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Another Sherman Barrel?
For many years, vendors have come out with gun barrels for Shermans only to find that they do not match measurements taken by modelers such as Kurt Laughlin. See the article in the references used section for an understanding of the problems encountered.
Joe at Tiger Model Designs sent me this barrel as a review sample, without the mantlet which is on its way. This barrel was created using measurements and drawings provided by Kurt Laughlin as well as measurements taken from other museum examples.
The Latest Barrel
The turning is exceptionally well done with minimal tooling. The first photo shows the end. There is no rifling present but most vendors exaggerate this feature.
As expected, the measurements are right on. The model I want to use this on, Dragon's M4A4 Sherman has an option of two mantlets.
Photo two shows the proper straight conical area of the barrel from Tiger Model Designs. In photo three, you can see the barrel being used with Formation’s early mantlet.
In order to use it with Dragon's mantlets, you will need to cut Dragon's barrel halves where they step down and glue the mounting peg halves together over the metal barrel's pin. The pin is a good fit to the hollow portion of the plastic mount. Now, you can use polystyrene glue to mount the barrel to Dragon's mantlet.
The details do compare well to the photos provided to me by Kurt. It is a highly recommended detail item especially when TMD starts including the resin mantlet to replace one of obvious weak points from many kits.
Acknowledgements
The barrel is in stock with Tiger Model Designs in the US and LionMarc Model Designs in Hong Kong for a limited time for only $5.00 USD. My thanks to them and Kurt Laughlin for making an accurate Sherman barrel a reality.
References Used
http://www.track-link.net/articles/1119
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