M4 Sherman Tank Platoon (plastic)

The M4 Medium Tank—best known by the nickname ‘Sherman’. Over the course of the war there will be numerous variants, changing the engine and suspension, adding more armour and bigger guns, but all with the same tall, solid shape.

The M4A1 model, recognisable by its distinctive rounded single-piece cast upper hull, is the first Sherman variant to enter combat with the US armored forces. Most of the initial production run of the original M4 variant, with its sharpsided welded upper hull, were supplied to the British through the Lend-Lease programme.

The Allies have the fascists on the run in North Africa, but the fight is not over yet. The United States is the newest army to enter the war. They boast some of the best tanks in the world, backed up by well-equipped infantry, either marching to battle on foot or riding in half-tracks, and the latest deadly tank destroyers. Their troops are inexperienced, but they have trained hard and are eager to prove themselves. They will need to learn quickly, as they face a cunning and battle-hardened enemy.

The M4 Sherman evolved from the M3 Lee Tank and retained much of the previous mechanical design, but put the main 75 mm gun in a fully traversing turret. The designers stressed mechanical reliability, ease of production and maintenance, durability, standardization of parts and ammunition in a limited number of variants, and moderate size and weight. These factors, combined with the Sherman's then-superior armor and armament, outclassed German light and medium tanks fielded in the desert.

The relative ease of production allowed large numbers of the M4 to be manufactured, and significant investment in tank recovery and repair units allowed disabled vehicles to be repaired and returned to service quickly. These factors combined to give the Allies numerical superiority in most battles, and many infantry divisions were provided with M4s and tank destroyers.