M4A3E10 Sherman (1949)

[Story]

With the projected delivery and costs of the M46 Patton posing a potential problem, the M4A3E10 Medium Tank was a one-off post-war testbed to economically extend the lifespan of late-model Sherman tanks for US Army National Guard units, by fitting them with the 76mm M32 main gun and Continental’s Type AOS-895-3 powerplant of the T37 (later, M41 Walker Bulldog) Light Tank.



This is another two decade old reclamation, an MP Models M50 "Super Sherman / Isherman" (see https://www.scalemates.com/kits/mp-models-10101-m-50-sherman--186346  and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Sherman ) that I just didn't feel like building up as-issued.



I wanted a re-Americanized look, with an end-state like this -


... but with relevant additions, like a searchlight and extended range fuel drums (as found later on the M48 and M103).

[Story]

Further detail reference and style inspiration came from this site
http://the.shadock.free.fr/sherman_minutia/manufacturer/m4a376w/m4a3_76w.html

1) The easy parts - bore evacuator cut from a LINDBERG T-55 main gun, searchlight cobbled up from the same source. Fuel drums from a DML T-80. Fuel drum rack from spare parts box.

Note that the simpler answer for a searchlight is A194 US Army M46 Patton Searchlight £8.50 https://accurate-armour.com/aa-products/135th-accessories/a194

2) The hard parts - parts loss over time. Can't locate the Sherman-specific headlights and the MP MODELS tracks are individual links. I'd rather use the plastic band-type from the M48 series (like this https://www.amazon.com/Bronco-Models-T97E2-Workable-Building/dp/B00DM6IWQ8 ) and while I have a pair of donor drive sprockets, only one track. 

Tracks like these - note also the amount of green canvas and dust-collecting on the real things.

Thus illustrates the frustrations that place projects back on the Shelf of Procrastination.

Anyone have any of the kit-issued rubber-band style M48 tracks in their spares stash?  Or Sherman headlights?

[Jeffry Fontaine]

Nice to see the Sherman getting an upgrade. 

[GTX_Admin]

I like that fuel tank arrangement on the rear.

[Frank3k]

Every Bronco "workable" track that I've tried has been an exercise in frustration. Workable in the sense that you want to see if your new trash can works by dumping these POSes in it.

[Buzzbomb]

A very viable life extension.
Good use of sourcing available parts.

Will look very different when under paint and it is all tied together I am thinking

[Camthalion]

very cool

[Jacques Deguerre]

That’s a really cool idea! I had been bouncing the idea around in my mind of using an M32 76mm gun as a post-war upgrade for the Sherman’s M1 but you beat me to it!

Sorry if I sound JMN here but the tracks from the M48-M60 tank family should be noticeably wider than those used on the HVSS Sherman and the M26-M46-M47. If memory serves me correctly, the difference in real life is 5 inches, the early tracks being 23 inches wide with the later tracks being 28 inches wide. In a WhIf project, that may not matter in terms of “scale accuracy”  but might require you to widen the drive sprockets and perhaps adjust suspension mounting a bit. Like Frank mentioned, a number of aftermarket HVSS Sherman tracks are unusually testy to assemble. Not only Bronco but even AFV Club, who do (IMO) very good M48-M60 family tracks. Since you’re using the MP Models M4A4 hull, swapping regular single piece rubber band tracks from a standard length kit like Tamiya’s might be difficult too. One possible source would be Italeri’s old but still good M47 Patton kit. They probably have to be shortened a bit but might work if you’d like single piece track. Since they are T-84 rubber block chevron style, they’d also add to the post-WWII look.

[Jacques Deguerre]

Hey Story, having gotten all technical in my previous post, I wanted to tell you how cool I think it is that you’re using the MP M50 as your base kit. I remember this being the end of a long drought for HVSS Sherman kits when it came out and also being a broke young guy who couldn’t afford it at the time. It was disappointing when MP folded up and the kits became hard to find for several years. Even though it’s a little crude, the engineering and accuracy seems better IMO than the Dragon kits that came along a few years later. I’m glad you chose to resurrect this model!

[Story]

Thanks for the nice words, gentlemen.

Jacques, you're absolutely correct on the tracks. I'll endeavor to post a photo of a donor M47 sprocket and single track band I have later today, as an illustration of where I'd think it'd have gone if they used M46 tracks and sprockets.

 

That’s a really cool idea! I had been bouncing the idea around in my mind of using an M32 76mm gun as a post-war upgrade for the Sherman’s M1 but you beat me to it!

I'd highly encourage you to follow your muse and do such - 1) I've been starting all these threads pour encourager les autres in this time of weirdness and 2) competing designs are a built-in feature of US Armor development.

That said, I've got 98% of the complete MP MODELS individual tracks up for grabs should anyone want to embrace that torment.