Magach 3 (ERA) (USA)

▃Magach 3 (ERA)

▃Magach 3 (ERA)

USA

V Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
8.0	8.0	8.0

Class:

PREMIUM

Medium tank

Purchase:Bundle or Gift

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Description

The ▃Magach 3 (ERA) is a gift Rank V American medium tank with a battle rating of 8.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.77 "Advancing Storm".

In a sense, the Magach 3 is a combination of features between the M48 Patton and the M60. Sharing the rounded cast hull shape of the M48 hull chassis and a rounded turret housing the 105 mm M68 gun. However, unlike the usual M48A1, the Magach 3 has the M60 engine installed and its engine grilles and exhausts on the rear are similar to that of the M60.

Features exclusive to the Magach 3 are plentiful however. From the front, smoke grenade launchers can be seen on the gun mantlet sides, with a total of 20 smoke grenades that could be launched. On the turret roof, the prominent commander's cupola infamous on the M48A1 and the M60 designs has been replaced with the Urdan design, which has a drastically smaller profile at the expense of the commander's 12.7 mm machine gun. In its place, a 7.62 mm Browning on a pintle-mount is available on the roof.

More prominently throughout the Magach 3 are mountings for the Blazer ERA on the hull front, turret front, and turret sides. More than likely however, these mountings on the battlefield would be covered by the Blazer ERA which would fill up the Magach 3 profile with large blocks running vertically throughout the design. Though similar to the M60A1 RISE (P) in ERA placement, the ERA on the Magach 3 are long smooth blocks running up and down with the tank's profile while the M60A1 RISE (P) has them in tiles, each with four bolts on that mounts them onto the tank.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armour type:

• Cast homogeneous armour (Front hull, Turret)
• Rolled homogeneous armour (Side, Rear, Roof)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	85-200 mm (59-74°) Front glacis 63-200 mm (13-60°) Lower glacis	76 mm (0-44°) Front 51 mm (0-44°) Rear	30 mm (0-3°) Top 25 mm (26-59°) Bottom	57 mm Front 20 mm Rear
Turret	105-128 mm (6-71°) Turret front 152 mm (3-28°) Gun mantlet	66-97 mm (2-46°)	45-50 mm (4-55°) 25.4 mm (70-71°) Turret underside	24-65 mm
Armour	Sides	Roof
Cupola	70 mm	30 mm
Special armour*	Kinetic	Chemical
ERA	5 mm	260 mm

Notes:

• Suspension wheels and tracks are 20 mm thick.
• Belly armour is 38 mm in the front and 25 mm in the rear.
• Rangefinder device on the turret sides count as 127 mm cast armour.
• ERA can be attached on turret and front hull via modification.

Mobility

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)		Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse	Stock	AoA	Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	54	9	49	0.876	1162	1,431	23.7	28.68
Realistic	48	9			663	750	13.52	15.03

Armaments

Main armament

105 mm M68
Capacity			Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance	Stabilizer
57			-9°/+19°	±180°	N/A
Turret rotation speed (°/s)
Mode	Stock	Upgraded	Prior + Full crew	Prior + Expert qualif.	Prior + Ace qualif.
Arcade	22.85	31.62	31.62	__.__	45.18
Realistic	14.28	16.80	20.4	22.60	24.00
Reloading rate (seconds)
Stock	Prior + Full crew	Prior + Expert qualif.	Prior + Ace qualif.
8.71	7.70	7.10	6.7

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration in mm @ 0° Angle of Attack
		10m	100m	500m	1000m	1500m	2000m
M728	APDS	260	258	250	240	231	222
M393	HESH	127	127	127	127	127	127
M456	HEATFS	400	400	400	400	400	400

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity in m/s	Projectile Mass in kg	Fuse delay in m:	Fuse sensitivity in mm:	Explosive Mass in g (TNT equivalent):	Normalization At 30° from horizontal:	Ricochet:
								0%	50%	100%
M728	APDS	1,426	4.65	N/A	N/A	N/A	+1.5°	75°	78°	80°
M393	HESH	732	14.85	0.4	0.1	4,310	+0°	73°	77°	80°
M456	HEATFS	1,173	10.5	0.0	0.1	1,270	+0°	65°	72°	75°

Smoke characteristic
Ammunition	Velocity in m/s	Projectile Mass in kg	Screen radius in m	Screen time in s	Screen hold time in s:	Explosive Mass in g (TNT equivalent):
M416	730	11	20	5	25	50

M728 APDS (Armour-Piercing Discarding Sabot) is capable of easily penetrating the majority of the foes it meets, but these rounds do require finesse as to their placing.
Because the shell lacks an explosive filler, the best bet is to try and either knock out the majority of the enemy tank's crew, or to destroy the enemy by ammo or fuel detonation through hitting their respective storage capacities. This, of course, requires knowledge about the vehicles the M60 may face - so be sure to use the game's X-Ray view in the hangar and analyse the potential foes for their weak spots! Also keep in mind that with increased armour thickness the amount of shrapnels shrinks.

M456 HEAT-FS (High-Explosive Anti Tank Fin Stabilised): The knowledge of enemy vehicle layouts gained from the stock shell (DM13), will be handy to use for the M60's fullest potential - as the M456 is a round that can penetrate most vehicle's armour frontally. Like the APDS shot, increased armour thickness results in reduced amount of shrapnels after penetration. Unlike APDS it has one downside: Given that it is a chemical energy round, its fuse is highly sensitive in regards to its practical application in battle. As a result, virtually anything, such as trees or even a fence, will set it off prematurely, so the HEAT-FS round cannot fire through obstructions with this kind.

M393 HESH (High-Exlposive_Squash-Head) works very differently than other shell-types. It ignores any angle, except for ricochet and deals damage by metal-flakes which are blown off inside the armour by the exterior explosion. Basicly the fighting compartment is showered in metal rain. Currently only true armour thickness (opposed to line of sight thickness) will provide sufficient means of protection, benefitting the USSR turret designs and in general German tanks. Like all high-explosive shells the fuze is very sensitive and can be set-off by most objects e.g. fences, trees, pillars.

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the Magach 3 (ERA) (USA).

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
57	47 (+10)	32 (+25)	23 (+34)	7 (+50)	1 (+56)	no

Machine guns

7.62 mm M1919A4
Pintle mount
Capacity (Belt capacity)				Fire rate (shots/minute)	Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance
1,200 (250)				500	-15°/+60°	±180°

7.62 mm M73
Coaxial mount
Capacity (Belt capacity)				Fire rate (shots/minute)	Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance
5,950 (250)				500	N/A	N/A

Usage in battles

To use this tank effectively do not charge straight into battle, instead, go around. Use the terrain, make it harder to be identifiable by selecting the appropriate camouflage and navigate using the map. To flank, the opponents from the sides or the rear, use a flanking tactic to surprise the enemy tankers and destroy them. However, do not let the M60 be seen and the longer it can stay hidden, the higher the chances of finding more tanks off guard and surviving the match. Try to attack from long distances: The M60 has a very powerful and accurate cannon. This can be equipped with some of the most lethal ammunition in the game. It will turn the biggest and most powerful tanks into blazing wrecks.

The M60 looks similar to the T-54 series of tanks an unskilled T-54 player will pause for a short amount of time to identify the tank. This will give the tank extra time to angle the tank and to calculate a perfect shot and destroy vital parts of the enemy tank. Do not expose/show the rear of the tank as this will give away the M60 immediately since the rear does not resemble a T-54 and is one of the weakest places on this tank.

Playing on maps which have villages, towns, and city centres modelled, such as Poland, Advance to the Rhine, Normandy etc. These require a more specific tactic to survive in these locations as being flanked and not knowing about it until it's too late is very common. A good way of preventing this while using an M60 tank is to not enter the urban environment. In these environments, the M60 will be normally too close for the armour to work as effectively. However, if going around the sides of the town and move in and out of streets, this will prevent the enemy team to predict where the M60 will go. The M60, once upgraded, offers some of the best handling in the game, use that as an advantage in narrow and congested streets.

When engaging with other medium tanks, the M60 offers an excellent gun which can dominate any other medium tank. If the HEATFS is unlocked, the M60 will be able to terminate any tank with one hit most of the time. The closer to the enemy tank, the higher the odds of ending it with an instant termination. When using HESH rounds, do not hit the sides of the enemy tank, it won't really do much damage. However, when the enemy has exposed the front, especially the Upper Glacis of the tank, using the HESH rounds will cause a lot of damage to the Crew and could also end that tank in one shot. Examples are the T-54's, IS-3 and -4M's. Against T-10M's, its not that reliable because of spaced armour.

Make sure to not expose the rear or sides of the tank and turret. These are weakest parts and if hit is likely to end the tank.

Modules

Tier	Mobility		Protection		Firepower
I	Tracks		Parts		Horizontal Drive	Rangefinder
II	Suspension	Brake System	FPE		Adjustment of Fire	M393A2
III	Filters		Crew Replenishment		Elevation Mechanism	M416
IV	Transmission	Engine	Magach-3 "Blazer"	Smoke grenade	Artillery Support	M456

• As a gift vehicle, the ▃Magach 3 (ERA)'s modifications are automatically unlocked upon purchase of the vehicle.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Good mobility.
• Hard-hitting and accurate 105mm L7 gun.
• E.R.A. provides some extra protection from Sabot and HEAT rounds.
• Removal of the tall commander's cupola on the M48A1 Patton = slightly lower silhouette.

Cons:

• Gun can't depress over the engine bay; makes it difficult to combat flankers.
• E.R.A. doesn't help against regular AP rounds.

History

During the 1960s and ‘70s, Israel purchased a number of M48 and M60 tanks from West Germany and later the USA. These tanks and their subsequent upgraded versions were named Magach. The first two Magach tanks were for the most part “stock” versions Israel initially received, without any significant retrofits. However, the first wave of major upgrades became visible with the Magach 3. This version intended to upgrade the Israeli M48s to the A4 standard, following the Six-Day-War of 1967. The Magach 3 introduced several major improvements over the previous versions, including the replacement of the 90mm with the L7 105mm cannon, an improved diesel engine and transmission as well as a low-profile commanders cupola, just to name a few.

During the Yom Kippur War of 1973, Israel suffered heavy tank losses at the hands of entrenched Egyptian infantry on the Sinai peninsula. After the war, the Israeli tank force was more than halved. Once a critical vulnerability was discovered with the location of the highly flammable hydraulic fluid of the Magach tanks, the decision was made to replace the losses sustained in the previous war with newer Magach 5 and 6 tanks during the 1970s. The newer Magach tanks would introduce more improvements over time that further tailored their performance to the IDF’s needs, but that’s a story for another day. The Magachs remained the frontline MBT of the IDF until the ‘80s and ‘90s until they were gradually being replaced by Israel’s new domestically designed Merkava tank. By 2006, all Megachs were decommissioned from active service.

- From Devblog

Media

The Shooting Range #91 - Metal Beasts section at 00:23 discusses the Magach 3.

Premium Vehicles: Magach 3 - War Thunder Wiki

See also

• M48A1 - The original vehicle base that make up the Magach 3.
• M48A2 G A2 - Similarly modified M48 with a 105 mm gun in the German tech tree.

External links

• [Devblog] Magach 3 - Chariot of War
• [Devblog] Magach 3: New Defensive Abilities