#easy 8

[finemaleactors]

Byron Bowers in Easy 8

[aucarrolynfoster]

Hold on tight and get ready for the wildest ride of your life! "Easy 8: The Big Event" delivers non-stop thrills, laughter, and jaw-dropping action in the toughest sport on dirt. Let the Native American bulls mesmerize you with their incredible dance moves. Get ready for an adrenaline-fueled adventure like no other!

Grab your copy on Creative Books, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Authors Press

[i-doodle-bad-tanks]

The heavily armed and upgraded Sherman, the M4A3E8 “Easy 8″! The M4A3E8 was the most advanced model of Sherman medium tank fielded by the US Army during WW2. While the initial Sherman models were very successful and well liked by their crews, US Army command had realized the need for improving their Sherman medium tanks to be more reliable, hit harder, and be more survivable.

Over the course of the war, the M4 was incrementally upgraded, eventually culminating in the Easy 8. The Easy 8, official designation Medium Tank M4A3 76(w) HVSS, had just about every improvement possible. A more powerful M1A2 76mm cannon was installed, with wet-stowage for ammunition to prevent deadly detonations. The original radial engine was replaced with a Ford GAA-V8, which was simpler to maintain. And finally, the original Vertical-Volute Spring Suspension in earlier Sherman models was switched out for the more stable Horizontal-Volute Spring Suspension, giving the tank its name, as it was “Easy” to drive and a smoother ride. 4,500 of these tanks were produced, about 10% of all Sherman models. 

The E8 saw service from 1944 onwards, and remained in US service until 1955, after the Korean War. The M4 Sherman was largely replaced by the M26, and any remaining models were often sold and exported to allies of the US after the war. Some still remain in use today, fighting on in the Middle East. 

[tpmmpt-1]

Nice shot of an Easy 8 in use with 66th Armored Regiment 2nd Armored Division

Other Shermans seem to be an M4A1 and an M4, though I can’t be for sure with all the clutter covering up the telling details on the hull. 

Via  2nd Armored Ordnance Maintenance Battalion

[planes-tanks-racecars-nonsense]

[commissar-hauser]

[ptb8751]

Finished watching Fury. It was prettygreat/10.

[cutetanksdoingcutethings]

I saw Fury again last night with some friends and just wanted to leave a few brief thoughts now that it has sunken in a little.

I really liked the major focus on the crew, their lives inside this metal box and how they dealt with each other in all the various situations encountered. The dangers depicted and (graphically) played out really hammer home the "war is hell" theme. Not incredibly original of course, but the presentation (and tanks) are nice, gritty, muck covered and bloody. You also get a sense of how desperate and radical Nazi Germany was becoming as they were being pushed back in the last weeks of the war.

I only wish there was more tank on tank scenes (it's more tank on anti-tank gun and tank on infantry combat). It's a little light on that aspect, but I guess when dealing with vintage equipment (including the only operating Tiger in the world, I thought it was worth ten bucks for that scene alone) it can be difficult to make that happen. Seeing a Panther in the beginning was a treat too.

I'm not a movie goer by any means, but I really enjoyed it. I'd put it up there with Saving Private Ryan and the HBO mini-series Band of Brothers for fantastic WWII films.