Tamiya M4A3E8 Sherman

2023 Model Build #2 - 1/35 M4A3E8 Sherman

This is a pretty simple kit from Tamiya (#35346). I was looking for a change from bikes which are fairly time consuming and this worked out really well.

As a relatively new kit from Tamiya, it went together with minimal difficulty. The only minor fit issue was the two halves of the turret, but other than that there were no issues. I saw a tip online to use a stencil as a simple mask for all the wheels. That saved a significant amount of time in airbrushing them. The tracks are simple rubber ones which I tried to add some pigments to dirty them up, but I've not really don't that before so I definitely have some more to learn there.

I spent a bit of time trying to paint the commander to look reasonable. Most of the figures I've done in the past were 1/72 scale so no real detail. I'm pretty happy with how this one came up, including my attempt at a freehand painted strap for his goggles. I only realised that was missing after I thougth I'd finished it all. I weathered the model with a black panel line wash and some oil filters to break up the olive drab. I'm really happy with how it came out as it's quite subtle. The tracks could probably do with some more weathering, but overall I was after a quick, simple build, and this didn't disappoint.

I used mostly Vallejo paints and varnishes, Tamiya and AK washes and Windsor and Newton oils. I also tried some of the AK pencils but need to experiment a bit more with them to get the effects to show up better.

The lessons:
- Dot filters are very effective to break up solid colours

The firsts:
- Using a stencil to mask the wheels - massive time saver!

The good:
- The fit
- The paint and weathering

The bad:
- The tracks could do with some more work
- The pigments didn't really do much

This one only took me a few weekends to complete. Next up will be another tank, this time a 1/35 Challenger 2.