1:35 British Low Profile Cupola for Churchill, Centaur, Cromwell, Sherman

A low cupola with all-round vision

A tank commander needs to see out without sticking his head into the line of fire. The British therefore introduced a commander's station of low build height, fitted with vision blocks around its circumference, which together gave all-round vision. The solution proved itself so well that it appeared across types that otherwise had almost nothing in common.

Four different machines under one item

The Churchill was a slow infantry giant, the Cromwell a fast cruiser with an engine derived from an aircraft V12, and the Centaur its sibling with a different, weaker powerplant, which became known mainly in the version with a short howitzer in the units supporting the landings. The Sherman the British then received from American production and modified to suit themselves. A shared commander's cupola is exactly the kind of component that links such machines even when they differ in everything else.

Installation on a model

First find out the diameter of the opening in the turret of your kit and compare it dry. If the original cupola is molded in one piece with the turret roof, drill it out with a series of small holes around its circumference and level the rest with a file. Blank the vision blocks off with a mask and spray them only after the main painting; the glass can then be suggested with a gloss varnish and a drop of dark paint. The open hatch of the cupola will take a figure, and the model comes to life with it.

It is also worth noting how the station behaves in paint. The inside tends to be light, usually white or cream, so that reflected light reaches the instruments, while from the outside it carries the same shade as the rest of the turret. That contrast is worth suggesting, as under a raised lid the inner surface is clearly visible.