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Britain
Sherman 17 pdr gun (Firefly VC)
Ordnance classification - M4

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The Sherman 17 pdr gun was designed in 1943, manufactured by American Locomotive Company and Others based on the existing fully tracked M4 and was in use from 1944 to 1945.

Flag of World War 2 Britain
Photo of Sherman 17 pdr gun (Firefly VC)
Sherman 17 pdr gun(Firefly VC) scale illustration

General Details
Specifications
Operational Date(s)1944 - 1945
Ordnance classificationM4
Quantity Produced2150
Weight34.75 tonne
Crew5
M.G's small1
M.G's large(>10mm)1
Length6.25 mtr
Width2.71 mtr
Height3.00 mtr
Engine Details/Performance
Max Road Speed24 mph
Max Cross Country Speed13 mph
Range Road101 miles
Range Cross Country40 miles
Fuel TypePetrol
Fuel Capacity160 gal
Horse Power430 hp
Power/Weight12 hp/tonne
General Information
The Sherman 17 pdr gun was designed in 1943, manufactured by American Locomotive Company and Others based on the existing fully tracked M4 and was in use from 1944 to 1945.

The vehicle was powered by Continental 'Radial' petrol powerplant producing 430 HP which could drive the vehicle on roads at up to 24 mph with a range of about 101 miles before refuelling. Its cross country performance was good providing a max speed of about 13 mph and a range of about 40 miles.

It was armed with 1 light machine gun , a 0.3 inch Browning Machine Gun M1919A4. and 1 large machine gun. Its main armament consisted of an Ordnance Q.F. 17pdr which could penetrate 201 mm of flat plate at 100 metres .

The Sherman II M4A1 Firefly was a similar shape to the M4 but had a curved cast hull which provided less flat surfaces for AT hits, this was mostly noticable at the top of the hull next to the turret.

The cast turret was modified to take the British 17pdr and a box added to the rear of the turret due to the length of the 17pdr.

Armour Details
Turret
Front65mm@(65mm)
Side65mm@(65mm)
Rear65mm@(65mm)
Top25mm@90°(25mm)
Superstructure
Front51mm@45°(72mm)
Side38mm@(38mm)
Rear38mm@(38mm)
Top19mm@90°(19mm)
Hull
Front40mm@45°(57mm)
Side40mm@(40mm)
Rear38mm@(38mm)
Top14mm@90°(14mm)
Armour (x)mm @ (y)° (Effective mm @ 0°)
Effective Armour - Maximum 72 mm - Minimum 14 mm



Weapon Details
Flag
0.3 inch Browning Machine Gun M1919A4
(Machine Gun) x 2
Blank
ManufacturerBrowning
Manufactured1919 - 1945
Calibre7.60mm
LengthL/80
Rate of Fire480 rpm
Number of Rounds 6000
 
 
Ammunition Details
Name/Id Calibre Weight MVelocity Explosive Content
.30-06 Springfield
(BALL Standard Small Arms)
7.62mm 0.012Kg 820M/Sec
Range(Mtr)1002004008001200160020002400
Flight Time(Secs) 0.15
Penetration(mm@30°) 2
Penetration(mm@0°) 3
Hit Probability(%) 98


Weapon Details
Flag
Ordnance Q.F. 17pdr
(Anti Tank Gun)
Blank
Manufactured1942 - unknown
Calibre76.20mm
LengthL/55
 
Ammunition Details
Name/Id Calibre Weight MVelocity Explosive Content
17pdr MkI - MkIII
(AP Armor Piercing)
76.20mm 7.65Kg 950M/Sec
Quoted Penetration 130mm@915m
Range(Mtr)1002004008001200160020002400
Flight Time(Secs) 0.11 0.22 0.44 0.94 1.5 2.13 2.85 3.69
Penetration(mm@30°) 174 161 147 129 113 97 84 71
Penetration(mm@0°) 201 186 170 150 131 113 97 82
Hit Probability(%) 98 98 98 98 88 60 34 22



17pdr HE/Red
(HE High Explosive)
76.20mm 6.1Kg 550M/Sec 0.480Kg explosive
Maximum Range not shown as gun elevation is limited
Range(Mtr)1002004008001200160020002400
Flight Time(Secs) 0.18 0.37 0.77 1.63 2.59 3.68 4.93 6.37
Direct Fire
Range(Mtr)1002004008001200160020002400
Flight Time(Secs) 0.18 0.37 0.77 1.63 2.59 3.68 4.93 6.37
Hit Probability(%) 98 98 98 81 44 22 8 3
Blast/Fragmentation Effects
Burst radius Infantry in open 99% kill2 mtr Burst radius Infantry in open 66% kill5 mtr
Burst radius Infantry in open 33% kill13 mtr  Armour Penetration inc roof at 1 mtr1 mm
An explosion within 2 mtr of infantry in the open will cause 99% casualties - lethal.
An explosion within 5 mtr of infantry in the open will cause > 66% casualties and could damage some AFV's.
An explosion within 13 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 penetrate 1 mm of the tank armour including the roof.

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.

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