MISSION STATEMENT

This website is to serve as a catalog of historical information for various tanks, across various stages of development, created for use by the United States from Pre-WWII through to the 1970s. However, the primary purpose for this website is to illustrate a proposal for what an "endgame" could look like for the US tech tree in the game, World Of Tanks, and to show that there's still plenty of life left to breathed into this game.

My aim is to see as many tanks in the game about tanks as possible, and I hope to show that in a way that respects both the historicity of the tanks shown and the balance of the game overall. As such, I will not be going into great detail on individual statistics. Rather, I will only be showing the possible modules for each tank, changes that could be made to make it more historically authentic, a historical overview, and how the tank's playstyle may be represented in-game. I will also attempt to future-proof this by including alternate hulls, half-tracks, and wheeled vehicles.

This is certainly not perfect and everything is subject to change. This is still a work in progress, and updates are frequent if not daily. This is a fan project and a labor of love. Do enjoy.

Thursday, August 17, 2017

M37



There were several unsuccessful attempts to install a 105 mm howitzer on a lightweight tank chassis, including but not necessarily limited to the M2A1 and the M5A1. Some success was found with the M7 HMC, but the desire for a vehicle based on a lighter chassis persisted. It wasn't until the T24 light tank entered development did the idea of a lightweight howitzer motor carriage finally come into proper fruition.

 The turret and top plates of the T24 were removed so that the M4 howitzer, which proved its worth mounted in the M4 medium tank, could be mounted on a pedestal behind the driver. Two pilot vehicles were constructed, designated as the T76 HMC, and delivered to Aberdeen in July 1944.

After some revisions, it was decided to standardize the T76 as the M37 in January 1945. However, the end of the war would limit the total production run to just 150 vehicles. None would be shipped to the European theater and the M37 would see combat use during the Korean War.

 I'm not proposing any significant changes to this tank. The M3 howitzer, while as far as I can tell never actually being considered for this tank, would indeed serve as a decent stock option. I've also eliminated the stock engine, for the same reasons given in regards to the M24 Chaffee.

Guns: 105 mm Howitzer M3; 105 mm Howitzer M4 

Engines: Twin Cadillac, Series 44T4 (296 hp)

Suspensions/Alternate Hulls, Total Weight (metric tons): M37 Early (20.86); M37 (20.86)

Hull Armor (mm): 13/13/13

Top Speed: 56 km/h

Crew: 6 (Driver; Gunner; Loader; Loader; Commander; Radio)
Parent: M7 Priest
Children: T64 GMC
See Also: M24 Chaffee

Sources:
Hunnicutt, R. P. Stuart. 1992. 
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