The Revell 1/72 Scale Sherman Tank
This is an overview and a tutorial on the Revell 1/72 Scale plastic Sherman Model Tank. It is part of my series of tutorials on how to make a WW2 Diorama. This is an inexpensive little model and it comes out looking really great. It is perfectly suited for making a diorama. The 1/72 Scale is an interesting scale. The models are small and can be a tad bit challenging to make, especially if you have big hands. But the models have a good level of detail and are very cost effective because they themselves don't cost much and the dioramas you make with them are typically smaller and will cost less. Here is a similar 1/72 Scale Sherman M4A1 tank on Amazon: M-4A1(76)W VVSS Sherman Tank 1-72 Dragon
(This is the Tank I make in this tutorial)
This the box for the Sherman Tank I made for this tutorial
Okay! Let's begin assembling this Tank Model:
As with all plastic models. There are several things that come inside the box. You should inspect everything carefully to make sure nothing is missing. This model comes with several sprues with parts, an assembly procedure booklet and a small sheet of stickers (decals) that you will apply to the model when it is done.
You should inspect everything and make sure nothing is missing from the kit. You should also read over the whole assembly process. This is important because the assembly of parts can be affected by future parts. Gluing a part in place might need to be changed a little bit because of a part you will place in a later step.
After inspecting and reading everything you should gently and carefully wash the plastic sprues in warm soapy water. Rinse them all off and let them air dry. This will make a difference in how the paint and decals adhere to the plastic.
It is a good idea to paint some of the smaller parts while they are still on the sprue. You can get them looking much better this way and painting them once they are assembled into the model can be difficult to do. The instructions will often give you recommendations on this.
It is a good idea to figure out your painting scheme before you build the model and to paint some of the smaller parts while they are still on the sprue. This will give you a much higher level of detail. And painting some parts are they are glue into the model can be very difficult. They can be difficult to reach with a brush or painting them can cause paint to run over into other parts. Once these parts are cut from the sprue you can touch them up a bit before gluing them into place.
I often use the paint from the cap. This is a nice way to get small amounts of paint.
Once you are ready to start building the model you should cut the parts from the sprue with either side cutters or a hobby knife. (I prefer the hobby knife) This will help you keep the shapes exactly as they are intended without distortion or breakage. Only cut the parts from the sprue as you need them! You can end up with a mess of parts and not know which one is which!
Notice that the sprue will have numbers on it to show you which part is which. This is why you should keep each part on the sprue until you are ready to use it.
Once the part is removed from the sprue you will see it has a small burr on it where it was attached. You should carefully file this down with a micro file or small piece of very fine sandpaper.
I really like the parts holder with magnifying glass. It holds the piece while you work on it. In this picture I am gluing the track to the tank. Having two free hands makes a big difference.
Plastic model cement really works well and it usually only takes 5-10 seconds of holding it before you can release it but sometimes using a rubber band (or clothes pins) to hold large parts together can really help.
The most difficult part of this assembly is the track. There are some long units but around the front and rear drive wheels you have to glue individual track pieces together so they form nicely around the wheels. I used a fine pair of tweezers for this.
Follow the assembly procedure in the instructions and paint as you go along. Once the model is complete you can do some touch up painting and once this has dried you can add the decals.
Books
How to Build Dioramas
- Index
- What is a diorama?
- A short history of Dioramas
- Diorama Books
- Painting Miniatures
- Diorama Ideas
- Diorama Examples
- Diorama Making for the artist
- Diorama Making supplies & Tools
- Dioramas by Web Visitors
- Printable diorama box
Types of Dioramas to Make
- How to make a Paper Mache Diorama
- Diorama inside a lightbulb
- Insect Maker Diorama
- Mississippi River with Indians
- Really creative shoebox diorama
- Dinosaur Diorama
- Make a secret diorama
- Wildlife Diorama (African Oasis)
- Firefly Diorama with real blinking lights
- Rainforest Diorama
- Ocean Diorama
- Shadowbox diorama
- Make a shoebox diorama
- Massive Castle Diorama
- Diorama Examples
- Polymer Clay
- The Battle of Thermopylae Spartan Warrior Diorama - A tutorial
- HALO Diorama
- Wizards Tower Foam Diorama
- Cemetary Diorama
- Trench Warfare
- Simple Nature Diorama
- Water Woman Diorama
- WW1 Diorama submitted by a web visitor
- Christmas Holy Land Diorama submitted by a web visitor
- New Section: Making WW2 Dioramas and Miniatures
- Castle Siege Diorama project
STORES
- Diorama Making Books
- Diorama Kits
- Scene-A-Rama diorama Kits
- Plastic Scale Dinosaur Diorama Kits
- Harry Potter Dioramas
- Diorama Foam
- Conflix Medieval Buildings for Dioramas and wargaming
- Tatebanko Paper Dioramas
Plastic Models
- Tiger Tank 1/72 Scale
- Sherman Tank 1/72 Scale
- How to make plastic models: Tips, Tricks and techniques
- Painting Miniature German Soldiers (1/72 Scale)
- Painting Miniature American Soldiers (1/72 Scale)
Check out the Diorama and Miniature store
*Short Diorama Tutorials*
- How to make snow for your diorama
- How to Make realistic tufts of grass
- How to make trenches
- Creative terrain shell making
- How to make Miniature Trees
- How to Make rubber rock and wall molds
- Motorize a drawbridge on your diorama
- Using foam to make a diorama
- How to make good looking rubble using cork
- Creative Shoebox Diorama Ideas for School
- A foam based diorama with water from start to finish
- Some great WW2 diorama trench making tips with video
- How to make plastic models- Tips tricks and techniques
OTHER PROJECTS
Make a cardboard Samurai Sword
Make a Cardboard Medieval Shield
How to make a fantasy shadowbox
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Kalif Publishing and StormtheCastle.com
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