Grant I (USA)

▃Grant I

▃Grant I

USA

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
2.3	2.7	2.7

Class:

PREMIUM

Medium tank

Purchase:1 000

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This page is about the American medium tank Grant I (USA). For the version in the British tree, see Grant I (Great Britain).

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Description

File:GarageImage GrantI.jpg

420px

The ▃Grant I is a gift rank II American medium tank with a battle rating of 2.3 (AB) and 2.7 (RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.45 "Steel Generals" in the initial batch of US vehicles available at launch. It is a modified version of the M3 Lee in the American medium tree line with a redesigned turret made for the British Army. It is currently not available for purchase.

The Grant is most well recognized for its tall profile and two cannons. The suspension resembles that of the M4 Sherman, the only notable difference being the return rollers' positions. The hull front is also stepped into two plates, where the upper is closer to vertical. The large sponson on the right side carries the main 75 mm gun; note that with 2 crew, it is the operational gun. The 37 mm gun is in a turret, mounted with a leftward offset. Its main notable difference from the M3 Lee is a redesigned turret.

Due to the presence of two cannons, this tank is an excellent multi-role vehicle. The Grant can be played it as a brawler combining the agile 37 mm gun with the high damage of the 75 mm gun, but don't get too close, in fact, the turreted gun has a bad depression and, combined with the high profile, tends to make close tanks difficult to hit. Note that the different guns can be assigned different keys to be separately used, so it is possible to select the 75 mm as a primary weapon, allowing the optics to accommodate the 75 mm shells (and not from the point of view of the 37mm gun) and use the bullet drop indicator in arcade battles.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour (Hull, Turret roof)
• Cast homogeneous armour (Turret, Transmission area)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	38.1 mm (54°) Front Glacis 50.8 mm (15-55°) Transmission area 50.8 mm (30°) Driver port 38.1 mm (0-57°) Hull gun mount	38.1 mm (0-22°) Top 38.1 mm Bottom	38.1 mm (1-14°) Top 38.1 mm (15-53°) Bottom	12.7 mm
Turret	76.2 mm (1-57°) Turret front 38.1 mm (1-69°) Gun mantlet	50.8 mm (7-45°)	50.8 mm (1-35°)	38.1 mm
Armour	Sides	Roof
Cupola	50.8 mm	38.1 mm

Notes:

• Suspension wheels are 15 mm thick, bogies are 10 mm thick, and tracks are 20 mm thick.
• Hull doors and vision ports are 38.1 mm thick.
• Turret ring is 50.8 mm thick.

Mobility

Mobility characteristic
Weight (tons)	Add-on Armor weight (tons)	Max speed (km/h)
27.9	N/A	43 (AB)
		39 (RB/SB)
Engine power (horsepower)
Mode	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	620	763
Realistic/Simulator	354	400
Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
Mode	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	22.22	27.35
Realistic/Simulator	12.69	14.34

Armaments

Main armament

37 mm M5
Capacity			Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance	Stabilizer
128			-7°/+60°	±180°	Vertical
Turret rotation speed (°/s)
Mode	Stock	Upgraded	Prior + Full crew	Prior + Expert qualif.	Prior + Ace qualif.
Arcade	10.70	14.80	18.00	19.90	21.20
Realistic	10.70	12.60	15.30	16.92	18.0
Reloading rate (seconds)
Stock	Prior + Full crew	Prior + Expert qualif.	Prior + Ace qualif.
3.77	3.33	3.07	2.90

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration in mm @ 90°
		10m	100m	500m	1000m	1500m	2000m
M74B1	AP	78	76	65	54	44	37
M51B1/B2	APC	78	76	65	54	44	37

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%
M74B1	AP	883	0.87	N/A	N/A	N/A	-1°	47°	60°	65°
M51B1/B2	APC	883	0.87	N/A	N/A	N/A	+4°	48°	63°	71°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the M3 Lee

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	6th rack empty	7th rack empty	8th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
128	122 (+6)	104 (+24)	86 (+42)	69 (+59)	52 (+76)	35 (+93)	18 (+110)	1 (+127)	Yes

Additional armament

75 mm M2
Hull mount
Capacity			Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance	Stabilizer
65			-9°/+20°	±15°	Vertical
Reloading rate (seconds)
Stock	Prior + Full crew	Prior + Expert Qualif.	Prior + Ace Qualif.
6.50	5.75	5.30	5.00

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration in mm @ 90°
		10m	100m	500m	1000m	1500m	2000m
M72 shot	AP	96	95	81	66	54	45
M48 shell	HE	10	10	10	10	10	10
M62 shot	APCBC	79	78	72	65	58	52

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%
M72 shot	AP	588	6.3	N/A	N/A	N/A	-1°	47°	60°	65°
M48 shell	HE	448	6.3	0.4	0.5	666	+0°	79°	80°	81°
M62 shot	APCBC	588	6.8	1.2	20	63.7	+4°	48°	63°	71°

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):
M89	259	3	13	5	20	50

Ammo racks

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	Visual discrepancy
65	XX	1 (+64)	Yes

Machine guns

7.62 mm M1919A4
3,000 (250)				500	-10°/+60°	±180°
Coaxial mount
Capacity (Belt capacity)				Fire rate (shots/minute)	Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance
4,000 (250)				500	N/A	N/A

Usage in the battles

The multiple cannons allow for different combinations of attack. The 75 mm gun possesses armour penetration on about the level of the 37mm gun; however, the damage upon penetration is extremely high with the M61 APCBC shell due to the HE filler. On the other hand, the 37mm gun allows for close quarters and longer-range fighting, where its high-velocity and effective shell make for good long range targeting while it is also the only cannon on the Grant that has a full 360-degree traverse.

Different guns mean different styles of play. The Grant can be played as a tank destroyer, using its sponson gun to take shots at medium range and its 37mm to cover the flanks and make longer range snipe shots. The Grant can also be used as an assault tank, quickly advancing on points while switching between the powerful 75mm gun and the faster-firing 37mm. In all game modes, the two gun profiles should be assigned to different keys, this will allow players to aim using the sights of the three guns separately, allowing the usage of the individual optics to actually hit things at range.

Being at BR 2.7, the Grant I has the possibility of facing long-barrelled Pz.Kpfw. III, and Pz.Kpfw. IV, as well as T-34s, and (rarely) the Chi-Nu II. The ZiS-30 is also very deadly, as its gun is competitive even at 5.7. The 75 mm gun can reliable penetrate all of these tanks at short range (save the T-34), whereas the 37 mm will require some particular shot placement.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Ability to use two guns: a 37 mm and a 75 mm - which is very powerful at this rank.
• Fine frontal armour.
• Side mounted 75 mm gives the ability for some unique tactics.
• Despite the tall profile, the "wedding cake" design of the turret has thick sloped armour, providing extra protection to make up for its height.

Cons:

• Tall profile, big target
• Side mounted gun - as much it is an advantage, it is a disadvantage too
• Slow traverse speeds make it easy for a light or a particularly speedy medium tank to sneak around the sides.

History

Development

After the development of the M2 medium tank, the Battle of France showed that such a tank was not going to be capable to go against the German Panzer IIIs and Panzer IVs. With the Western Allies now embroiled in the North African campaign against the Germans and Italians, the Allies needed a good tank capable of going against the Panzer tanks, and they needed it quickly.

The M3 Lee tank started from the basis of the M2 Medium Tank, using the chassis and the VVSS suspension system. It was to mount the 75 mm cannon, however, it was discovered that the United States does not have a turret design that can mount the 75 mm gun. So as development on the turret proceeded, the 75 mm on the M3 Lee would be a sponson mounted. This design was tested on the M2 medium tank as the T5E2, which was approved for the M3 Lee design. The M3 Lee featured a medium tank with two guns, the 75 mm on the hull sponson mount, and a 37 mm with a coaxial machine gun on a turret, a cupola on the turret had its own machine gun. The use of two gun mounts on a tank was similar to the German Neubaufahrzeug and Soviet T-35 tanks. The M3 Lee's 75 mm gun, however, presented a huge advantage over contemporary tank armaments, the 75 mm could fire high-explosive rounds for against infantry, yet could fire a shell with a high enough velocity for anti-tank purposes.

The M3 Lee's faults were the high profile and the sponson mount for its armament. The M3 Lee was 10 ft. 3 in. tall, a foot taller than the M2 medium tank. The 75 mm on a sponson mount meant that the main armament of the tank had a limited traverse compared to a rotatable turret and forced the tank to reveal much of its body in order to aim the gun at the enemy. The M3 Lee was also constructed out of rivets (which increased spalling) and had a smooth track design which reduced ground traction. Despite these disadvantages, the Allies happily accepted them as they were critically low on tanks, and German Colonel Hans von Luck considered them superior to the Panzer IVs.

The initial batch of M3 Lees was given to the British for their campaign at North Africa. The British experience with the M3 Lee pointed out most of the M3 Lee's flaws, but they were concerned with the lack of radio in the turret and a lacking in armour, with which they modified the M3 Lee to accommodate. The new design had a new cast turret with room for radio, the hull had thicker armour, and the turret cupola's machine gun was removed for a simple hatch. The modified M3 Lee also required one less crew member due to the radio now being in the turret for the commander rather than for a radio operator. The British ordered 1,250 of these modified M3 medium tanks.

On August 1941, production started on the M3 Lee, though the armour was thicker than initials batches of the tank due to its combat experiences. A majority of these were completed at Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Of the total 6,258 M3s built between startup to the end of production in December 1942, 2,855 units went to the British and 1,386 went to the Soviet Union. Other users of the M3 Lee were the Australians and Indians in the Pacific Theater. The M3 Lee arriving in British arsenal caused confusion as the same "M3" designation was given to the M3 Light Tank. This set off the tradition of naming American tanks after generals, where the M3 medium tank earned the Lee for the Americans (Grant for the British variant) and the M3 light tank earned the Stuart.

Combat usage

Combat experience with the M3 Lee was complicated but favourable. In Africa, the Lees and Grants in British and American service surprised the German forces when they could withstand the 50 mm KwK 38 L/42 gun and 75 mm KwK 37 L/24 howitzer armament on the Panzer IIIs and Panzer IVs. The M3 Lee proved reliable and adequate in armour protection. The Soviet's experience with the M3 Lee was less favourable, as their T-34 tanks were much better in combat performance. The Soviets euphemistically called it a "grave for six men" and the Lee tanks were relegated to the secondary fronts or repurposed as armoured personnel carriers. In the Pacific, the M3 Lees were lent to the Australians and Indians, which proved vastly superior to the Japanese tanks in service. The only American use of the M3 Lee at the Pacific Theater was during the Battle of Makin Island.

The M3 Lee served fine as a stop-gap solution for the American tank development. They performed very well on the combat field and proved very reliable. However, once a 75 mm turret was finally designed, the M3 Lee was redesigned to use it, and the resulting tank was the M4 Sherman, which will go on to replace the M3 tanks in the Allies as they are withdrawn from service. Even if it wasn't, the M3 was becoming obsolete due to newer German tanks being deployed, such as the Panther, Tiger I, or improvement of old chassis like Panzer IV Ausf. G and StuG III Ausf. F. Its obsolescence was a consequence of its own rather unique development and anachronistic design, limiting this medium tank's service life to a mere two years in Allied hands. However, it lived on until the end of WW2 in some modifications such as tractor and recovery vehicle. The chassis and running gear were adapted by the Canadians to develop their Ram medium tank.

An anecdote

"The 75 (mm gun) is firing. The 37 (mm gun) is firing, but it is traversed around the wrong way. The Browning (machine gun) is jammed. I am saying ‘Driver advance’ on the A set and the driver, who can’t hear me, is reversing. And as I look over the top of the turret and see twelve enemy tanks fifty yards away, someone hands me a cheese sandwich.” —British Lieutenant Ken Giles, tank commander of a M3 Grant

In-game description

The bitter taste left in the mouth of British builders after battles in Greece and France forced them to take a hard look at the future of their armor. They did not have a single powerful artillery system of their own, though the US at the time had just begun producing their new M3 Lee and its sponson-mounted 75 mm cannon.

After evaluating the American-made M3, the British decided that it would primarily be used in North Africa. A major invasion was planned for 1941, and so the Americans were asked to develop a new and elongated cast turret with a bustle at the back for a British Wireless Set No. 19. Periscopes were added on each side closer to the back in addition to slots from which to fire personal weapons. The cupola was unneeded and removed, being replaced by a short addition with a folding hatch in front of an antenna output. In total, the turret became 30 mm shorter, reducing the tank's profile. The M3 modification for the British was designated the Grant Mk I.

The first contracts with Baldwin, Lima, and Pullman were signed at the end of 1940, with deliveries totaling 1,685 units beginning six months later.

The Grant Mk I saw action in North Africa from 1942 to 1943 with varying success. Crew members reported that the German Pz.II and Pz.III tanks shot their armor-piercing shells from a distance of 1,100 meters. The Mk I was not as maneuverable as its German counterparts, and its side armor could not sustain hits from 50 mm tank cannons. Further, 88 mm anti-tank guns easily pierced its armor, while the high silhouette made long-range targeting easier.

The British Grant Mk Is saw limited action in the 1943 invasion of Sicily.

Media

• Skins and camouflages for the Grant Mk.I from live.warthunder.com.

The M3 Lee (right) and M3 Grant (left) in the North Africa Theater.

Bovington Tank Museum Tank Chats: M3 Grant

Read also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example,

• reference to the series of the vehicles;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

ETC.

Sources

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

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