M4A3E8 Easy Eight
M4 Sherman
More than 49,000 built — the Allied medium of the war.
Specifications
- Crew
- 5
- Combat weight
- 33.7 t
- Engine
- 500 hp
- hp / tonne
- 14.8
- Road speed
- 42 km/h
- Range
- 160 km
- Main gun
- 76 mm M1
- In service
- 1942–1957 (U.S.)
Ford GAA V8, 500 hp
Armor: Welded hull, 63 mm glacis at 47°, wet ammo stowage on late hulls
Secondary: .50 cal AA, 2× .30 cal
Briefing scores
Relative 1–10 for teaching, not a wargame rating.
- Firepower
- 5/10
- Protection
- 4/10
- Mobility
- 6/10
- Awareness
- 5/10
- Logistics
- 9/10
Ammunition natures
History
Standardized in 1942 so Detroit could build it by the tens of thousands. Early 75 mm hulls were outgunned in 1944; the 76 mm M1 and HVSS “Easy Eight” restored a fighting chance. Wet stowage cut brew-ups. Shermans served with every Western Allied army and kept fighting in Korea.
Doctrine
The Sherman was never meant to duel Tigers one-for-one. U.S. doctrine used tanks to exploit breakthroughs, support infantry, and win by numbers, recovery, and a working logistics chain. Tank destroyer battalions were supposed to handle heavy armor — a split that combat quickly blurred.
Strengths
- Mechanical reliability
- Easy to crew and repair
- Strategic mobility
Limits
- Thin armor vs late German guns
- High silhouette
- 75 mm early variants struggled with Panthers
Related hulls
1 of 25 in the atlas