The Light tank M5A1 was a tank based on the M5 with the 37mm anti tank gun having a gyrostabiliser.
The power was provided by twin Cadillac 121hp petrol engines, driving through the front drive wheel, then via 2 pairs of road wheels to a rear idler then back over 3 return rollers.
This model was all welded and had a bulge at the rear of the turret for a radio..
General Details
Specifications
Operational Date(s)
1942
Ordnance classification
Quantity Produced
6810
Weight
unknown
Crew
4
M.G's small
3
M.G's large(>10mm)
n/a
Length
4.89 mtr
Width
2.31 mtr
Height
2.43 mtr
Engine Details/Performance
Max Road Speed
40 mph
Max Cross Country Speed
24 mph
Range Road
100 miles
Range Cross Country
unknown
Fuel Type
Petrol
Fuel Capacity
89 gal
Horse Power
250 hp
Power/Weight
unknown
General Information
The Light tank M5A1 was a tank based on the M5 with the 37mm anti tank gun having a gyrostabiliser.
The power was provided by twin Cadillac 121hp petrol engines, driving through the front drive wheel, then via 2 pairs of road wheels to a rear idler then back over 3 return rollers.
This model was all welded and had a bulge at the rear of the turret for a radio.
Armour Details
Turret
Front
51mm
@
0°
(51mm)
Side
32mm
@
0°
(32mm)
Rear
32mm
@
0°
(32mm)
Top
12mm
@
90°
(12mm)
Superstructure
Front
57mm
@
45°
(81mm)
Side
28mm
@
0°
(28mm)
Rear
28mm
@
0°
(28mm)
Top
9mm
@
90°
(9mm)
Hull
Front
57mm
@
45°
(81mm)
Side
28mm
@
0°
(28mm)
Rear
28mm
@
0°
(28mm)
Top
9mm
@
90°
(9mm)
Armour (x)mm @ (y)° (Effective mm @ 0°)
Effective Armour - Maximum 81 mm - Minimum 9 mm
Weapon Details
37mm Antitank Gun M3 (Anti Tank Gun)
History
Used against the Japanese in the Phillipines in 1941, and proved effective, however when used in the North Africa Campaign the shells bounced off the German medium tanks. This gun was also used in a number of American Tanks.
Manufacturer
Watervliet Arsenal,
Manufactured
1940 - 1944
Calibre
37mm
Rate of Fire
25 rpm
Ammunition Details
Name/Id
Calibre Weight MVelocity
Explosive Content
AP M74 Shot(AP)
37mm 0.86Kg 885M/Sec
Quoted Penetration 36mm @ 500mtr/0° ( ≈ 36mm/0°)
Range(Mtr)
100
200
400
800
1200
1600
2000
2400
Flight Time(Secs)
0.12
0.24
0.51
1.15
2.01
3.19
4.93
7.73
Penetration(mm@30°)
61
55
48
38
30
22
16
10
Penetration(mm@0°)
71
64
56
45
35
26
19
12
Hit Probability(%)
98
98
98
96
64
25
8
2
HE M63 Shell(HE)
37mm 0.73Kg 792M/Sec
0.039Kg explosive
Maximum Range 3000 Mtr
Range(Mtr)
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
8000
Flight Time(Secs)
1.73
5.51
20.09
Burst radius Infantry in open 99% kill
0 mtr
Burst radius Infantry in open 66% kill
1 mtr
Burst radius Infantry in open 33% kill
3 mtr
Armour Penetration inc roof at 1 mtr
0 mm
An explosion within 1 mtr of infantry in the open will cause > 66% casualties and could damage some AFV's.
An explosion within 3 mtr of infantry in the open will cause 33% casualties.
The blast effect of this shell exploding within 1 mtr of an armoured vehicle will not cause any significant armour damage.
Hit probability is based on a static 2 x 2.4 metre panel at 0 degrees(vertical) at the range specified.
The data that has been used to create these records has come from Wikipedia, The Lone Sentry, The Bundes Archive
and numerous books and websites that have provided the detailed information that has not been available anywhere else. The
information we use to calculate the penetration tables, flight times and the hit probability comes from the Gun Calibre,
the Shell Mass(Kg) and the muzzle velocity, plus range reductions to allow for gravity and wind resistance. This calculation
originally came from a pre-war Krupp calculation which has been modified, and seems to fit the actual test results.