- SFC_Jeff_Button
To those of you who are able to get Ft Hood way, let me know so I can meet you and show you around. I have been extremely busy with CSM duties and other jobs I dont care to mention here so I haven't been able to get with the museum director. But I do know the post and can get you on. Just let me know if you're in the AO, you all are welcome in my home.
- jcneel
When is the 4TH ID museum supposed to move and where is it going?
- Doug_KibbeyBe gentle with him, Guys....
- bsmart
'The German Tanks were better armored than the Sherman' - Yes. The Panther was about 45 tons compared to the Shermans 35 tons. Ten tons of weight is a lot of armor. The U.S. had to design the Sherman to be shipped half way around the world to be used. The Germans had to send a Panther 500-1000 miles from the factory, generally via rail or road shipment. The Americans had to plan un unloading Shermans in ports where the heavy lifting equipment was out of commision or across beaches where ther was no heavy cargo handling equipment at all. So they had to be able to unload using ships cargo gear. This limited the size of the vehicle.
The M-6 had problems with the transmission (it was probably at least as reliable as any other countries heavy tank but did not meat American reliability standards) and given the extreme shipping constraints of the 1942-early 44 period when they were attempting to build up an army in the U.K. in the face of the Uboat campaign it was decided to not give the very heavy M-6 (50-60 tons) a high priority.
When a heavy tank did become available logistics again reared its demanding head. The Pershing was wider than the Sherman. This meant that every Bailey Bridge would have to be modified or risk being damaged by the wider tracks of the Pershing. So they were held back until after most of the major rivers were crossed (and the port of Antwerp with it's heavy cargo gear was operational)
The M4A3E8 was a far different tank from the M4A1 'Michael' that was originally delivered to the British in early '42
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