Serial modifications of the M4 Sherman tank. The main American medium tank M4 "Sherman" Battle tactics on the M4 Sherman

The American medium tank M4 Sherman was actively used in several wars and became truly massive, losing in numbers only to the T-34 along with the T-54. It got its name in honor of General William Sherman, and it was given by the British and, only with time, it was finally fixed, although in the USSR they used to call it "emcha".

Appearing in 1942, the M4 Sherman was adopted by several countries and received 8 modifications, and also served as the basis for more more special machines and SAU.

Creation

When World War II began, America did not have modern medium tanks in service. Therefore, the engineers tried to create a new car based on the M2, later called the M3 Lee. However, even during development, it became clear that it was not suitable for the army, so a new tank had to be developed.

On September 2, 1941, the T6 prototype was developed, in which it was decided to use the M3 units and a new layout.

They passed the tests very quickly and in mid-February of the following year, the first Sherman was released under the M4 index.

Design

As already mentioned, the tank borrowed a lot from its predecessor. For example, the engine, transmission, chassis and main armament. At the same time, he received a completely new hull with a traditional US and German layout with a transmission in front and armament in a rotating turret, thus getting rid of the main drawback of the M3.

The crew of the car was 5 people, the driver, along with the gunner-radio operator, were located in front of the hull, and the remaining 3 were in the turret.

Sherman weighed about 30 tons.

Frame

As already mentioned, the layout has become more traditional compared to the M3, with the transmission compartment in front, the combat in the middle and the engine compartment in the back.

Despite the fact that the armament was in the tower, the hull remained very high due to the fact that it was vertically mounted radial engine designed for aviation.

This feature has influenced in the best way on Sherman, reducing his camouflage and stability.

The hull of all modifications, except for the M4A1, was made of rolled armor plates, interconnected by welding, since the casting turned out to be too complicated for mass production.

The upper frontal part was made up of 7 parts, so welding was carried out very high quality, and the lower part of 3, but interconnected with bolts. Later, the NLD was immediately made whole.

The thickness of the upper frontal armor of the Shermans of the first series was 50 mm at an angle of 47 ° but was weakened by observation hatches. A little later they were removed, but the angle of inclination was also changed, which became equal to 56 °.

The sides of the hull received a thickness of 38 mm and were located vertically, the stern received the same thickness, but at the same time the angle of inclination was about 10 °, and the bottom - 13-25 mm.

A feature of the armor was its viscosity, which slightly reduces strength, but significantly reduces the number of fragments inside the tank.

There was a hatch in the bottom of the hull, which increased the chances of saving the crew from a wrecked tank.

Another hatch, the driver's, located on the roof of the hull, turned out to be a very unsuccessful design, as it leaned up, because of which the gun could hit it and literally slam the driver with it, twisting his neck. Later, this drawback was eliminated by making the hatch sliding to the side.

Part of the ammunition was located on the sides of the hull, because of which the powder gases easily ignited when a projectile hit the hull.

Later, around the middle of 1944, a new ammunition rack appeared, moved to the floor of the fighting compartment and with water between the ammunition nests, which significantly increased its protection.

Tower

The cast tower received a cylindrical shape, aft niche and a pistol embrasure on the left. The thickness of her forehead was 76 mm, and the angle of inclination was 60 °; an 89 mm thick gun mask served as additional protection. The sides and rear of the tower received the same thickness of 51 mm.

The rotation was carried out using an electro-hydraulic or electric drive, depending on the modification of Sherman, there was also the possibility of a manual drive, and in just 15 seconds a 360 ° turn was made.

Inside, the place of the loader was located on the left, and on the other side were the gunner and the commander behind him.

On the roof of the tower of early modifications there was one hatch, later a second hatch appeared for the loader, and on the commander's cover there was an anti-aircraft machine gun turret.

Part of the ammunition was located on the floor of the tower, and another part in the back of the basket.

Armament

The main gun of the first series of tanks was the 75 mm M3 L / 37.5 cannon mounted on the M3, a little later, in October 1942, an improved gun mask, a coaxial machine gun and a telescopic sight for the gunner were installed on the Sherman.

The weapons had several interesting features, namely vertical stabilization with a gyroscope, installation of a gun, with a rotation of 90 ° in order to control the shutter in a horizontal and not vertical plane and large aiming angles from -10 ° to + 25 °.

In general, in terms of its effectiveness, such a gun approximately corresponded to the F-34 mounted on the Soviet T-34 and was capable of hitting all early German vehicles, only the later versions of the PzKpfW VI were relatively protected from it.

Later, with the advent of the Panther medium tank and the heavy Tiger, it was necessary to install a long-barreled rifled gun M1 with a caliber of 76.2 mm and a barrel length of 55 calibers. She also received several options, for example, with a thread for a removable muzzle brake, with offset trunnions or a changed rifling pitch.

Using Shermans, the British army installed their 17-pounder MkIV guns, which did not require alteration of the tower.

American tanks used for infantry artillery support received a rifled 105 mm M4 howitzer and lost their stabilizer due to poor gun balance.

The ammunition load of different guns varied greatly, for example, for the M3 it was 90 rounds, for the MkIV 77, for the M4 howitzer 66.

As an auxiliary weapon, several machine guns were installed on the Sherman.

The gunner had a 7.62 mm caliber M1919A4 gun paired with an electric trigger, the same gunner-radio operator mounted in a ball mount on the VLD, their total ammunition load was 4750 rounds.

On the commander's hatch was a turret with a 12.7 mm M2H anti-aircraft machine gun and 300 rounds of ammunition.

In June 1943, Sherman received a 51 mm M3 smoke mortar on the roof of the tower on the left with the breech under the armor and controlled by the loader.

Engine and transmission

As already mentioned, the tank received a high hull height due to the vertical installation of the Continental R975 C1 radial aircraft engine, which develops 350 horsepower.

In addition to him, Sherman received 4 more power plant options, as a result, 6 modifications appeared.

M4 and M4A1 received the engine described above, and the M4A2 variant, used in the USSR under Lend-Lease, had to install a pair of six-cylinder GM 6046 engines with a capacity of 375 hp. with., since the Soviet troops are accustomed to using diesel fuel.

M4A3 received a powerful V8Ford GAA, developing 500 hp. s., and M4A4 interesting power plant Chrysler A57 multibank with a capacity of 470 hp, assembled from 5 L6 automobile gasoline engines and forcing the developers to lengthen the body.

The last option was the M4A6 with a Caterpillar RD1820 450 hp diesel engine, but the order for it was soon canceled because the diesel engine was distinguished by poor performance.

To warm up the engine and charge the battery, an auxiliary single-cylinder power plant was installed on the Sherman, which made it possible to do without starting the main engine.

The transmission located in front additionally protected the crew, but, in case of penetration, it could burn with hot oil and increased the risk of immobilization even without penetration.

A mechanical five-speed gearbox with reverse gear was installed on the tank, and turns were carried out by two separate brakes controlled by servo levers.

The moment was transmitted using a cardan shaft and a Cletrac double differential.

The transmission did not undergo any special changes, except that its protection became completely cast, and the parking brake control was changed from manual to foot.

Chassis

The suspension was borrowed from the M3 with minimal changes, so on each side the tank received the usual three support bogies to which two rubber-coated road wheels and two buffer springs were mounted vertically.

This suspension was called VVSS (Vertical Volute Spring Suspension), that is, "vertical", in March 1945 it was upgraded, having received double rollers and horizontal springs along with hydraulic shock absorbers, wider tracks and the designation HVSS (Horisontal Volute Spring Suspension), i.e. "horizontal".

She gave the Sherman better cross-country ability and reliability along with maintainability.

In general, the suspension was successful, providing a smoother ride and less noise than the T-34, which allowed the armored infantry to fire on the move.

Combat use

This tank actively participated in World War II, later in the Korean, Arab-Israeli and Indo-Pakistani wars.

Sherman first went into battle on October 23, 1942 as part of the British Army. The battle took place near El Alamein, during which the new tanks had to face the German PzKpfw III and PzKpfw IV. A successful design was demonstrated here, which has a reasonable combination of protection, firepower and mobility.

Since November, he began to enter the USSR, where it turned out that he was very similar to the T-34, had weaker side protection, but significantly superior in comfort, but the T-34-85 began to outperform american tank in security and firepower.

The US Army used Shermans a little later, on December 6 of the same year in Tunisia, their inexperience led to heavy losses, but the tank itself showed itself on the good side.

The joy of the military ended on February 14 of the following year, when the new PzKpfw VI Tiger showed that Sherman was not capable of resisting them.

On June 6, 1944, when the well-known landing in Normandy began, the Americans once again faced the Tigers and Panthers, losing 1348 Shermans and another 600 tanks for other reasons in 10 months of fighting.

It finally became clear that the Sherman is poorly suited for anti-tank combat or urban battles due to weak protection and weapons, but it has excellent mobility and good conditions for the crew.

In Korea, the Shermans received a 76 mm gun, which allowed them to catch up with the Soviet T-34-85 in terms of firepower, while surpassing them in visibility, comfort, having a stabilizer and more experienced crews.

Epilogue

The M4 Sherman was produced in excess of 49,000 units, becoming the most massive American tank. It was used with pleasure in other countries, for example, in the USSR and Great Britain, since it turned out to be quite successful.

Sherman had an excessive height of the hull, his first versions caught fire easily, the armor did not protect very well, the power of the guns of the first versions was often not enough, and the design itself did not bring anything revolutionary or new, but was quite modern and left a lot of room for modernization.

The designers put a lot of effort into the convenience of the crew, maintainability, reliability and ease of mass production, and this is worth a lot in war.

Its armament corresponded to the T-34 or PzKpfw IV, yielding to the Panther with the Tiger, the armor was also at the level of medium tanks, second only to heavy ones.

Mobility, reliability, unpretentiousness and low noise level turned out to be significant advantages, which made it possible to use the tank in any operations. The only drawback in this regard was the high fuel consumption, which limited the cruising range to 190 kilometers, but good system software completely solved this problem.

It is not for nothing that many people call the M4 Sherman one of the best tanks of the Second World War, because he successfully combined all the necessary features of a medium tank without getting any strong flaws.

This tank, launched into mass production in 1942, soon became the main one, which was armed with armored forces not only in the United States, but also in England. The Sherman tank was also supplied under Lend-Lease to the USSR. It differed from the M3 series mainly in the hull configuration and armament layout. The power transmission scheme, its layout and design of the main units remained the same, which was due to the desire to maintain high production rates during the transition to a new type of machine.

In an effort to improve combat characteristics, American designers during 1942 and 1943 developed seven modifications of the M4, of which four were adopted: M4 (basic version), M4A1, M4A3 and M4A4. Machines of various modifications differed from each other in manufacturing technology (for example, the front part of the hull was made entirely by casting or assembled on bolts from three cast parts, or welded from cast and rolled parts), armament (75-mm and 76.2-mm guns , 105-mm howitzer), engines, chassis design and power transmission. Two variants of the M4A3 modification are evaluated as the most successful: M4A3E2 and M4A3E8. The first variant is distinguished by enhanced armor protection: the thickness of the turret armor has been increased to 152 mm, shielding has been installed in front and along the sides, due to which the armor thickness has been increased to 77 mm. The second option, M4A3E8, has armament reinforced by installing a long-barreled 76.2 mm gun and armor reinforced by 15 - 20 mm. This variant was produced from 1945 as the main medium tank. In total, more than 48 thousand M4 tanks of all modifications were produced during the Second World War.

In April 1941, the Rock Island Arsenal presented five draft versions of the M4 tank to the command of the armored forces. As a result, we chose the most a simple circuit using M3 elements with a completely new cast or welded body. The 75-mm cannon was placed in a turret, on the roof of which a machine gun was installed in the turret. As in the M3, hatches were provided in the sides of the hull. The model of the machine, designated as T6, was built in May 1941, and a prototype with a cast hull and some design changes (without a turret) was also assembled at the Aberdeen Proving Ground on September 19, 1941.

Looking at the Canadian tank "Ram" one could assume that the T6 had an influence on him. However, documents and chronological comparison of events refute this. The first production Ram, built by the Montreal Locomotive factory, was tested at the Aberdeen Proving Ground from July to October 1941 and is compared in reports to the M3 rather than the T6.

After the German invasion of Russia in June 1941, on the personal order of President Roosevelt, the production level planned for 1942 - 1000 medium tanks per month - was doubled. To do this, it was necessary to attract new enterprises: Pacific Car and Foundry, Fisher, Ford, and Federal Machine and Welder. In October 1941, the T6 entered service under the designation M4 and planned its mass production, including at 11 factories that produced the M3 in 1942. In September 1941, Fisher was offered to organize a second line in Grand Blanc, Michigan . The construction of the Grand Blanc Tank Arsenal, focused on the production of the M4, began in January 1942, and the production of vehicles in July of the same year, although at that time Fisher was already producing the M4 at one of its factories.

The M4 prototype, built by Lima Lokomotiv in February 1941, is distinguished by the absence of side hatches. The following month, Lima, Pressd Steel, and Pacific Car and Foundry produced the first cast-hulled M4A1s. By the autumn of 1942, all the factories involved in the program had launched mass production, and in October the British M4 entered the battle near El Alamein for the first time. M4 tanks were the most massive in the Allied forces during the Second World War. Although it did not have strong armor and armament compared to German and Soviet tanks, the M4 successfully combined ease of maintenance, reliability, speed, strength and uncomplicated design. This contributed to the deployment of mass production of machines at commercial enterprises that did not have Peaceful time experience in the production of military products. In terms of cost / efficiency, the M4 was optimal for its time, and this was reflected in production in 1942-46. 40,000 M4 tanks (and vehicles on its chassis).

The M4 had the same chassis as the M3. However, in addition to the earliest modifications of the bogie, the suspensions were changed: the supporting rollers were attached behind, not in the middle. The hull could be welded, cast, or welded with a front piece assembled from cast and rolled parts, while the 75 mm gun was mounted in a simple cast turret and equipped with a gyroscopic stabilizer, as on the M3 tank. Initially, the tank was equipped with an air-cooled Continental radial engine, but their constant shortage (they were also used in the aircraft industry) forced the use of other variants of power plants, which increased the number of serial modifications. M4 "Sherman" had a crew of 5 people, could fire armor-piercing shells.

Early vehicles had a three-piece bolted nose hull and inspection hatches (later removed) for the driver and his assistant. They had a narrow mask of the M34 gun mount. On the following machines, a one-piece cast nose part of the hull and the M34A1 gun mount with a wide mask were used. On the machines of the last batches (from the end of 1943), the forehead of the hull was made of cast and rolled parts.

M4 were produced by the following companies:

• "Press Steel" (1000 tanks, from July 1942 to August 1943)
• "Baldwin" (1233, from January 1943 to January 1944),
• "Amerikam Lokomotiv" (2150, from February to December 1943),
• "Pulman" (689, from May to September 1943),
• Detroit Arsenal (1676, from August 1943 to January 1944).

In total - 6748 tanks.

М4А1- the same M4, but with a cast body. The machines of the first batches had undercarriage bogies similar to the M3, 75-mm M2 guns with a counterweight to the muzzle of the barrel, and coaxial fixed course machine guns in the frontal hull plate. These machine guns, as well as the viewing hatches in the front plate, were soon eliminated, and after the release of several machines, 75-mm M3 guns began to be installed. The bow of the hull, assembled from three parts, was replaced with one cast part, and the M34A1 gun mount, wings and dust screens of the tracks were installed on the machines of the following batches.

М4А1 were produced by firms:

• "Lima" (1655, February 1942 to September 1943)
• "Press Steel" (3700. from March 1942 to December 1943)
• "Pacific Car and Foundry" (926, from April 1942 to November 1943).

In total - 6281 tanks.

M4A2. The second serial modification differed from the M4 by the installation of two General Motors diesel engines due to a shortage of Continental engines. This modification did not receive the bow part of the hull made of cast and rolled armor parts.

М4А2 were produced by firms

• "Fischer" / "Grand Blanc" (4614, from April 1942 to May 1944),
• "Pulman" (2373, from April 1942 to September 1943),
• "American Locomotive" (150, from September 1942 to April 1943),
• "Baldwin" (12, from October to November 1942),
• "Federal Machine and Welder" (540. from December 1942 to December 1943).

Total - 8053 tanks. Used only by the US Army. Most went to lend-lease supplies (including the USSR).

There is an interesting monument in the Israeli Armored Forces Museum. There are three tanks on a pedestal of stones - a British Cromwell and an American Sherman. The symbolism is clear: these are the machines that won the Second World War. And the lot of "Sherman" tests fell no less than the "thirty-four".

From 1942 until the end of the war, the M4 formed the basis of the American tank forces, having fought with the Japanese militarists in Asia and with the Nazis in Europe. As part of the British troops, the Shermans fought in Africa and landed in Italy. Soviet M4 liberated Ukraine and reached Berlin. And for many years the tank, developed back in the early forties, was actively used and won in battles with more modern vehicles.

The history of the creation of the tank

The United States met the beginning of World War II by just starting production of the M2 medium tank. An analysis of the battles in Poland showed that the tank did not at all correspond to the real conditions of the war, after which the order was reduced, and the produced tanks were reclassified into training tanks.

To replace the M2 in an emergency (even prototypes were not made), the M3 tank was developed (later called "Lee" and "Grant"). It was considered a temporary measure, and the creation of a new modern tank began immediately after the completion of work on the Lee.

To reduce the time for development and implementation in production, the tank was unified as much as possible with the M3.

Specifically, the engine, lower body casting and suspension were borrowed with minimal changes.

In September 1941, a prototype with a cast body was built, which received the T6 index. It differed from subsequent serial vehicles by the presence of two additional machine guns in the forehead of the hull, as well as the presence of a hatch for the crew in the side of the hull.

Serial production of M4 tanks began in the winter of 1942. The first tanks were assembled at the Lima locomotive plant and belonged to the M4A1 series. And these first tanks were produced for Britain.

Design

The Sherman has the following layout: the transmission is in the front of the hull, the engine is in the stern. The fighting compartment and the tower are located between them, almost in the center. The height of the transmission box and the need to place a radial engine in the hull predetermined the size of the tank - it turned out to be high.

All modifications of the Sherman, except for the M4A1, had a welded hull made of rolled armor.

On the M4A1, the body was cast. Common to all versions was the lower front part of the hull, which at the same time served as a transmission cover. The upper armor plate had a thickness of 51 mm and was installed at an inclination of 56 degrees (later - 47 degrees). The sides are vertical, 38 mm thick, the stern armor has the same thickness.

The thickness of the forehead of the cast turret is 76mm (at an inclination of 60 degrees), the sides and stern are 51mm. Early towers had one hatch - for the commander and gunner, later a loader's hatch was added. The tower had an electro-hydraulic or electric drive for the turning mechanism.

In the event of a failure of the mechanism, it was possible to turn manually.

The tower of the "long-barreled" "Shermans" differed in the thickness of the armor - 64mm in a circle.

Armament

The original armament of the Sherman was a 75mm M3 gun. This gun was a development of the French field gun of the 1897 model, adopted by the United States. In the M2 variant, the gun was mounted on early M3 tanks, while the later Lees and Shermans received the M3 with a barrel length increased to 40 calibers.

The armor penetration of the gun when using a solid M72 projectile reached 110 mm, the M61 chamber projectile penetrated armor slightly worse - up to 90 mm. In the initial period of the war, however, this was enough to deal with any enemy tanks.

The three-inch M1 gun was developed in 1942, when the characteristics of the short-barreled M3 became insufficient, and the more powerful M7 gun for the Sherman turned out to be too heavy.

The “long-barreled” Shermans went into battle in 1944. The penetration of the M62 armor-piercing chamber projectile exceeded 120 mm, which was no longer enough to deal with the most heavily armored German vehicles. But the M93 sub-caliber projectile pierced over 200 mm at short distances.

Interestingly, the production of Shermans with the M3 gun did not stop - the former gun had a more powerful high-explosive fragmentation projectile, which was critically important for the American tank doctrine. Within its framework, the main task of the tanks was to support the infantry, with which the “long-barreled” Shermans coped weaker.

Over 2,000 M4A1 and M4A4 Shermans delivered to Great Britain were re-equipped with a 17-pounder 76.2 mm gun. These machines were named Firefly (firefly). A solid armor-piercing projectile fired from the “seventeen-pounder” pierced armor up to 157 millimeters thick, which made the “Firefly” capable of fighting any German tanks.

The course machine gun from the Fireflies was removed in order to increase the ammunition load of the gun. This led to the reduction of the crew to four people. The gun stabilizer was dismantled.

Some Shermans of the M4 and M4A3 series were armed with the 105mm M4 howitzer. They were supposed to become "assault guns" for the direct support of the infantry. For anti-tank purposes, howitzer Shermans were not supposed to be used, but, nevertheless, the M67 cumulative projectile, penetrating up to 130 mm of armor, was included in the ammunition load.

They had such machines and some design differences - the gun did not have a stabilizer, the frontal armor was strengthened.

Additional weapons, according to the standards of that time, were a course machine gun mounted in a ball mask in the frontal sheet and a machine gun coaxial with a cannon.

In both cases, the M1919A4 model was used. Caliber - 7.62mm (.30-06). The gunner-radio operator fired from the course machine gun, and the gunner from the coaxial machine gun, with the help of an electric trigger.

Above the commander's hatch in the turret was a 12.7mm M2HB machine gun, suitable for anti-aircraft fire. Equipping a tank with a large-caliber anti-aircraft machine gun at that time was an innovation, and only towards the end of the war did it begin to be used everywhere.

Since 1943, a mortar was installed on all Shermans for setting smoke screens.

Crew accommodation and tank equipment

The crew of five was placed in the tank as follows: the seats of the driver and his assistant (he is also a gunner-radio operator) on both sides of the box with the transmission. Each had a hatch with an observation periscope, located in the ledge of the frontal part or in the roof in front of the turret. The gunner and the tank commander sit one after another in the right half of the tower, and the loader occupies the left.

On the linear Shermans, a VHF radio station was installed, located in the rear niche of the tower. Her antenna was displayed on the roof of the tower. Command tanks additionally they had a shortwave radio station in the right fender, with an antenna brought out through the frontal armor plate.

The tank intercom was part of a regular radio station, and a telephone could be additionally installed to communicate with the accompanying infantry tank.
For heavy driving weather conditions the tank was equipped with a gyrocompass.

The tank with a 75mm gun was equipped with a triple M55 telescopic sight and an M38A1 backup sight built into the gunner's periscope.

Howitzer tanks had the M77C model instead of the M38A1 sight. “Long-barreled” M4s were equipped with M51 and M47A2 sights.

Later they were replaced by a universal M10 periscope, in which two telescopic sights were built - six-fold and without magnification. This device replaced all the previous variety of sights. For firing from closed positions, an indicator of gun aiming angles was used. The M3 and M1 guns had a gyroscopic stabilizer.

Engine and transmission

Various options"Sherman" had different engines. The R975 radial engine was installed on the M4 and M4A1. M4A2 received a power plant from two interlocked two-stroke diesel engines GM 6-71. The M4A3 was equipped with a Ford GAA eight-cylinder gasoline engine (designed as an aircraft engine, but found use only in armored vehicles).

In the elongated body of the M4A4 tank, a structure of five automobile six-cylinder engines manufactured by Chrysler was mounted. Finally, the limited-edition M4A6 had a Caterpillar radial diesel engine. The power of the motors ranged from 350 to 500 hp.

In contrast to the variety of engines, there was only one gearbox for the Sherman - a five-speed mechanical, with synchronizers.

The transmission was located in the frontal part of the hull, and its outer body made of armored steel simultaneously served as the lower frontal part.

This placement of the transmission provided better weight distribution, increased its maintainability, and if it hit, its nodes could protect crew members from being hit. The disadvantage was the increased vulnerability of the transmission itself, which could be disabled by secondary armor fragments even without breaking through it.

Chassis

The suspension of the tank as a whole is similar to that used on the M3 tanks, with three two-roller bogies. Each of the carts has two vertical springs. During combat use, the shortcomings of such a suspension were revealed - on a soft surface, the tank's patency fell, the service life of the units was low.

As a result, by the end of the war, a suspension with horizontal springs and double rubber-coated rollers went into production.

Early suspension was designated as VVSS, later - HVSS.

Special tanks, self-propelled guns and armored vehicles

On the basis of the A3 series tank, the M4A3E2 Jumbo assault tank was created. Additional armor plates 38 mm thick were welded onto the frontal plate and the top of the side, and the transmission cover was reinforced. "Jumbo" was not intended for tank battles, he carried the M3 cannon, but later some tanks re-equipped the long-barreled M1 and used it as heavy tank destroyers.

On the roof of the turret of some tanks, the Calliope MLRS was installed - 60 guides for launching 114mm M8 missiles. There were several variants of the Sherman flamethrower.

"Shermans" equipped with mine trawls and bulldozer knives were used in engineering units. The amphibious modification DD was used for forcing rivers.
On the basis of the Sherman, "tank destroyers" were built - highly mobile lightly armored vehicles with an open turret. These include the M10 with a 76mm gun and the M36 with a 90mm gun.

The M7 self-propelled guns were equipped with a 105mm howitzer in an open cabin, and guns with a caliber of up to 203mm were installed on a special chassis with an open platform.

For repair and evacuation work, the M32 machines and its upgraded version of the M74 were created. They were equipped with a crane, winches and a bulldozer knife. M32 without evacuation equipment served as an artillery tractor.

Post-war options

After the war, countries that could not afford the latest tanks tried to improve the efficiency of the Sherman with upgrades.

In Israel, the Shermans underwent their first rearmament in 1956. They were assigned the index M50. Three hundred of these tanks received the French 75mm gun. During the next upgrade, in 1962, the Israeli M4A1 was equipped with Cummins VT8-460 diesels, the gun was replaced with a 105mm gun, and was named M51. In the 1970s, some cars were transferred to Chile, where they served until the 90s.

Egyptian "Shermans" were M4A4, with a diesel engine from M4A2. Instead of the “native” turret, an AMX-13, swinging from a light tank, was installed. The turret came with a 75mm gun and an automatic loader.

Lend-Lease supplies and combat use

British troops received 17181 tanks from the issued Shermans. "Shermans" were finalized to meet British standards and received new designations. The changes included, for example, the replacement of walkie-talkies with British ones, the installation of a smoke mortar, and additional fire extinguishing systems.

For the first time, British Shermans went into battle in Africa in mid-1942.

As part of the British forces, they took part in the battle of El Alamein, and, according to the British, made a significant contribution to the victory. At the end of the same year, American Shermans appeared in Tunisia. The African campaign proved the high combat qualities of the M4, but after the appearance of the German Tiger tanks in Tunisia, the insufficient armament of the tank became obvious.

Since 1943, diesel M4A2s have been supplied to the USSR, in the amount of 4065 units.

Tanks in the Red Army were appreciated - the crews praised the ease of use, the quality of instruments and communications. The Sherman's lower noise level made them well suited for stealth attacks. At the same time, insufficient cross-country ability in winter conditions and a tendency to overturn due to the high center of gravity were noted.

In the Soviet Union, the first Shermans took part in the Battle of Kursk. True, at that time there were few of these tanks. But since 1944, the number of incoming Shermans made it possible to create even separate corps from them. Soviet М4А2 took part in all subsequent battles of the war, including the defeat of the Kwantung Army.

In Europe, "Shermans" appeared during the landing in Sicily. And by the time of the invasion of Normandy, modifications with enhanced weapons had already been prepared. But during the first battles, the M4 tanks failed to realize (due to specific natural conditions) their advantage in mobility, and the tankers suffered heavy losses.

The situation changed only after the Allied forces entered the operational space. Also during the battles, the lack of adaptability of the Sherman to urban battles became obvious. But by this time the tank was already assessed as obsolete, and this problem had to be solved with new tanks.

In the Pacific theater of operations, the Shermans were rarely encountered. The enemy tanks were too few and weak in armament to be an effective force. The nature of the hostilities made it possible to fully reveal all strengths American tank, as well as its missile and flamethrower modifications.

By the beginning of the Korean War, the Sherman was already considered obsolete, but only Shermans could be quickly transferred to the front from Japan.

And later it turned out that the more powerful and modern M26 in the Korean mountains have insufficient mobility. So the Sherman remained the main American tank in that war. In battles with the T-34-85, both tanks proved to be approximately equal opponents, and often the outcome of the battle was decided by the best training of American tankers.

During the Suez Crisis, modernized Egyptian Shermans clashed with modernized Israeli ones. As a result, most of the Egyptian vehicles were either destroyed or captured by the Israelis.

By the 1967 war, Israel's Shermans were used in secondary areas, but managed to prove themselves there too, destroying, for example, a convoy of Egyptian T-54s.
Both sides used the Shermans as second-line vehicles in the Indo-Pakistani wars. According to some reports, in the 1990s Shermans were used in Yugoslavia, but there is no exact confirmation of this.

Tactical and technical characteristics

The table shows the characteristics of the "early" and "late" Shermans in comparison with its closest analogues.

It should be noted that the modification of the Pz.IV tank given in the table is "intermediate" between early and late. But it differed from the previous T-4s mainly in its optimized design without changing the main characteristics, and in later series the changes were reduced to simplification and reduction in cost. So the Sherman was clearly not inferior to the main rival, and if he could meet him in 1941, he would have surpassed him.

Machine evaluation

Armament "Sherman" at the time of its appearance can be considered "adequate". The 75mm M3 cannon matched the characteristics of the Soviet F-34 and ZiS-5 guns in terms of its characteristics, allowing it to fight any enemy medium tanks. The appearance of Pz.IV tanks with enhanced armor, as well as Tigers and Panthers, made it ineffective.

The 76mm M1 gun was only slightly inferior to the Soviet 85mm D-5 gun in terms of armor penetration, and even surpassed it when using a sub-caliber projectile. Such “Shermans” could fight even heavy enemy tanks. The main drawback of the gun was the low power of the high-explosive fragmentation projectile. Due to the high initial speed the wall thickness of the projectile had to be increased, while reducing the mass of the explosive charge to a minimum.

On the whole, the M4's armament corresponded to modern medium tanks, and even surpassed it in terms of its effectiveness due to high-quality optics and the presence of a stabilizer.

Assessing the security of the Sherman, it should be remembered that during the years of its development, the typical weapons of most tanks were 40-45mm caliber guns.

And the infantry had at its disposal only anti-tank rifles and heavy machine guns. In comparison with the T-34, the Sherman was inferior to him in terms of the thickness of the sides, devoid of slope. But the sides of even the later versions of the German Pz.IV had a thickness less than that of the M4.

The frontal armor of the Sherman, according to the results of German tests, with a slight turn of the hull, could withstand hits from the 88mm gun of the Tiger. The M4A4E2, with enhanced armor protection, of course, outperformed its competitors, but there were few such tanks.

Early Shermans with ammo racks located in fenders suffered from detonation of ammunition when breaking through the hull. This shortcoming was corrected by placing the ammunition rack on the floor of the hull in boxes with a water jacket (the so-called “wet” ammunition rack).

The tactical and strategic mobility of the Sherman was highly rated. The tank, due to its small dimensions, was easily loaded onto all types of transport, including rail. When moving under its own power, the motor resource made it possible to travel long distances, rubber-coated tracks did not break roads, and the suspension design provided the crew with some comfort.

The Sherman had a good speed, good maneuverability, which was somewhat limited by the impossibility of turning on the spot. On tanks of the E2 series, other transmission ratios were used to maintain mobility with an increased mass.

Reliability

The high culture of production at American factories gave the Shermans high quality workmanship and very good reliability. Tank units did not require frequent adjustment. The maintainability of the tank deserves the highest praise. Soviet tanks also inferior to the "Sherman" in this regard.

Due to the low culture of production and technological equipment, the tolerances were such that the nodes had to be adjusted manually.

The flip side was the exactingness of the tanks to the skill level of the service personnel.

Tank analogues

The Soviet counterpart, the T-34, was somewhat superior to the Sherman in terms of the effectiveness of side armor, was approximately the same in armament, and significantly lost in terms of crew comfort.

The later T-34-85 had a powerful high-explosive fragmentation projectile (the absence of which forced the production of “short-barreled Shermans”), and its efficiency improved due to the separation of duties of the gunner and commander. It is worth noting that in the “fire hazardous” Sherman, the fuel tanks were located in the engine compartment, while in the T-34, in the fighting compartment.

The main German analogue of the M4 was the Pz.IV.

His early models lost to the Sherman in all respects, but by the middle of the war they were approximately equal in armament and armor protection. At the same time, the late Panthers (Pz.V (T-5)) were distinguished by poor build quality.

Although the “Panther” was superior to the “Sherman” both in terms of armament power (with an equal gun caliber) and armor thickness. Its main disadvantage was low reliability.
The British army had two tanks of its own design, roughly similar to the Sherman. The first is the Cromwell, which went into battle in 1944. Its 57mm gun was inferior to American guns, and it was also weaker protected.

The second tank is the Komet, armed with a shortened version of the 17-pounder. In terms of firepower, it was approximately equal to the American Shermans (but somewhat inferior to the Fireflies), had equivalent protection and greater mobility due to a powerful engine.

The Sherman tank was a real triumph for American industry. Not having much experience in tank building, the Americans were not only able to develop a tank of a successful and well-thought-out design in the shortest possible time - they mass-produced it, while maintaining high quality workmanship and finish. And the modernization potential of the Sherman allowed him to successfully withstand more modern tanks.

Video

In this series of posts, I will talk about the main serial modifications, operation features and the history of the development and use of this overseas unit. (I plan 3-4 parts in total. In the first part, about the main modifications made in the USA)

M4 "Sherman» - US main medium tank period of the Second World War, well, or almost the main tank in general, because they sawed a bunch of modifications for different tasks and I decided to unearth this whole pile in the name of the Satan of mankind.

History of creation (briefly, no seriously, very briefly):

By the beginning of the Second World War, the United States came up without a single adequate model of a medium or heavy tank in production and in service, there was only a handful of "medium" "tanks" M2. The M3 "Lee" tank, developed in an emergency, was considered obsolete in design already at the development stage, therefore, there were already requirements for a tank that would replace it ... We decided (not unreasonably) that using the components and assemblies of the "Lee" tank would be a good idea - so the development started February 1, 941, the prototype appeared on September 2 of the same year.

The tank inherited the undercarriage, lower part of the hull and the gun of its predecessor, however, they abandoned the stubborn design with a gun in the fuselage of the hull and stuffed it into the turret. True, the dimensions remained approximately the same. Tank received the designation M4, and in February 1942, its serial production was started. M4 turned out to be simpler, more technologically advanced and cheaper to manufacture than the M3.
On this, the history of creation can end and begin to disassemble quietly - what were they, "Shermans"?

T6 Sherman Prototype

Modifications:

There will be only serial American cars, Canadian, English and engineering cars, I will describe in another post. Only key differences will be indicated, riveters may not even write anything in comments

To begin with, it is worth saying that the feature of the production of the M4 was that almost all of its variants were not the result of upgrades, but had purely technological differences and were produced almost simultaneously. That is, the difference between the M4A1 and the M4A2 does not mean that the M4A2 denotes a later and more advanced version, it only means that these models were produced at different factories and have differences in design (which will be discussed below). Modernizations, such as changing the ammo rack, equipping with a new turret and cannon, changing the type of suspension, all types underwent generally at the same time, receiving army designations W, (76) and HVSS. Factory designations are different, and include the letter E and a numerical index. For example, the M4A3(76)W HVSS had the factory designation M4A3E8.

The number in brackets indicated the gun mounted on the tank, if there is no numerical designation, then a standard 75mm gun is installed, and for example, in the M4A1 (105) marking it is clear that this is a Sherman with a cast hull and a 105mm howitzer.

Cast body. M4A1 (perhaps the most familiar appearance for me when you imagine the very first M4 Sherman)

Welded hull of the M4 tank

Perhaps the most interesting version from the factory in Detroit: M4 Composite Hull (cast front plate with other welded parts)

In fact, the tank almost completely corresponded to the T6 Prototype prototype (in the cast hull version). The only difference was the gun (the prototype had the M2 gun) and the absence of two fixed and fucking useless machine guns. E its main armament was an American tank gun 75 mm M3 with a length of 37.5 calibers. The gun made it possible to deal with most enemy tanks at the time of adoption, although the tank as a whole was considered an infantry support vehicle, because the high-explosive action of the projectile was more important.

The highlight of the M4 tank (and subsequent modifications with a "regular" gun and not a howitzer) was a vertical stabilizer, quite primitive, but it reduced the time until the gun was completely stabilized after stopping (this was also facilitated by a rather soft suspension). Also, the M4 tank was armed 105mm babahalka M4 howitzer and turned out to be somewhat more effective as an infantry support tank, but lost anti-tank properties and a vertical stabilizer.

During the war, SUDDENLY, it turned out that the Germans had both new models of tanks and improved old ones, because in 1944 they began to install 76 mm gun M1 with a barrel length of 55 calibers. True, to install the gun, I had to build a new turret (from an experimental T23 tank), but it's easier and cheaper than sawing a new tank. (As far as I understand, the stabilizer on this gun remained, but I could be wrong). In terms of anti-tank properties, it was on a par with the 85mm T-34-85 cannon, inferior to the 75mm Panther cannon and the 88mm Tiger cannon, surpassing the later modifications of the Panzer 4.

M4A1 with 76mm gun

The engine on the tank was a 350-horsepower radial, gasoline. He generally met the requirements for mobility, although he slightly increased the fire hazard of the car.
The booking was 51/38/38mm, front plate set at an angle of 56 degrees.

M4A2


M4A2(76)W. Let there be only 1/3 of all M4A2s released, but the piccha is here for a change. (By the way, here you can see the muzzle brake on the 76mm cannon. And also in the background you can see either the SU-85M or the SU-100. From here we can understand that these are Soviet Lend-Lease vehicles)

In fact, the A2 modification differed only in a twin diesel engine with a total power 375 pony horses (by the way, the tank could well move with one engine, this will be a little later in the story about "Shermans" in the USSR). It was the M4A2 that was supplied to the USSR under Lend-Lease, since one of the requirements for the tank was the presence of a diesel engine. The tank was produced only in its welded version, the production of a cast hull was more laborious and had no advantages over a welded one. Booking identical to M4

M4A3 (and its modifications)

M4A3E8 "Easy Eight" ( "Easy Eight" - a new type of suspension, about which a little later)

M4A3

Again, essentially the same M4 with a welded hull, but the highlight of the tank is a 500-strong, 8-cylinder V-shaped gasoline engine from Ford, which, with approximately the same weight, noticeably increased mobility. Armament, as in previous modifications, ranged from 75-76mm to 105mm guns. Booking is identical to M4.

It is worth noting the modification M4A3E2 "Sherman Jumbo" and M4A3E8 "Easy Eight".

M4A3E2 "Sherman Jumbo" it differed from the "simple" "Sherman" in reinforced frontal armor in a 100mm frontal plate and a thick cast turret, the side armor was also increased to 76mm, however, due to the fact that the modification was conceived as an assault gun, the choice of guns fell on the 75mm and 105mm guns and from 76mm guns were abandoned due to the weak high-explosive impact of the projectile (no matter how strange it was, but the 75mm high-explosive projectile was more powerful than the 76mm). Later, at the numerous requests of the military, a certain number of 76mm cannons were supplied to fight tanks and on the tank, with a long-barreled cannon installed with virtually no significant modifications. For the increase in armor protection, Jimbo paid with a significant decrease in mobility. The maximum speed along the intersection was only 22 km / h. On the highway, the speed remained practically the same. The specific pressure on the ground also increased, which reduced its permeability.


M4A3E2 (in the photo we can see the 76mm M1 gun)

M4A3E8 "Easy Eight"- It differed from the M4A3 in the presence of a new, horizontal type of suspension. At the end of March 1945, the suspension was modernized, the rollers became double, the springs were horizontal, the shape and kinematics of the balancers were also changed, hydraulic mortizers . Suspension received wider, 58 cm, caterpillars. Tanks with such a suspension (dubbed Horisontal Volute Spring Suspension, "horizontal") had the abbreviation HVSS in designation. The "horizontal" suspension differs from the "vertical" one by lower specific pressure on the ground, and gives the upgraded tanks a slightly higher cross-country ability. In addition, this suspension is more reliable and requires less maintenance. Due to slightly less ground pressure, they received the nickname "Easy Eight"

M4A4

М4А4(76)W

It features a simple propulsion system consisting of 5 gasoline engines with a total capacity of 470 horses. The hull had to be lengthened so that this miracle would fit, which had a little effect on the growth of the tank's mass. Also (as seen in the photo above), the place of the Driver and his assistant was protected by additional armor plates due to the fact that they are located at a smaller angle of inclination with the same thickness.
The machine was mainly used in English army under the index Sherman V and went to rework under Sherman Firefly (about which in another post)

M4A6

M4A6
It features a multi-fuel engine installation. Similar in design to the M4A4. Only 75 pieces were produced, so there is not much information about it. M4A6 did not take part in the battles and were used to train crews in the 777th tank battalion at Fort Knox

On this with the main modifications, I will finish. About engineering machines and foreign-made machines - in the next post

P.S. I apologize for some inconsistencies with M4A3E2, I fixed everything after reading some additional information

M4 "Sherman" is an American medium tank of the fifth level, which is loved by many tankers and is considered best car at your level. Is it so? We will learn about this a little later, but now we will try to understand this tank in more detail.

Short description

The M4 Sherman is an American medium tank that was used in World War II. Initially, it had only the M4 index in the name - the modification number in order. When the tank went to serve in Britain, the nominal part was added to the name - "Sherman", in honor of William Sherman, who was a general in the army of the northerners during the Civil War. Also at one time the tank was called "Emcha".

Story

The history of the creation of the tank begins in 1941. When World War II broke out in Europe, the United States had only so-called prototype medium tanks in stock. At that time, in addition to the M3 "Lee" and M2A4 "Medium", a more powerful tank with a radically different design was required. At the same time, the Americans wanted it to remain as cheap as its previous counterparts. On February 1, 1941, the accelerated development of the tank began, and six months later, the M4 Sherman was presented at the training ground. Photos of the tank immediately began to appear in print and have since acquired great historical value.

Then you didn’t have to choose, besides, the car turned out to be quite high-quality and relatively cheap. Therefore, the Sherman instantly went through standardization and was put into mass production. Already by 1945, almost 50 thousand vehicles of this model were created, and the tank became the most massive in America.

Design

Now let's talk about appearance M4 Sherman. A historical review shows that its features are also visible in German cars. This is not surprising, because initially the very idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthe layout was borrowed from the Germans. The engine compartment here was located in the rear of the hull, but the transmission was moved forward. In the center is a combat zone, which reached right up to the tower.

Throughout the war, this layout was used by almost all German and American designers for medium and heavy tanks. The height of the hull, despite the unloading of all parts, continued to be quite significant. This was due to the location of the engine here, which had the shape of a star. Also, the main elements of the transmission took their place here.

The combat crew of the Sherman - 5 people: the commander always took a place at the tower and watched the terrain, the loader and gunner sat on the sides of the commander, the driver himself, and with him the gunner-radio operator, were in front of the hull.

Historical characteristics of the tank

Continuing to talk about the M4 Sherman, the review should be moved from the visual aspect to a more significant - technical one. Let's start with protective equipment. The armor was rolled steel. It was from such sheets that the entire body was created. In the very first modification, the M4 had 51 mm of frontal armor. Parts are located at an angle of 56 degrees. The side and stern received 38 mm of protection, and the roof and bottom - only 25 mm each.

The tower was made by casting. Its frontal part is covered with 76 mm of armor, on the sides - 51 mm. The tower was installed with a shoulder strap and a ball bearing. In the frontal part of the tower, a hole was made for the mask of the gun and machine gun.

For the Sherman, several types of engines were initially used. One of the modifications included aircraft engine, which developed a capacity of 350 "horses". There was a version of the tank with twin engines from Ford, while the car could accelerate thanks to 500 horsepower.

Chassis was completely taken from the younger brother - "Lee". At that time, there was a popular blocked type using three support carts. The caterpillar was shallow, with 79 tracks and a width of 420 mm. Initially, a rubber-metal hinge was used here, but later it was completely replaced with a metal one.

They also began to use a 75-mm cannon from the Medium and Lee tanks for the gun. But, of course, after several months of development, more modern weapons. Also, the tank was re-equipped more than once to fight heavier opponents, anti-tank guns were installed on it.

To battle

The first combat use of the M4 Sherman took place in 1942. The battle at El Alamein was a confrontation between British (including the Sherman) and a similar class of German technology. Many historians still believe that this tank made the maximum contribution to the victory.

But the first combat use of the M4 Sherman by the Americans took place in December of the same year in Tunisia. But with the Americans, their inexperience and inability to use this miracle machine played a cruel joke. As a result, the troops were mercilessly defeated. A couple of months later, the Shermans met again on the same terrain with German tanks. And again there were problems in the battles, which gave an idea of ​​​​the imperfection of the layout and the weakness of military weapons.

By the way, in 1942 the tank was supplied to the Red Army. Here, the M4 was waiting for success in almost all battles. The tanks were good, confidently helped to end the war and reached Berlin together with the troops of our country. After the war Soviet tankers they spoke very positively about the Sherman, the only thing that was noted was the frequent percentage of fires and a weak gun.

The last breath for this machine was the battle on Far East already in 1945. The first use of the M4 "Sherman" brought popularity to this car, and in addition to British, American and Soviet troops, the tank was used during the Korean War in the early 50s. Chinese, and a little later - Arabs.

game version

Before we figure out how to play the M4 Sherman, let's get to know the playable version of the American medium tank. As you already know, in the game "Sherman" occupies an honorable fifth level and, as practice shows, can bend opponents well.

It should be noted that in stock condition the tank looks rather bad. He is slow, clumsy and weak. But all gamers of the famous World of Tanks know that any tank in the initial state is bad. Now let's talk a little about the main technical specifications cars.

The M4 Sherman has 460 health units, a speed of 48 kilometers per hour, 63 mm turret armor on all sides, a hull with 51 mm frontal armor, and 38 mm sides and rear. Thus, one can immediately trace the historical inaccuracy. Although we all understand that "Wargaming" is trying to balance the game so that tanks of radically different strengths do not meet on the battlefield.

Pros and cons of "American"

In principle, at its fifth level, the M4 is not very different from its counterparts. Something in it is worse, something is better, but the car is balanced for playing with rivals. Despite the low speed, the tank is quite maneuverable, in which case it can change its position on the battlefield and be an excellent assistant to heavy vehicles.

The downside of the Sherman is its rather large size. Although it all depends on what levels he gets in battle. Nevertheless, his silhouette is quite large, so it is not difficult to hit him. Also, remember that his armor is not the strongest either.

By the way, some players believe that the M4 Sherman is ideal for farming silver. In direct hands, the tank can deal a lot of damage, while its expenses for repairs and shells are negligible. Probably not everyone will agree with this. As practice shows, for some, one tank can become best friend, for others - a sworn enemy.

game tool

Well, it’s worth talking directly about the weapons of the “American”. In this section, you may also find the answer to the question of which gun to put on the M4 Sherman. There are two types of guns in the game. The first and most appropriate is the 76mm Tier 6 cannon. Its advantage is the rate of fire. In 60 seconds, she fires as many as 14.3 shots. At the same time, armor penetration is 177 mm, but their damage is 110.

If you choose this weapon, keep in mind that a heavy burden of support will fall on your shoulders. With this kind of damage and penetration, you should not fly forward and try to enlighten someone. It is best to hide somewhere in the bushes and wait for the light of rivals.

But the second gun is high-explosive, has 105 mm. Few will believe, but sometimes this gun can destroy some firefly on a spree with one shot. It fires 7.5 shots per minute, but armor penetration is 53 with 410 damage.

Looking at the characteristics, it should be said that the high-explosive gun has very poor accuracy, so it is best to get close to the enemy and take him by surprise at a short distance. Many players even believe that this is a great fun tool that will bring good mood in battle.

The following tips will help you improve your tank. Let's start by answering the question of what modules to install on the M4 Sherman. First of all, you will need to decide on the role of your machine. Most players choose a rammer, reinforced aiming drives and a stabilizer, thereby improving the accuracy of the gun. In some cases, you can install improved ventilation. And if you want to improve the already excellent view, install optics.

But when you have thoroughly pumped the tank, or rather, the crew, another question will arise: "What skills do the M4 Sherman crew need?" First of all, you can pump the light bulb and repair. Then you can take perks for review in order to again improve our search abilities. Then we reduce the spread of the gun and pump the perks for stabilization. Well, after that you can take care of the dynamics, and install a disguise for the loader.

How to play?

Having finished the review of the M4 Sherman tank, you can proceed to the gameplay itself. There are no important and difficult points here. The main thing is what was said in the section about the gun. Depending on the choice of gun on the battlefield, you will become either an assistant or an destroyer. In the first case, you follow heavy tanks and deal damage behind the backs of courageous allies. In the second case, you should be more careful, but get closer to the victim so that the accuracy of the gun does not fail at the most crucial moment.