gorby
Looks like an interesting project.

Jakko ‌ Autor
So far it's certainly been interesting 🙂 It's that I already had these parts and decided on this before Asuka announced their M4A3 (105 mm) kit, but I would advise anyone else wanting an M4 (105 mm) to just buy that kit and order an M4 engine deck from Asuka to put into it … (And make some other modifications, of course, like changing the rear hull to match.)

Villiers de Vos
The texturing came out very nice.

Jakko ‌ Autor
Thanks. I just hope it matches up with the molded pattern reasonably well once there's some paint over it 🙂

Ben M
👀

Pepe
Inside

Villiers de Vos
Nice scratch building work.

Pietro De Angelis
Fantastic scratching work,
i'm also admiring it on missing-lynx,
congrats!

Jakko ‌ Autor
Thanks, guys 🙂 I wasn't going to add the wading trunk, but then I hit my head and decided to anyway … 😉

Danny Ray
You're like like a Messi compared to my Sunday league footballer in modelling terms. I mean, I even made a couple of mistakes on a recent airfix vintage kit 😇😂😂😂

Jakko ‌ Autor
Thanks, but I'm nowhere in the Messi leagues — more like messy leagues 🙂

Danny Ray
😂

David Taylor
Following.

Shar Dipree
Following

Mr D
Nice project.. taking shape nicely 👍

Michael Kohl
Nice detailing going on here.

Jakko ‌ Autor
Thanks. It's almost done — I just need to wrap up the stowed .50-calibre machine gun and construction should be finished … I hope 🙂

Danny Ray
You love your M4's don't you? 🙂 good stuff again Jakko

By the way I thought I was very clever yesterday. I thought "oh the M7 'Priest' was obviously put on top of an M4 chassis. Then I realised the 'pulpit' MG nest is actually the bit above the side sponson of the main gun on an M3 Lee/Grant.
That'll teach me to open my gob when I have no idea what I'm saying! 😂

Jakko ‌ Autor
I have certainly gotten rather more enamoured of M4s (and M3 mediums) over the last five or six years than I was before, yes 🙂

The 105 mm HMC M7 is basically an M3 medium tank (a Lee, in British terms) with the superstructure removed, the driver moved over to the left side of the transmission (instead of sitting on top of it), and a new superstructure added to accommodate the 105 mm howitzer. This does put the .50-calibre machine gun pretty much where the 75 mm gun was on the M3, yes.

Danny Ray
Love how you can always provide more info on all things AFV!
You might be able to help me with something. Did a co-driver on an M4 fire the machine gun? Not the big .50 cal on top but the (what calibre was the internal MG?) one inside, next to the main gun? I think my grandfather said he did but we only actually spoke about his war experiences a couple of times and he was, in general, a very private man. I only recall one time where he spoke at length and that was when he had been drinking. A bit macabre but he told me of a driver (not sure if it was his tank or in his squad) where a German plane had strafed them and by an unbelievable strike of bad luck, a round went directly thru an open hatch and literally decapitated him. Little wonder he didn't like to talk about it all really.

Jakko ‌ Autor
Yes, the assistant driver fired the bow machine gun, which was an M1919A4 of .30 calibre (7.62×66 mm). This appears to have been his main job (outside of helping with maintenance etc.) because there are exactly zero actual driving controls on the right-hand side of the tank. It's not too surprising, really, that in the 17-pounder Shermans, he got replaced by ammunition stowage.

Danny Ray
How about crusaders? Did they have dual controls? As I've previously said, I really wish my grandfather was still here so I could ask him all about his tanker? Tanking? days!

Jakko ‌ Autor
No, Crusaders had a driver on the right and, in early ones, a machine-gun turret on the left. Most crews soon left that unoccupied because it was very cramped and the gunner would choke on the fumes if he actually fired the gun, so it was deleted partway through the Mk. II production run, and was also removed from tanks already in service.

Danny Ray
Actually I did read that somewhere. Said it got unbelievably hot in the tiny turret in the desert conditions too!

Mr D
Taking shape nicely now Jakko, good work 👌👍👍