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Britain
Medium M4A1 76mm (Sherman IIA)

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The Medium M4A1 76mm was designed in 1944 based on the existing fully tracked Sherman and was in use from 1944 to 1980.

Flag of World War 2 Britain

General Details
Specifications
Operational Date(s)1944 - 1980
Quantity Produced3426
Weight30 tonne
Crew5
M.G's small3
M.G's large(>10mm)n/a
Length6.25 mtr
Width2.71 mtr
Height3.00 mtr
Engine Details/Performance
Max Road Speed24 mph
Max Cross Country Speed17 mph
Range Road120 miles
Range Cross Country48 miles
Fuel TypePetrol
Fuel Capacity175 gal
Horse Power350 hp
Power/Weight11 hp/tonne
General Information
The Medium M4A1 76mm was designed in 1944 based on the existing fully tracked Sherman and was in use from 1944 to 1980.

The vehicle was powered by Continental 'R957C1' petrol powerplant producing 350 HP which could drive the vehicle on roads at up to 24 mph with a range of about 120 miles before refuelling. Its cross country performance was good providing a max speed of about 17 mph and a range of about 48 miles.

It was armed with 3 light machine guns which were 0.3 inch Browning Machine Gun M1919A4s. Its main armament consisted of a 76mm Gun M1 L/55 which could penetrate 149 mm of flat plate at 100 metres

The Sherman IIA M4A1 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 carrying the gyro stabilised 76mm Gun M1A1 with a squarer mantlet than the M4 was the same as that of the Sherman IA.

It was driven by a Continental 350HP air cooled engine with the drive sprocket at the front, the track went under 3 double bogie wheels onto the idler, then back over 3 return rollers.

Armour Details
Turret
Front65mm@(65mm)
Side65mm@(65mm)
Rear65mm@(65mm)
Top25mm@90°(25mm)
Superstructure
Front65mm@45°(92mm)
Side50mm@(50mm)
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 92 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
76mm Gun M1 L/55 Blank
Calibre76.20mm
LengthL/55
Number of Rounds 72
 
 
Ammunition Details
Name/Id Calibre Weight MVelocity Explosive Content
AP
(AP Armor Piercing)
76.20mm 6.8Kg 792M/Sec
Quoted Penetration 88mm@1000m
Range(Mtr)1002004008001200160020002400
Flight Time(Secs) 0.13 0.26 0.53 1.13 1.8 2.56 3.42 4.42
Penetration(mm@30°) 129 119 109 96 84 72 62 52
Penetration(mm@0°) 149 138 126 111 97 84 72 61
Hit Probability(%) 98 98 98 96 77 44 25 15

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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