It wasn't too long ago that I was bemoaning the lack of decent Sherman kits and accessories in this scale. While we are still lacking much in plastic (for now), there have been more and more resin items appearing to suit our needs, and this is one of the latest. This is only a conversion set, including the parts shown in these scans. The turret and muzzle brake are resin, the gun barrel is turned aluminum, and the detail parts are etched brass (by PART). Photos at the ARMO website show this set attached to a plastic kit body, and there is a .50cal machinegun on the turret, apparently in resin. No machinegun was included with my sample, so I am unsure if one is supposed to come with the set or not. I will try to contact ARMO to find out.

Regular viewers of this site will recall how I rave about the new MR Models Sherman kits, and how I feel they are the best available. Well, this ARMO piece comes very close to the MR Models 76mm turret, though I still prefer the MR kit. But this ARMO turret is really very well made, and with the exception of the MR piece, it is the best available to us (compared to LEVA, Al.By, FSF, Hasegawa and Revell). The size and shape are very good, with only minor differences from the MR turret. The detail is clear and sharply molded, and also accurately represented.

Areas that could use some improvement: it would have been nice to have a cast texture to the surface, and I don't like the closed hatches. But this piece will be perfect as it stands for an action scene with the Sherman buttoned up.

The box states that this turret is designed for the Italeri (ESCI) kit, so it should work well on any aftermarket Sherman hull also based on this kit. Note that the turned aluminum gun barrel is the new, revised piece, and not the early, incorrect item that was copied from the Revell Sherman kit.

Once again, thank you very much to Rafal Niedzielski for donating the review kit.