M-51

This page is about the Israeli medium tank M-51. For the premium version, see M-51 (W).

M-51

Magach 1

M-51

Magach 1

Israel

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
6.0	6.0	6.0

Class:

Medium tank

Research:Free

Purchase:155 000

Show in game

Description

After the establishment of the Israeli State in 1948, the IDF faced numerous conflicts with various nations, and needed a cheap way to create a capable armoured force. Various modifications of the M4 Sherman had been supplied from France in the 1950s, but these were rather outdated by this point. Thus, the M-50 was developed, combining the chassis of the M4A1 and a 76 mm cannon. However, this proved inadequate against more modern tanks like the T-54/55 that appeared in subsequent years. Consequently, the M-51 was developed, equipped with a 105 mm rifled cannon (the same used by the AMX-30). The tank saw action during the Yom Kippur War alongside Centurions and Patton tanks. The M-51, with its HEAT shell, proved more capable against the T-55 and T-62's armour; however, it suffered from poor engine reliability, mediocre off-road mobility, and minimal protection against enemy tanks, ATGMs, or RPGs. Eventually, the tanks were sold to Chile, where they became known as the M-60.

The M-51, introduced in Update "Wind of Change", boasts a powerful 105 mm cannon; however, unlike other Shermans, it lacks a stabiliser. Its HEAT shell is powerful enough to penetrate virtually every enemy at its BR, even the Maus. However, this is balanced by limited mobility and extremely weak armour; most times, the vehicle will be destroyed from a single hit. Moreover, its off-road mobility and reverse speed are subpar for its BR, even when compared to heavy tanks. Therefore, it excels in ambushes or a defensive playstyle. Rushing and remaining on the frontlines is ill-advised; instead, adopt a cautious approach and utilise the cover provided by your teammates.

General info

Survivability and armour

Smoke grenades

Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle

Armourfront / side / back

Hull63 / 38 / 38

Turret76 / 51 / 51

Crew5 people

Visibility122 %

The hull armour is mostly inadequate. Almost every popular tank in the BR range can penetrate the tank's front with ease even when it is presented at an extreme angle, short of light tanks and SPAAs. Still, frontal armour can protect the tank from bombs and rockets. The side armour is quite weak and is arguable the weakest part of the tank, as even SPAA can penetrate it at various angles. The rear is technically the best protected side when it comes to hopeless situations - if the opponent hits too high, then shell bounces into tough turret and does nothing; if opponent hits too low, then engine might stop the shell. Unfortunately, tank's awful reverse speed does not allow it to charge with rear forward, so it can only be used defensively.

The turret armour is bad and good. Turret sides are unlikely to protect from anything but 20 mm SPAA, but the front is decent. The gun mantlet actually allows the turret to deflect stray shots and can allow the tank to fight in hulldown position, but the turret's top is not cut off on the "mask" level, but higher. The actual roof is connected to it with 26 mm RHA plate, which is not even angled enough to bounce shells in the first place, and most of opponents in tank's rank are either extremely tall, have angle negating shells, or both. Because of this, if the M-51 is charging into high ground, it is easily destroyed before it can even fire, especially in AB. By keeping distance and vertical angle, the tank can reduce the probability of being penetrated.

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour (hull side bottom, hull roof - engine)
• Cast homogeneous armour (hull, turret, cupola)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	63.5 mm (44°) Upper glacis 63.5 mm (cylindrical) Transmission housing 38.1 mm Hull corners	38 mm (2-15°) Top 38 mm Bottom	38 mm (14°)	63.5 mm (46°) Front glacis 19.5 mm Crew compartment 20 mm Engine compartment 9.5-9.5+4 mm Engine vents
Turret	55 mm (12°) Turret front 80 - 250 mm Gun mantlet	51 mm (10-17°)	51 mm 51 mm (65°) Bustle	25.4 mm
Cupola	63.5 mm (cylindrical)			25.4 mm

Notes:

• Suspension wheels are 15 mm thick, tracks are 20 mm thick, and torsion bars are 10 mm thick.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB43 / 6 km/h

RB and SB38 / 5 km/h

Number of gears5 forward

1 back

Weight40.0 t

Engine power

AB878 hp

RB and SB460 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB22.0 hp/t

RB and SB11.5 hp/t

Without upgrades, even in AB the tank will never be able to take initiative from opponents, as it accelerates poorly and loses a lot of momentum when turning at low/zero crew level - opponents will always be first to the capture point and almost always will react faster in combat.

With all the upgrades, it is still slower than most of other tanks, but it will feel far less clunky to drive and will more often reach maximum speed. It will also accelerate surprisingly fast, for how it performed before.

Remember, the reverse speed on this tank is only 3-5 km/h, combined with poor hull plating it requires the commander to make decisions count, or to not rely on mobility at all.

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	43	6	40	713	878	17.83	21.95
Realistic	38	5		407	460	10.18	11.5

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB2 152 → 2 911

RB2 568 → 3 474

SB3 275 → 4 431

Total cost of modifications40 600

78 600

Talisman cost1 400

Crew training45 000

Experts155 000

Aces630

Research Aces440 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

100 / 150 / 180 %

160 / 160 / 160 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Research: 2 000 Cost: 3 900 120 Suspension Research: 2 300 Cost: 4 400 140 Brake System Research: 2 300 Cost: 4 400 140 Filters Research: 3 400 Cost: 6 600 210 Transmission Research: 3 300 Cost: 6 400 200 Engine Research: 3 300 Cost: 6 400 200	Improved Parts Research: 2 000 Cost: 3 900 120 Improved FPE Research: 2 300 Cost: 4 400 140 Crew Replenishment Research: 3 400 Cost: 6 600 210 Smoke grenade Research: 3 300 Cost: 6 400 200	Horizontal Drive Research: 2 000 Cost: 3 900 120 105mm_fr_CN105_Smoke_ammo_pack Research: 2 000 Cost: 3 900 120 Adjustment of Fire Research: 2 300 Cost: 4 400 140 Elevation Mechanism Research: 3 400 Cost: 6 600 210 Artillery Support Research: 3 300 Cost: 6 400 200

Armaments

Main armament

105 mm M-51 cannon

Ammunition56 rounds

First-order8 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

9.7 → 7.5 s

Vertical guidance-8° / 20°

The gun fires HEAT and HE with characteristics typical of a rank IV SPG, but its velocity is very close to the default APHE (usually a bit slower), which makes learning curve less strict than it normally is. The tank is also reasonably tall, so HEAT does not lose a lot of power like with the SPG of the rank, which struggle with heavy tanks due to an insane angle of attack.

At medium to long range, the minor difference in HEAT and APHE velocity may allow M51 to outplay superior tanks

Gun accuracy is great even without the gun adjustment upgrade and with zero crew experience, but its vertical elevation speed is awful, and the gun is constantly tilted by changes of movement pace, which makes handling it difficult. This makes personal user skill to fire on move without braking a necessity.

The only way to reduce the tilt is to upgrade movement modules, as it reduces the tilt threefold. Due to the low gun elevation speed, the elevation mechanism upgrade is a must have, and it is generally a good idea to pull the gun up before charging downhill, as to not disarm the tank in process, particularly at low crew level.

105 mm M-51					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	56	-8°/+20°	±180°	N/A	22.8	31.6	38.4	42.5	45.2	9.75	8.63	7.95	7.50
Realistic					14.3	16.8	20.4	22.6	24.0

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
OCC 105 F1	HEAT	400	400	400	400	400	400
OE 105 F1 Mle.60	HE	25	25	25	25	25	25

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (kg)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
OCC 105 F1	HEAT	800	10.95	0.05	0.1	1.02	62°	69°	73°
OE 105 F1 Mle.60	HE	800	12.1	0	0.1	2	79°	80°	81°

Smoke shell characteristics
Ammunition	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Screen radius (m)	Screen deploy time (s)	Screen hold time (s)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
OFPH 105 F1	600	11.4	20	5	25	50

HEAT shells destroy any tank regardless of its armour. They can be used at point blank range to knock out Panthers with a single shot by hitting their hull straight to the middle. They can also be used in typical HEAT fashion to bombard any enemy 600 m away over a hill, even without direct sight - returned APHE fire will not hit the tank back, since it's generally a bit faster, and even if there is an artillery genius on the other side, the gun mask should be able to handle it.

The HE shell is nice to have. Even if it's difficult to memorize which tank's roofs it can penetrate, the HE can be used to bully sneaky light tanks and beat certain SPGs like the Type 75 SPH.

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the M-51

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
56	33 (+23)	9 (+47)	4 (+52)	1 (+55)	No

Machine guns

7.62 mm M1919A4 machine gun (coaxial)

Ammunition4 750 rounds

Belt capacity250 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate500 shots/min

7.62 mm M1919A4 machine gun

Ammunition750 rounds

Belt capacity250 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate500 shots/min

7.62 mm M1919A4
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Pintle	750 (250)	500	-10°/+60°	±180°
Coaxial	4,750 (250)	500	N/A	N/A

Usage in battles

The M-51 has poor armour for its BR, which is why you should never get into a brawl. Even though the overall armour might not be suited for close-range engagements, the hull armour is kind of decent at long ranges but is really good against bombs and rockets. Pick off targets from long range and avoid being spotted so do not hang around in one spot for too long. Your eather thin armour means that you cannot risk taking even a single hit especially from the side as you will be destroyed instantly. Aerial opponents are also a threat.

Enemies worth noting

• Panther D - If the Panther presents its front, then shoot the left side of the mantlet where the gunner and the commander sits, which will effectively disable it. You can then try and shoot the front to knock out the rest of the crew.
• IS-2 - This Soviet tank has better armour than you but your excellent 105 mm gun with HEAT shells should have no problem penetrating it. However, you must make sure that you shoot first to disable its gunner. Shoot at the turret if the IS-2 is presenting its front. The IS-2 has poor gun depression which can be used against it on hilly maps when it attempts to climb up a hill.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• 400 mm penetration HEAT launcher is a death sentence for any tank
• Gun mantlet can block or bounce inaccurate shots, decent for hulldown tactics
• The gun is reasonably accurate even when stock and with untrained crew
• There are three of them, which means you only have to pay for the repair once (there are also free repairs several times)
• Gun scope has great zoom
• Decent gun depression

Cons:

• Very bouncy gun; paired with the poor vertical gun elevation speed any panic on commander's side is fatal
• HEAT rounds are highly unreliable with mostly poor post-penetration damage
• No .50 cal heavy machine gun
• Fire-on-the-move techniques take time to be fully mastered
• Turret armour has a fatal flaw which makes it weak when charging into high ground (or in general against good snipers in AB)
• The hull armour offers little protection at the rank, giving the vehicle a low survivability
• When initially unlocked, must be used with a level 1 crew with no expert training against elite crews of other nations - very high personal skill requirement or patience strain

History

The M-51 was developed from an M-50 tank, whose project started in 1954 after Israel bought several AMX-13 tanks from France, although their armour protection was deemed inadequate. Israel purchased a number of 75 mm guns in order to fit them onto M4 Sherman hulls, as they constituted the backbone of the IDF tank force at that time. In 1955, a prototype turret was sent from France to Israel, and Israeli Ordnance Corps military facilities began to up-gun the Sherman tanks with the French guns. The first 50 M-50 tanks were based on an M4A4 hull with a Continental R-975 gasoline engine and VVSS suspension. However, the increased weight and narrow tracks of the tank led to poor off-road mobility, so the rest of the M-50s used M4A1 hulls with HVSS suspension and a Cummins VT-8-460 diesel engine instead. In total, about 300 M-50 Shermans were built by 1964.

In the 1960s, 180 M-50 Shermans were fitted with a shortened French 105 mm Modèle F1 gun with a barrel shortened to 51 calibres from the original 56. It was also equipped with a unique double-baffle muzzle brake and ammunition had to be altered to use a smaller cartridge. M4A1 hulls and T23 turrets from 76 mm gun-armed Shermans were used for the conversion. Both the M-50 and M-51 saw action during the Six-Day War, fighting WWII-era armour such as the T-34-85 of the Egyptian Army and newer tanks like the T-54/T-55 and T-62 series. The tanks saw action also in the 1973 Yom Kippur War alongside Israeli-upgraded Centurion and M48/M60 tanks. The M-51's gun was capable of penetrating its adversaries thanks to HEAT ammunition. M-50s with diesel engines and M-51s were retired between the 1970s and 1980s.

About 150 M-51 tanks were sold to Chile in the early 1980s. In Chile, they were equipped with new FCS (fire control systems) called MSZ-2 from Elop of Israel, which consisted of new vision systems for the commander and gunner plus a laser rangefinder. These tanks were in service until 2006 when they were replaced by the new Dutch Leopard 1V.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the M-51 from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

M-51 "Super Sherman", Israeli, Tier-4, Medium Tank - Angry Nerd Gaming

See also

• M-51 (W)

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• other literature.