Chiseling session (Patreon)

My friends, the Sherman build has officially started by gluing a few pieces together on Friday evening. These are mostly focused on the lower hull and lower rear plate. Also, the cast transmission cover has been treated before the additional parts were glued in place. 

Today I started preparing the upper hull for texturing and welding, and this meant removing all the plastic weld beads and scribing new weld lines with a variety of tools. Sherman is quite complex when it comes to this, especially when compared to German or Soviet tanks with bulky welds on simple, straight armor plates, so I employed a razor saw, a hobby blade, a Tamiya scriber, and modelling chisels I picked up on eBay years ago. 

Before I proceed with welding and texturing, I'd like to ask the Shermanoholics and Sherman experts for help. No matter how hard I looked, I couldn't find photos of the welded hatch housings on the hull. Every Sherman I found has them made from cast steel, and due to their small shape and tight placement of the hatch opening and the periscope, I can't figure out where the welds were on these parts. Does anyone have a good museum photo showing this area? It would help me tremendously! If you have a link to a specific picture, you can leave it in the comments here, or if you have a photo on your computer, could you please send it to kovacmartin26@gmail.com? 

Also, some of these weld lines will be hidden under the wooden plank armor... but it's the same case as when I re-welded the entire Jagdpanther just to get it all covered up with Zimmerit... it's for that good feeling and extra practice! :)