How to Build a 2/5th Scale Sherman Tank

Building models is an intricate and tedious hobby. Such a hobby, however, can be a great stress reliever as you focus and concentrate on the model and allow worries or stresses to leave your mind. The 2/5th scale Sherman Tank is a great project, but you will no doubt need some garage room.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• Bench-mounted disc sander
• 12-inch sanding disc
• Drill press
• 5/8 chuck
• Welder
• Block and chain
• 1/35th scale Sherman tank kit
• Calipers
• 2D CAD program
• Tank engine
• Tank transmission
• Dry sprocket
• Suspension
• Road wheels
• Tracks

1. Gather the tools and supplies you will need to build the Sherman Tank. This should include a bench-mounted disc sander, 12 in. sanding disc, a drill press, 5/8ths chuck, a welder and a block and chain with a capacity of 300 kg. The rest of the items you will need are basic power tools found in most common workshops or garages.
2. Purchase a 1/35th scale Sherman tank kit. These can be found at most hobby stores and in the toy department of some retailers. Using a set of calipers, measure each component and multiply by a factor of 14 to get the dimensions needed for a 2/5th scale. This is the easiest way to get the dimensions you need, as much tank literature is not very helpful in this regard.
3. Use a 2D CAD program to draw out your building plans once you have all the components measured and reconfigured. Place your primary reference point. This mark will be used to draw the basic outline of your tank. Use the drop lines to show the areas of the tank and the cross sections to break the tank plans into more workable sections. Use the program to add in a mannequin, either at your size or an average size.
4. Take a moment to look at the layout of the mechanics. This will include the engine, transmission, dry sprocket, suspension, road wheels and tracks. Decide which components to make first. This should be the road wheels and tracks, as you can then move it out of your garage or workshop and free up space.
5. Construct the wheel rims, road wheels and tracks of the tank. Once you have this portion, you can start to put together the body components by making them out of a fiberglass shell. Then move on to the other components of the Sherman tank, including the turret, the gun barrel, gun barrel housing and engine compartment.
6. Put together the engine, transmission and other mechanical components and make sure they are working correctly. Remember, you are building a drivable Sherman tank scale model, so the mechanical aspects are even more important than the cosmetic ones.