New Sherman Cobra King Tank from Staples & Vine announced

Just announced as immediately available by pewtercast specialist, Staples & Vine, is a 1/48 scale M4A3E2 Sherman ‘Cobra King’.

In early 1944, the United States Army decided that they needed an up-armoured version of a medium tank for an assault role for the upcoming operations in the European Theatre of Operations (ETO). The decision was made to modify the standard US Army medium tank of the time, the M4A3 Sherman.

The vehicle became the M4A3E2 Assault tank, later unofficially called ‘Jumbo’. With only 254 built, its iconic profile left a lasting image that is probably one the most easily recognized M4 variants. The first 128 Jumbos arrived in France via Cherbourg on the 22nd September 1944. They were effectively deployed to push back the occupying German forces leading to the ‘Battle of the Bulge’.

Without doubt the most famous of all the Jumbos was named ‘Cobra King’, this was the first tank into Bastogne in Belgium, the vital crossroads town at the centre of the fighting during the Battle of the Bulge and this is the event so wonderfully depicted here.

The company’s next tank release will be a 1/48 scale Panzer IV Ausf. F2 that took part in the assault on Stalingrad in 1942.

To find out more, visit the website at www.staplesandvine.com.