Grant mk.II: Desert legend

[Would you like to see this in-game?]
  • Yes
  • No
0 voters

introduction:

Hi everyone, today i would like to suggest one of the legends of the north african desert, the Grant Mk.II, also known as the M3A5. Initially you might be forgiven for think this Grant is functionally identical to the Premium grant MkI we currently have as a premium in the british tech tree, but there are several differences between this model and the one currently in game. The main changes to the tank are as follows:

  • 375 hp twin diesel engine, increasing the tanks length and changing the apperance of the engine bay significantly
  • Both the 37mm and 75mm gun being gyrostabalized
  • the addition of extra external smoke dischargers
  • the addition of a top a top mounted 7.62 m1919a4 machinegun to replace the one lost with the removal of the machine gun cupola in the revised Grant turret

These differences make the tank sufficiently different in my opinion to be worth suggesting, as it adds additional british flavour to this well known lead lease vehicle. Hopefully you agree and we can add this staple of the 8th Army’s armored formations to the game :).png “:)”)

Image showing a diesel grant knocked out in north africa:

m3grant79.png

Vehicle history:

A few months after the passage of the Lend Lease Act on March 11, 1941, the Ordnance Department took over responsibility for the existing British contracts in the US. The original plan had been for cash and carry for munitions and armaments, but with the advent of lend lease, the material could be shipped for free in partial exchange. To mee the needs of british armoured regiments, the US goverment agreed to give the grant production priority at the Baldwin facture over the Lee, as it was deemed the tanks needed over seas should be the first completedm because of this over 500 grants where produced in the first half of 1942 to only ten Lee’s.

This massive production of tanks resulted in radial engine production to be unable to keep up with demand, and to supliment the need for engines the ordanace department began looking for alternatives. They found one in the installation of combined “off the shelf” GM 6-71 diesel truck engines that were “coupled together by means of a transfer case delivering the doubled power to a single driver shaft, creating around 375 hp to propel the tank. These engines where installed in around half of the Baldwin produced grants, equipt with rivited hulls creating the Grant Mk.II, which where then supplied to the british, with lend lease just like its sibling the Grant Mk.I. The diesal engine was longer and stouter than the radial engine, as can be seen in the pictures below, which resulted in the apperance of the Grant Mk.II different thant its radial counterpart as well as slightly longer.

m3grant70.png

M3 and M3A2 radial Grants or Lees (on left) to that of the diesel M3A3 and M3A5 (on right):

m3grant74.png

The double barrel exhaust unique to the diesel lee’s and grants, on the preserved example in Bovington:

m3grant73.png

With production of diesel Grant’s in full swing they along with their radial ilk began to be supplied to british units serving in north africa (675), the middle east (164), iran (30) and later in the war the pacific theater., though their most notable user was the British 8th army in north africa. Unfortunately the history for the Grant II in terms of service is rather sketch, as it was used interchangably with both lee’s in british service along with shermans and Grant Mk.I’s, resulting in a muddy history outside of the fact over 200 diesel examples seeing service with British forces during the course of the war, though after the conclusion of the north africa campaign they where mostly relegated to secondary roles, and replaced by the more famous Sherman. The reason it is hard to tell the history of the individual grant and lee variants in british service is they where replaced due to attrition, resulting in units having a hodgepoge of grant and lee variants serving in the same units often similtaniously.

So far you’re likely wondering what the Grant Mk.II adds to the game aside from a different looking buttocks, and I can be safe in saying the Grant Mk.II offers many features currently missing from the Grant in game. The first of which is a presence of a gryostabalizer for both guns, allowing it to much more quickly fire on targets as it comes to a stop, offering a improvement in reaction time over the Grant Mk.I currently present in game. This feature is present in the Grant Mk.II due to them being fundementally later production lee’s allowing the new technology to be implimented in them in the factory, as can be seen by the counterweights on the guns in the picture below.

Photo of a knocked out grant Mk.II showing the counterweights on the guns, the one on the 75mm looking like a muzzle break, the shermans in the background date the image to late 1942:

m3grant87.png

In addition to these counterweights, it was not uncommon to find a pair of additional smoke dischargers mounted on the right side of the turret, freeing up the bomb thrower for other purposes, and allowing for more smoke to be deployed at once over the more hands on process of loading the bomb thrower. These where also installed on Grant’s that where shipped without the bomb thrower, allowing them to lay smoke.

m3grant106.png

In addition to the additional smoke dischargers, many British Grant’s where modified to carry a top mounted machine gun to replace the cupola lost in the change to the grant turret. This took the form of a simple pintle mount for a .30 cal. Browning anti-aircraft machine gun which was situated on the inside of the new hatch. This feature could be found on both Grant Mk.I and II variants, and was a common modification to several units that fielded the Grant tank.

m3grant122.png

Historical Photos:

photo above was taken on “the coast road” in Libya on 15 January, 1943, about a week before the Eighth Army entered the major port of Tripoli, Libya’s capital. The Grant in the background is a Diesel Grant Mk.II as indicated by its double barreled exhaust:

m3grant94.png

A diesel Grant command tank served as the personal stead for General Montgomery, It is now preserved at Imperial War Museum, Duxford, the pintle for the top mounted machine gun is still present:

m3grant13.png

m3grant14.png

A dapper photo of Winston Churchil standing infront of a grant with a pintle MG installed:

m3grant108.png

Picture showing a diesel grant equipt with the pintle machinegun, offering a clear view of the back, removing any doubt it is a diesel variant:

m3grant86.png

Vehicle specification:

m3grant3.png

m3grant9.png

In terms of specification the Grant Mk.II is incredibly similar to the M3 lee and Grant Mk.I already present in game. The main difference is the 375hp engine compared to the 340 of the radial lee, and the addition of the smoke dischargers, gyrostabalized guns and pintle mounted machinegun.

Mass 30 short tons (27 long tons; 27 t)
Length 18 ft 6 in (5.64 m)
Width 8 ft 11 in (2.72 m)
Height 10 ft 3 in (3.12 m) – Lee
Crew six
Armour * 51 mm (2.0 in) (hull front, turret front, sides, and rear)
  • 38 mm (1.5 in) (hull sides and rear)|
    |Main
    armament|* 1 ×75 mm Gun M2/M3in hull
  • 46 rounds
  • 1 x 37mm Gun M5/M6 in turret
  • 178 rounds|
    |Secondary
    armament|* 2–3–4 ×.30-06 Browning M1919A4machine guns
  • 9,200 rounds|
    |Engine|GM 6-71 dual diesel (375hp)|
    |Transmission|Mack Synchromesh, five speeds forward, one reverse|
    |Suspension|vertical volute spring|
    |Ground clearance|18 in (0.46 m)|
    |||
    |Maximum speed|* 26 mph (42 km/h) (road)
  • 16 mph (26 km/h) (off-road)|
    |Steering
    system|Controlled differential|

Sources:

2 Likes

This is a must-have!! +1

1 Like

+1 Would love it as a tech tree vehicle. Maybe just before the Sherman II?

1 Like

that is my intent, its a shame that the iconic grant is basically locked behind an ultra rare event vehicle, when the yank one is for sale literally once or twice a year.

should have been a tech tree vehicle. every country in the game has vehicles like that which is sad

Since the regular Grant is a premium for some reason, this should absolutely be in the TT! Since the vehicle had quite an impact for the British forces at the beginning of Lend Lease, I don’t get how a Grant isn’t in the TT already.

I was just kind of plopped in as a lazy event vehicle a long time ago, which is when i got the brit grant, we see them from time to time when they don’t have anything they have a habit of slapping a lend lease in, be it for the brits or another nation. Due to the fact the grant is iconic for the British i suggested the mk2 so we can get one in the tt that is not a 100 buck monster.

With the current Grant being an event vehicle this should absolutely be a tech tree machine.

+1, it’s a shame the Grant is not in the Tech Tree despite it being so widely used in North Africa

2 Likes

This should definitely be a tech tree vehicle, it’s odd to me how despite being so widely used by the UK, the Grant is currently a gift vehicle for $50 on the market as I type this. Regardless, +1! I hope to see this and other World War II vehicles in the future.

1 Like

Not sure if it’s just me, but all of your images seem to be broken now.

Australia also had the M3A5 Grant II and put an additional armour plate over the transmission tunnel. I personally hope to get an Australian one in game some day but preferably in a new tech tree with Australia and Canada together.
But yes to the British tree for this one.
Also the photos don’t work for me either.

+1 good addition as a squadron, lowbie GE or TT

Some Grants also had the longer L/40 M3 75mm, which gives you 6-7mm more pen from the APCBC. In fact the reason the L/31 M2 75mm has that counterweight is that the stabilizer is designed for the L/40 gun. In general, the later production the more likely they were to have the L/40 gun, though all models of Lee/Grant could have either gun. So that’s another way the TT Grant II could differ from the event Grant I.

Also all of the Discord image links are broken.

Good suggestion, though note that War Thunder uses gross horsepower instead of net horsepower (that’s why they changed the horsepower of the M18 a few months ago), so the Grant Mk.II/M3A5 should have 410hp according to Hunnicutt’s “Sherman” (similarly, the M3 Lee in-game has gross 400hp, instead of the net “340 of the radial lee” you’ve mentioned).

Also strange to see Tank Encyclopedia saying that the M3 carried 46 rounds for the 75mm, while Hunnicutt says that all M3s (except the Grant I) carry 50, which is also the value currently used in game.

2 Likes

Could also go Grant Mk. I (L/40) as a separate vehicle.

1 Like