

Nice going Louis ,I'm seriously looking at a 1/35 M-7 Priest by Italeri. Must have won it in a raffle because I don't remember buying it. Not a tank but it does have tracks and a 105mm Howitzer.

Hello David. No I have never used oils to paint figures, but someday I might give it a try. I don't think I work fast, its just armor is easy, especially when it's all one basic color like OD Green. I would like to see some progress on your A-20. Maybe it would kick start me into working on the one I have on the "shelf of doom"... 🙂

Thanks Tom. The M-7 Priest looks like a great kit to build. I say go for it and give it a try... I'm happy to see you didn't call it a tank like many do. 🙂 🙂

Hey Jeff. Yes you're right about those sponson boxes. They also help to keep some of your stuff from "growing legs" and walking away, especially just before an inspection... On these Shermans, it looks like most (if not all) of the OVM tools were strapped outside. They didn't have much room for gear inside either. Heck, they didn't even have a bustle rack like we did. We tankers (otherwise known as "DAT's") sure have come a long way...

I'd like to see how your Hellcat is coming along. I need to get cranking on mine too... Thanks for the compliments and it's good to hear from you.

Dang, Lou! You are positively cooking on this thing! Gotta give a guy like me time to catch up!

I'll try and post some stuff by this weekend on the A-20. I've been working on the engines, and starting to paint the figurines, but the rear giunner's position is woefully inadequate so I had to make a run for some supplies. More in that thread, but I am working on it!

Great looking stuff!