Sherman Tank, Vol. 2, is the second book in David Doyle’s Legends of Warfare series on the Sherman Tank. The first volume of the series covered the Sherman M4A1 Tank in several variations. This Volume 2 covers the Sherman M4 medium tank, which is a welded hull, radial engine-equipped tank. The M4 was the predominant US tank in WWII until late summer 1944 when it was replaced by the M4A3.

The M4 was used by both the US and British forces in Africa, Europe, and the Pacific. The M4 went through three major hull designs, multiple turret designs, and was armed with 75mm or 105mm guns.

The book is organized in chapters on each of the major variations of the M4 tank and includes a chapter with photos of the tanks in action during WWII. Each of the chapters includes a brief one-page introduction describing the development of each of the M4 variations, followed by numerous photographs, many in color. The photographs include a few overall shots but are mostly walkaround type photos of various details of the tanks. Most of the photos are of the tank exteriors but there are a few interior photos in the M4 (105) chapter. Captions in each of the photos provide detailed information on the subject.

Contents

• Introduction
  • Describes the predecessors of the M4 Sherman from the M2A1 to the M3, and M4A1.
• Chapter 1 M4 Small-Hatch, Welded Hull Tanks
• Chapter 2 “Composite Hull” Tanks
• Chapter 3 M4 (105) Howitzer-Armed Tanks
• Chapter 4 A New Suspension System is Introduced
• Chapter 5 Remanufactured Tanks
• Chapter 6 Into Service

This chapter includes a chart with the data and specifications for the M4 and M4(105) tank variations. Photos in this chapter are black-and-white and provide very interesting images of the M4 in action during WWII with some fantastic ideas for diorama settings.

Summary

This is another awesome book by David Doyle that describes the further development of the Sherman Tank. The photos are a good reference for the different M4 variations, and the descriptive text is clear and concise. The photographs are clear, and the in-service photos provide great diorama ideas. History buffs interested in tank development during WWII will find the book interesting and modelers will find lots of ideas for models and dioramas.

Thanks to David Doyle for continuing to produce these fantastic books and providing review samples to IPMS.