No doubt some may say tha the 50 cal was never mounted on the British Firefly - I've never seen any pictures of such a combination - but I like it so much its going on my Firefly
50 Cal for the Firefly
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Allan Richards
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50 Cal for the Firefly
As its been a cold Christmas break I decided to take over a corner of the kitchen (not easy) and work indoors on a 50 cal that I bought from Dave at Armorpax at War & Peace last July. Here is the finished product ready to fit to the tank. Credit where its due, this is a superb pair of kits and a joy to make. The gun comes with the ammo cn and the mount is a kit in its own right.
No doubt some may say tha the 50 cal was never mounted on the British Firefly - I've never seen any pictures of such a combination - but I like it so much its going on my Firefly
No doubt some may say tha the 50 cal was never mounted on the British Firefly - I've never seen any pictures of such a combination - but I like it so much its going on my Firefly
Allan Richards
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Robert E Morey
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Allan,
Wow It really comes to life when painted. A truely remarkable kit. I think your firefly would look great with the addition of the "Ma deuce". Can anyone tell us why a "fly" wouldn't have a .50 cal on the turret roof????
I'm really torn between buying one of these kits and machining my own.
One question though, is the M2 ammo box brown on British tanks? Or just primered <not finished>? Seems like these would be Olive drab?
Great job on the travel lock, can't wait to see it mounted on the engine deck of your tank!
Bob
Wow It really comes to life when painted. A truely remarkable kit. I think your firefly would look great with the addition of the "Ma deuce". Can anyone tell us why a "fly" wouldn't have a .50 cal on the turret roof????
I'm really torn between buying one of these kits and machining my own.
One question though, is the M2 ammo box brown on British tanks? Or just primered <not finished>? Seems like these would be Olive drab?
Great job on the travel lock, can't wait to see it mounted on the engine deck of your tank!
Bob
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Tim Bowman
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Hi Allan
Very nicely done. That is going to look so good on top of your Firefly! You gotta love .50 Cals. You know what they say about John Browning?
"There's a reason his middle name was Moses"
Keep up the great work Allan
Tim
Very nicely done. That is going to look so good on top of your Firefly! You gotta love .50 Cals. You know what they say about John Browning?
"There's a reason his middle name was Moses"
Keep up the great work Allan
Tim
"So long as one isn't carrying one's head under one's arm, things aren't too bad." – Erwin Rommel
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Will Roberts
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50 Cal and the Firefly (British Tanks in General)
Hello Allan and Rob,
That is a very nice 50 Cal !! and I can see why you want to fit it but many British Shermans (especially the valuable Firefly) were fitted with an all round vision cupola and when that was fitted the .50 Cal was removed and fitted with a .30 cal in lieu. The British crews with their experience in the Desert and later found that they were too busy commanding the tank and directing the Gunner that the last thing they needed was an MG mounted near the cupola which would hardly ever be used and would severly hamper the quick bail-out when the inevitable "Tiger shell" struck. So most spare MG's were handed over to the Canadians and the 50cal ammo was ditched in favour of more 30cal for the Coax.
The "Saving Private Ryan" firing of external MG's on a Sherman is for the Audie Murphy's types and not the battle-hardened and experienced British crews. Mark Haywards Book explains some of this and the rest comes from photo evidence and crew biographies.
Kind regards,
Will.
That is a very nice 50 Cal !! and I can see why you want to fit it but many British Shermans (especially the valuable Firefly) were fitted with an all round vision cupola and when that was fitted the .50 Cal was removed and fitted with a .30 cal in lieu. The British crews with their experience in the Desert and later found that they were too busy commanding the tank and directing the Gunner that the last thing they needed was an MG mounted near the cupola which would hardly ever be used and would severly hamper the quick bail-out when the inevitable "Tiger shell" struck. So most spare MG's were handed over to the Canadians and the 50cal ammo was ditched in favour of more 30cal for the Coax.
The "Saving Private Ryan" firing of external MG's on a Sherman is for the Audie Murphy's types and not the battle-hardened and experienced British crews. Mark Haywards Book explains some of this and the rest comes from photo evidence and crew biographies.
Kind regards,
Will.
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Allan Richards
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Will,
Thanks for the info. I remember seeing the film with Audie Murphy. The gun is a little big on the cupola. I'm interested in the all round vision cupola because all the photos I have of the Firefly shows the one I have with the periscope in the hatch. My Tamiya 1/16 Sherman has a cupola fitted with all round vision ports but I thought that this was later.
Thanks for the info. I remember seeing the film with Audie Murphy. The gun is a little big on the cupola. I'm interested in the all round vision cupola because all the photos I have of the Firefly shows the one I have with the periscope in the hatch. My Tamiya 1/16 Sherman has a cupola fitted with all round vision ports but I thought that this was later.
Allan Richards