American Tanks Meet the Test: The World War II Success Story of the Stuarts, Grants, and Shermans

The first American tanks to see combat in World War I1 were 14-ton, 37-mm gun M3 lights. They were Lend-Lease materiel which reached the British Forces in North Africa in mid-1941.

The British tankers looked at the little M3 llghts skeptically. They were of completely American design, unlike anything they had seen before. They were not battle-tested. Their front-drive power train, with a rear-mounted, modified, air-cooled radial aircraft engine, was unique. Their volute spring suspensions and rubber-bushed tracks were unique. Their "tall in the saddle" look was different.

The British refererred to these tanks by name, rather than model type and number, and called them "General Stuarts." The name of legendary Civil War Confederate cavalry leader Jeb Stuart fit them well.

As their American advisers taught them to use the Stuarts, they found them to be unlike any other tank they knew. M3s could be driven at speeds from 3 to 36 miles-per-hour, almost twice as fast as any other tank in North Africa. The suspension was as good or better than any other. The M3's unique power train was superior. The rubber-bushed tracks were truly remarkable. While other tanks needed major mechanical work and new tracks after as little as 500 mile< the Stuarts could run 2,OOO miles, and often more, before needing anything but routine maintenance and minor repairs. In July 1941, the British 4th Armored Brigade took the Stuart into combat for the first time in Operation CRUSADER. They found its speed, manuverabdity, and hot 37-mm gun were superior features. Their only complaint was that the M3's hull was too "boxy," a complaint later heard from American tankers.

The fvst U. S. Army combat use of tanks was by Stuarts in the 1941-1942 Philippine Campaign. While they handled everything the Japanese could dish out, their effectiveness was limited by small numbers and shortages of everything from fuel to 37-mm gun ammunition. The next American tank to go into combat was the 30-ton M3 medium, with a hull-mounted 75-mm gun and a turret-mounted 37-mm gun. It had been developed from the 37-mm gun M2 medium and had a similar power train, suspension, and rubber-bushed tracks to the Stuart. It was built in a British version, called the "General Lee," and a U. S. Army version, the "General Grant," which differed slightly.

The British 8th Army first used Lees in combat at Gazela, in North Africa, in late May 1942. It was the only tank in British service with a 75-mm gun, and it was capable of defeating the German armor of the time. This tank saved the day for the 8th Army.

ARMOR - September-October 7990. *.. 'C,--w *?-..

IN ENGLAND IN 1942. UNIT MARKINGS ON RIGHT SIDES OF THE HULL WERE CENSORED.

-_ However, the U. S.

Army Ordnance Department was unsatisfied with the hull-mounted 75-mm gun. As soon as the M3 was in production, Ordnance began working on a better design with a turret-mounted 75-mm gun, and no 37-mm gun.

This improved medium was the trulv remarkable 35-ton M4 "Sherman." It first went into combat with the British 8th Army at El Alamein in late summer 1942. It proved superior to the German tanks it fought. Another American tank had helped save the day for the 8th Army.

When the U. S. Army landed in North Africa in Operation TORCH in the fall of 1942, it took Stuarts, Grants, and Shermans into combat. Although German tanks were rapidly improving, they got the job done. The Stuart light tank family would prove effective for the rest of World War 11. It was given anew, sloped hull front in 1942. Two basic versions were used: the M3, with the modified air-cooled radial engine, and the M5, with twin Cadillac V-8 water-cooled passenger car engines geared to a common output. A self-propelled artillery 75-mm Howitzer Motor Carriage M8, with an open top turret, was the only other vehicle in the Stuart tank family to see service.

Although the Stuart was effective against the Japanese for the rest of the war, it could not fight the Germans’ improved armor. The Stuart’s speed and mobility kept it in use against the Germans as a reconnaissance vehicle until the end of the war in Europe, but the Allies still needed a fighting tank to defeat the Germans. This led the U. S. Army to work hard on its Sherman tank. The basic Sherman chassis, which was developed 50 years ago, proved one of the most remarkable ever built. During the war, it was continuously modified and improved, and it was adapted for a number of other combat vehicles. A total of 62,000 Sherman family vehicles were built, so it is not surprising that a few are still in service in some of the world’s armies. From their conception, production requirements for the Grant - and later the Sherman - called for large numbers, and many model variations were built.

Beginning with the Grants, there were a number of hull types. The frrst M3 Grants had the then-standard riveted hull, but this type of construction had a major drawback. If the tank was hit in a riveted area, the rivet fragments could fly around inside the crew compartment, becoming deadly projectiles. The welded hull overcame this deficiency. This improved method was based on Ordnance Department development work begun just after World War I. In addition, a limited number of Grants were made with cast armor hulls, but this type of construction did not become Tracing the Stuart Line MTISH TANKERS IN NORTH AFRICA RECEIVE ORIENTATION ON THE M3 STUART

M8 75-MM SP HOWITZERS BOGGED D’ OWN IN MUD ON OKINAWA, 1945

I widespread until it was used for the modified, air-cooled, radial aircraft Sherman.

Power plants posed engine, but because of the need to another production problem. Sev-produce large numbers of airplanes, era1 different types were used in the not enough were available. A twin Grants. The basic engine was a GMC 6-71 water-cooled diesel power plant was also developed, but the Navy had priority on diesel fuel, which limited Army development of diesels for tanks.

Perhaps the most unique tank power plant was developed by the Chrysler-operated Detroit Tank Arsenal, a 30-cylinder "multibank" made by linking five 6-cylinder, water-cooled truck engines to a common power output. This improbable-sounding power plant actually worked quite well. Production of the Sherman was began in 1941, and the Grant continued in production until 1942. Despite all these changes and variations, many key parts of the Grant-Sherman series of tanks were interchangeable, including power trains, suspensions, and tracks. This interchangeability allowed Grants to remain in service until 1945. Although the U. S. Army did not employ the Grant against the Germans after 1942, the Russians did. They were used against the Japanese until 1945. One of the last combat uses was with the British 14th Army in Burma in mid-1945. Its tank force consisted of 50 Grants and 50 Shermans, all rebuilt veterans of the North African Desert Campaign.

The first U. S. Army armored tank recovery vehicles, the M31 Series, were Grants with their armament removed and a powerful winch and lifting boom added. Some were also converted into heavy artillery tractors when these were in short supply. In 1942, as the Sherman was being phased in, two more power plants were added to those inherited from the Grant. One was an air-cooled, radial diesel engine, which saw only limited use because of the need to conserve diesel fuel. Another new Sherman engine was a completely M31 RECOVERY VEHICLE, AN M3 CONVERSION, HAULS A TROPHY IN ITALY.

new Ford Motor Company V-8 water-cooled gasoline engine, called the GAA. It had been developed from a V-12 aircraft engine. Eventually, it became the primary power plant for all Sherman-family vehicles.

While all Shermans used cast armor turrets, the hulls varied. Production began with both cast and welded armor hulls, and a few were made with cast front and welded rear armor hulls. In 1942, the armored front cross-drive case was changed from a three;piece design to a one-piece casting. The original 16-1/2-inch Sherman track always had problems in difficult soil conditions, such as deep mud. To overcome this, special track connectors (grousers) were developed, which added several inches to the track width, but this was an interim solution.

In 1943, anew interchangable suspension, the Horizontal Volute Spring Suspension (HVSS)E8, was introduced. In addition to a 23-inch track, additional shock absorbers were added. This was one of the most unsuccessful wartime improvements made in the Sherman family. The Sherman's armament also improved as the war continued. The original gun, which fired the same ammunition as the Army's standard 75-mm field gun, required improvement by 1942, particularly if the tank was to fight the new German Panthers and Tigers.

The Ordnance Department recognized this early in the war, and began working on an improved gun in 1942. Anew 76-mm gun of much higher velocity replaced the 75 without requiring anew mount or turret changes. Although this gun was available in late 1942, the US. Army Armored Force Board asked for turret changes, which delayed its introduction.

However, in early 1943 the improved M4A3E8 Sherman was introduced with this gun, and it was retrofitted to existing Shermans. Another variant mounted the 105-mm howitzer, firing the same ammunition as the standard field howitzer. It went to the field in 1943 as an infantry support weapon. Both the 105-mm howitzer-armed version and the 76-mm gun Sherman remained in use in the U. S. Armed Forces until after the Korean War. The last major change in the Sherman was the redesign of the hull

GUN, CARRIED MORE ARMOR, AND WAS EQUIPPED WITH TRACK EXTENDERS.

frontal armor in 1943. There had also been a number of other less important changes during the war, any or all of which could be added to any model. The interchangeability within the Sherman family of vehicles was truly remarkable. The remarkable adaptability of the Sherman chassis is an important part of its history. It was the closest thing to a basic "common standard chassis" ever developed.

These variations began in 1940, when the U. S. Army wanted a self-propelled antitank gun.

The Ordnance Department had been experimenting with self-propelled guns since World War I. The development process began by building a Grant with an open top and mounting a WWI-era 3-inch antiaircraft gun. The use of antiaircraft guns for antitank missions had been considered ever since World War I, but unfortunately, there were not enough of the old guns to allow this successful design to go into production.

Another Grant was rebuilt as an open top armored vehicle mounting a standard U. S. Army 3-inch antiaircraft gun. While this proved that such a powerful gun could be mounted, there was a different self-propelled g m the Army needed much more.

This led to a Grant with an open-top armored hull fitted with amount for the standard Army 105-mm field howitzer. After a special SO-caliber machine gun mount was added, this unit was standardized as the 105-mm Howitzer Motor Carriage M7 in April 1942. The M7 first saw combat with the British 8th Army in North Africa in late summer 1942, and proved highly successful. The British named it the "Priest" because of its pulpit-like SO-caliber machine gun position. The Priest served effectively in the U. S. Army through World War I1 and well beyond.

Next, the Army Ordnance Department mounted a World War IAera 155-mm heavy field gun on a modified open-top Grant, and built another special modification of the Grant to support the gun. This was the heaviest gun mounted on a tank chassis at the time, and it worked very well.

These were standardized as the 155-mm Gun Motor Carriage M12, and Cargo Carrier M30. A hundred sets were built in 1942. The U. S. Army Ground Forces, however, had no requirement for such a weapon at the time, and the M12 did not see combat until after D-Day, 6 June 1944. Once in action, the M12s proved superior for many missions, from knocking out German pillboxes to destroying any German Tiger or Panther family vehicle. They remained in service until the end uf World War 11, and they were replaced by a similar unit mounting a much more modern 155-mm gun. While the U. S. Army Ground Forces may not have quickly recognized the potential of the self-propelled THE M-10 TANK DESTROYER HAD AN OPEN TURRET AND THINNER ARMOR. 155-mm gun, there was a requirement for a self-propelled, high-velocity antitank gun in 1941. A Sherman chassis was built with alight armor upper hull, and anew light armor open-top turret mounting a modified U. S. Army 3-inch antiaircraft gun. It was possible to do this very quickly because the earlier work exploring the 3-inch antiaircraft gun mount in open-top Grants had proved it could be done. The 33-ton 3-inch Gun Motor Carriage M10 was already in production when it was standardized in July 1942, and it soon became known as the "3-indh Tank Destroyer M10." While these were very effective when employed as mobile antitank guns, depending on mobility and stealth, they looked so much like tanks that they were improperly employed as tanks far too often. Despite this, they were very effective when properly employed. The Army replaced the MlO's 3-in antiaircraft gun during World War I1 with a 90-mm gun fully as powerful as the vaunted German FLAK

88. This gun was modified for tank mounting, in 1942, but there was no tank considered adequate to mount such a powerful gun. Then, a special 90-mm gun open-top turret was mounted on an M10 tank destroyer chassis, and proved satisfactory. This unit went into production in late 1943 as the 33-ton 90-mm Gun Motor Carriage M36. It went into action in Italy in the spring of 1944, and proved capable of handling the German Tiger and Panther family of vehicles when properly employed. Although it saw little combat use, the last 90-mm Sherman chassis tank destroyer was an interesting vehicle. It was a slightly modified M4A3E8 Sherman mounting a special open-top 90-mm gun turret. This 90-mm Gun Motor Carriage M36B1 proved the Sherman could The Versatile Sherman MARINE SHERMAN FLAMETHROWER TANK ON HILL 95, OKINAWA.

SHERMAN 105-MM HOWITZER VARIANT: The MI2 - A Most Unusual Antitank Gun... AN M12 CREW ENGAGES GERMAN TANKS AT 1,000 METERS.

The M12 155-mm self-propelled gun was a 1917-era GPF cannon - a design borrowed from the French during WI - mounted on a Sherman chassis with a spade at the rear to help absorb recoil. Employed as mobile artillery after the Normandy landings, the M12 was occasionally used as an antitank gun in the direct-fire mode. With poor direct-fire sights, gunners simply aimed the tube by "line of metal", sometimes painting aline on the top of the barrel to aid aiming. A concrete-busting shell, equipped with a delayed fuze, exploded after penetrating the enemy tank, usually with spectacular results, according to veterans who used it against Panthers and Tigers. have been armed with a 90-mm gun, however, it never was.

Another important Sherman family vehicle was the armored Tank Recovery Unit M32 series. These were modified from early model Shermans by replacing the gun turret and adding a powerful winch and lifting boom. This proved a very useful vehicle and it remained in service long after World War 11. One of the most interesting Sherman variations was the limited production, low-geared, 42-ton Tank Medium Assault M4A3E2. Its extra 10 tons of armor could resist German antitank and tank guns pretty well, but it never accumulated a combat record. It was slow and heavy, and its weight gave it serious mobility problems. It did prove the upper weight limit of the Sherman chassis.

Just in time for use in the last months of World War I1 were the last Sherman family vehicles built, both self-propelled guns. These were the 155-mm Gun Motor Carriage M40 and the 8-inch Howitzer Motor Carriage M43, developed in 1945. Both mounted modified Army field guns, and the 155-mm Gun M40 saw some service in both Europe and the Pacific. Later, both accumulated outstanding combat records in Korea.

The vehicles in the Sherman tank family are proven some of the best of their kind ever conceived. Their mechanical simplicity and basic ruggedness, along with their remarkable parts and assembly interchangeability, from the first Grants to the last Shermans, are unmatched even 50 years after they were first introduced.

Despite being criticized soon after they were introduced in World War 11, modified and upgraded Shermans have successfully fought tanks of practically current design. Although none of them remain in front-line service, they will be remembered, and it is unlikely there will ever be anything like them again.

Note

This analysis was based on official reports, manuals, and other documents pertaining to U. S. Army Ordnance development and history, Any Ordrtartce Maga:irte, and other military journals. Other sources include the published and unpublished writings of GEN Gladeon

M. Barnes, U. S. Army Chief of Development and Engineering for the Ordnance Department, during World War 11. The author has also consulted unit histories and several credible unauthorized armored vehicle histories.

Konrad F. Schreier Jr. is a professional technological and military historian who served in the China-Burma-India Theater of World War II and later graduated from the U. S.

Army Ordnance School at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. He was a civilian engineer from 1950 to 1967, when he became a full-time historian, specializing in U. S. Armed Forces history. He is a Fellow of the Company of Military Historians and a member of the U. S. Commission on Military History.