The Sherman Firefly
I put off sharing this simply because I didn't have the entire model made - for anyone who has been following my work for any significant amount of time, you are aware that I offer most (though, at this point, it's just over half) of my model tanks in both 1/100 (15mm) and 1/285 (6mm) scale. With very few exceptions, the 15mm models are fully articulated, meaning that the guns are separate from the turrets and can be elevated or depressed to any angle. I am one of only two Shapeways shop owners who does this (that I know of). The 6mm models, on the other hand, do not have the same degrees of freedom, so the turrets for those tanks are separate model files, usually with less detail on the guns because of thicker printing requirements, blah blah blah, I can see you losing interest already. The point is that, with a higher demand for 6mm models, making the fully articulated turrets has been something I've neglected as of late, but no more! Here is the first of two that I've finally gotten round to finishing, the Sherman Firefly:
For a bit of historical background, the British Army developed a devastating new tank gun, the Royal Ordinance QF 17-pounder (76,2mm), but didn't have a tank to put it on at the time. Therefore, they modified M4 Sherman tanks that the US had sent them, finding that significant changes had to be made to the the turret, among them the addition of a new hatch and an external box for the wireless. I go into more of this in the product descriptions (links below). As far as its use, the British used both the M4 IC and M4 VC variants of the Firefly to great effect against German heavy tanks. Reportedly, the QF 17 could put a round clean through a King Tiger, though I don't know at what range. "Firefly," incidentally, wasn't just a name for modified Shermans, but for all British tanks armed with the QF 17.
On an interesting note, I did read a short excerpt from a British soldier's memoirs, in which he mentioned that the side blast from the Firefly's muzzle break was so powerful that he, in an adjacent tank, thought that they had been hit by enemy fire when the QF 17 let loose. This is understandable, given the 1200 mps muzzle velocity of the gun with APDS ammunition. I can't help but wonder how it compares to the side blast from a 122mm D25T...
These next few pictures compare the Sherman Firefly and the King Tiger. This is an interesting match-up, as either one could destroy the other with one shot, and what matters above all else, much as in modern warfare, is who shoots first.
I have two versions of this available for sale, one with full track skirts and one without. The latter is available in 1/220 scale as well, but only as a five-pack in both scales.
https://www.shapeways.com/product/F8FJHGG2E/1-285-sherman-vc-firefly
https://www.shapeways.com/product/4JN4FRJNR/sherman-vc-firefly-x5-two-scales-no-skirts?optionId=108240880&li=user-profile
The next tank post will be the Soviet ST-1.