Product Features and Details
Model: Artitec's 387.359 1/87 scale WWII M4 Sherman is fully assembled and painted US Army/Navy (AN) 319 Olive Drab. All the new Artitec finished models are highly detailed works of art. They are all hand painted and finished using the highest quality resin, plastic and metal parts. Add a few to your collection today before they are sold out. Models are made in small production runs so don't delay in ordering.
Prototype: Artitec 387.21-S2 The M4 Medium Tank, or Sherman, was the most produced American tank of the Second World War. Retaining the hull and chassis of the earlier M3 Lee and Grant medium tanks, the Sherman had its main gun in a fully rotating turret. The Sherman was powered by a unique 470 hp Chrysler multibank (5 six-cylinder engines mounted around a center shaft) 30-cylinder engine and had a top speed of 30 mph. The turret was protected by 76 mm of armor in front, 50 mm on the sides, and 64 mm in the rear while the hull was covered with 51 mm in front, 38-45 mm on the sides, and 38 mm in back. The Sherman was initially armed with a 75 mm M3 L/40 main gun, two .30-06 Browning M1919A4 machine guns (one mounted in the hull front and the other in the turret front), and a .50 cal Browning M2HB machine gun mounted on the turret next to the hatch. The Sherman was superior in most aspects to Panzer IIIs and early Panzer IVs when entering combat in 1942 and 1943. Unfortunately, this gave American commanders a false sense of security and they downplayed improved German guns and tank designs. In late 1943 and early 1944 Shermans became increasingly vulnerable to up-gunned Panzer IVs, Panthers, and Tigers. Beginning in the spring of 1944 new Shermans were equipped with a more powerful 76 mm gun but this upgraded tank was still outgunned by Panthers and Tigers. During the last years of the war what the Sherman lacked in armament, it made up for in numbers on the battlefield. The Sherman was much easier to produce and cheaper than German tanks, giving the Allies numerical superiority in armor from mid-1943 on. It was also a very reliable tank and could be maintain in the field with little difficulty. Over 49,000 M4 Sherman variants were produced by American automotive and locomotive factories during the war.
PLEASE NOTE: These models are all handmade and painted which makes every one unique. This means the paint patterns may vary a little and the detail parts like sandbags, turret tracks, antennas, etc. may also be arranged differently. This was also the case in real life. These models are very prototypical.
