Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Israeli M50 'French' Sherman Platoon

This installment of my Israeli P'Lugah Tan'kim for Fate of a Nation is the M50 'French' Sherman platoon.  These are called French Shermans due to the use of the French 75mm gun from the AMX tank.  This gun is based on the German Panther gun from WWII.  In fact, it is a direct copy of the German gun.  Unfortunately, by 1967 the gun was really show its age.  I am not sure this unit will stay in the army after the first game.  At only AT14 compared to the AT16 of the M51 for only a 20 point difference per tank I am not sure these are worth taking in the long run.

All in all I am not a big fan of the model.  It seems that they modeled the tank as an M4A1 on the front but the rear half is a welded hull more like an M4A3.  This is not how the real tanks looked.  It is a fairly inaccurate model.

I must say I don't really like the aesthetics of the original tank much either. The M50 is an ugly tank with a very impractical layout.  The long mantle of the 75mm gun overhangs the driver and radioman hatches when the gun is facing forward.  Not a good place to be if the tank takes a hit.


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