Modeling the Sherman Tank in 1/72nd Scale |
M4A2 "Sherman" 75mm | Zvezda Kit #5063 |
Article by Doug Chaltry; last updated 12 September 2024 | |
Before
I saw any of the Zvezda "Snap Fit" kits in
hand, I had assumed that they were intended as wargame
kits; because how could a snap-tite ever exhibit the kind
of detail that's more common on static display models? I
sure was wrong on that assumption. This is actually a
very fine kit that has some details that are the best
I've seen. The engineering of the model is truly
creative, and as far as I can tell without yet building
it, I think that there will be no way possible to
identify this as a snap-tite once completed. I've seen
some of Zvezda's other "Snap Fit" models built
and painted, and they do indeed look top of the line. The
molding is quite crisp, with sharp edges where they need
to be, and all of the details for this version of the
M4A2 are accurate, as far as I can tell. I measured
several dimensions, and the scale is spot on for 1/72nd. As far as options are concerned, the kit offers two styles of road wheels, two styles of sprocket wheel, but only the single style of idler. All of the pioneer tools are molded as separate parts. The hull crew hatches are molded open, yet for some reason, the turret hatches are not... That is unfortunate, and it's a combination likely not often seen. One innovation of the kit are the tracks that are molded in hard plastic, but as a single strip, with the intention of bending the strip of links into the proper shape to wrap around the wheels. There are grooves molded on the back of the links to assist in bending them, but... those grooves are in the middle of the track shoes in between the end connectors, so that the links would be bending in the entirely wrong place! True, it will be difficult to bend the links where they are supposed to bend because of the presence of the end connectors, but I think if one is patient, it likely can be done, maybe with some delicate cutting. It would be worth the effort to try, because it will look ridiculous otherwise. The two things that I absolutely love about this kit are: this is the only model in our scale that clearly has the upswept return roller mount on the wheel brackets. Because the Eduard/Extratech return roller mount is a separate part, it's possible to modify it to represent the upswept mount, but the detail on that part pales in comparison to this one. Unfortunately, although it looks like two sets of suspension units are included, only the back halves are duplicated here, not the front halves, so no luck with a complete extra set. The second thing that this kit does right is the gun's M34A1 rotor shield. The side armor plates protecting the base of the gun barrel are molded so incredibly thin, it's hard to appreciate in the scan below. This is by far the best looking rotor shield we have available to us (but the coaxial .30 cal is rather poor, and best replaced). Markings are included for four vehicles: M4A2 No. 8392,
Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, USA, December 1943 M4A2 No. C40
"Caesar", 2nd Tank Battalion, US Marine Corps,
Tinian, Mariana Islands, July 1944 M4A2 No. 152,
Soviet 1st Mechanized Corps, Belarus, July, 1944 M4A2 No. 203,
Soviet 244 Tank Regiment, Yalta, April, 1944 |
Modeling the Sherman Tank in 1/72nd Scale |