In my opinion, Easy Eights are a dime a dozen (I blame the movie “Fury” for that), so I’d go with a Tasca/Asuka M4A1 early war model to start; then move to the M18 Hellcat (you don’t see a lot of these), maybe an M26 Pershing for the late war taste.
Round it up with a Willy’s GP Jeep, or an M16 GMC Halftrack.
I think this might be why I am drawn away from Sherman’s. They are like the Tiger of allied modeling, everyone builds them.
I am leaning towards the bronco Chaffee to start. I built the bronco archer and loved it. Yes bronco kits are complex but you get a nice kit in the end!
Ok, while all the Sherman geeks are here … is there any way to build one of these ?
I know there is one 1/35 kit but I am pretty sure thats a PTO Sherman and it has the wooden plank side armour moulded on ? is there an easy work round to build D Day version ?
I think I saw a dragon or italeri kit of this in my searching
What about the M10? Always thought that was an interesting one.
I thought about an M36 which is similar but I think upgunned and up armored.
Think I’ll do the M24 from bronco and then one other still deciding if it should be an M18, M10, Sherman or Stuart
I have built an M5A1 and it went together great. No real issues. I have built up the Academy M36 and it came together nicely so can recommend that as well.
I vote an M3 of some flavour. I love the shape of them. There is also the chaffee which is a fun little tank. Tons of great options that aren’t a sherman (and this comes from someone who loves M4’s and has waaay to many of them in the stash). Not strictly speaking armour but the M7 Priest has an interesting look to it.
Am I correct the only game in town for the priest is the Italeri boxing?
I am leaning toward a bronco chaffe and either tamiya M3 or AFV club M5A1
@Mead93 , Dragon makes two great Priest kits - one early production and one mid production. Academy also has a Priest kit that has a mix of early and mid-production features. The Italeri kit and the Airfix reboxing of it are of a late production Priest.
Here is the Scalemates list of all things Priest
M7 Priest | Self-propelled artillery - Vehicles (scalemates.com)
The M7B1 and M7B2 versions of the Priest have not been covered yet by the manufacturers. The Italeri/Arifix kit can be converted to represent these versions.
Of the lot, the Dragon kits are my choice for accuracy and build.
I have 6 Priest kits with aftermarket in my stash. One of these days, I need to build one and move it to the display case…
The Tamiya M3A1 Stuart is a pleasure to build. Typical Tamiya ease and very decent detail.
Commander comes with two helmet options (American and Soviet); decals come in either American or Soviet.
Add the DEF Models PE kit and maybe some stowage and you get a very nicely done build.
If you decide on the M18, go with Tamiya’s. Both the AFV Club and Academy ones have noticeable shape issues - I’m not rivet counting, they really look off if you know the vehicle. I have built both of the later and have the Tamiya in the stash. Whilst Tamiya has no interior, it is barely visible anyway.
Same with the M10 - go Tamiya’s.
The AFV Club M5A1 comes in two versions - Early and Late. Apart from sink marks around the turret collar and the ejection marks inside the hatches, it builds up well. However, the brittle plastic AFV Club use means remove the parts off the sprue leaving a larger burr of sprue runner, then trim with a blade. Trying to remove the part by cutting as close the part as possible will often see a chunk of the part removed too. This can be tricky on thin parts. ( I did my M5A1 British… and replaced the tracks with Bronco’s - the later probably not necessary):
The M3A3 Stuart looks very similar to the M5A1 but the M3 Stuart is vastly different. I’d go that way myself, and with the Tamiya M3 as previously recommended. It is a nice little kit and represents a different ‘era’ to the Chaffee, Sherman and Hellcat.
If you end up looking for a Sherman, then I suggest the Asuka/Tasca M4A3E2 Jumbo. That turret and mantlet are so different to the other versions it is not so same/same when added to the Brit Shermans in your collection.
Whatever you end up with, just enjoy them.
Thank you for the detailed reply. I am thinking I will do broncos M24 chaffee from Korea for something a bit different. I built broncos archer and it is my favorite build to date. Outstanding detail and fit.
I am heavily leaning towards Tamiya M3 and building one from Guadalcanal
Here is a thread with lots of information, I have a link to my build and lots of other links on here.
A decent generic kit is the Italeri Sherman that SableLiger posted. The wooden planks are a add on so you can leave them off. Just need to find some markings.
Cheers Ryan, I was reading a review of it earlier and realised the planks were a separate part…so that would be a good enough version to do as is for a DDay one ? There are loads of decal sheets about for them…
Are the miniart Lees/Grants a lot of work? I’ve done a couple of miniart T-55s and as much as I love the kit, it is a lot of work. I am attracted to a Lend-Lease (Soviet) Lee or Grant for some reason, but not sure I’m up for a lot of work right at the mo…
