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British Centaur C.S.Mk. IV "Seawolf"
'S' Troop 5th Independent Royal Marine Armoured Support Battery
Normandy 1944
With the D-Day landings expected to face serious opposition from fortified German positions, the Allies needed a weapon capable of direct fire support during the landings and break through phases. The 95mm Centaur Cruiser tank was one of the tools employed by the British for this task. For the run up to the beaches in the landing barges the British painted bearing numbers around the turret to allow battery commander to direct a tank's fire.
This is the new Tamiya kit, with a scratch built turret basket and interior based mainly on the Cromwell information from AFV Interiors and a handful of Cromwell stowage diagrams. Besides styrene, wood and wire the interior also contains a number of items from the spares box and parts from an old Italeri Pak 75mm.
The exterior of the model was detailed with grab handles made out of copper wire and the fenders were backdated using styrene and Grant Line rivets. The stowage consists of a number of items including tissue paper for canvas, cheesecloth for camo netting and Ultracast's spare Centaur road wheel. Except for the name and serial number, which were made with dry transfers, the decals are from the kit. The model was finished in Tamiya acrylics and weathered with dry brushing and pastels.
Overall, this was am enjoyable project and Tamiya has to be commended for the fine job they did with the Cromwell and Centaur. In fact, I enjoyed building the Centaur so much I picked up the Cromwell. As for references, I would recommend the new Museum Ordnance Special #25 on the Cromwell. I just wish it had been available when I was building "Seawolf".
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