37mm Gun Motor Carriage M61-12

M6: General
Date of first acceptance April 1942 Total acceptances 5,380
Manufacturer Fargo Motor Corporation Crew
4 men:
  • Commander
  • Gunner
  • Loader
  • Driver
M6: Dimensions
Combat weight 7,350lbs
3,330kg		 Height 82.75"
210.2cm
Length 178"
452cm		 Width 88"
224cm
Tread 64.75"
164.5cm		 Wheelbase 98"
249cm
Ground clearance 10.63"
27.00cm		 Ground pressure, tires 40psi
2.8kg/cm²
M6: Armament
Type Mount Ammunition Traverse Elevation
37mm Gun M3 M25 or M26 on rear of vehicle 80 rounds 360°
(manual)		 +15° to -10°
(manual)
Aiming equipment
Telescope M6 for gunner
M6: Armor
Location Thickness
Gun shield .25"
.64cm
M6: Automotive
Engine Dodge T-214; 6 cylinder, 4 cycle, in-line gasoline
Horsepower Net: 99@3,300rpm Torque Net: 184 ft-lb@1,400rpm Fuel capacity 30gal
110L
Transmission Selective sliding gear, 4 speeds forward, 1 reverse
Steering Steering wheel
Brakes Hydraulic, internal expanding
M6: Suspension
Type Road wheels
Semi-elliptic leaf spring 2/side
M6: Performance
Max level road speed 55mph
89kph		 Max grade 60%
Angle of approach 36.5° Angle of departure 31°
Max vertical obstacle 12"
30cm		 Min turning diameter 44'
13m
Max fording depth 35"
89cm		 Cruising range ~180mi, roads
~290km, roads

The 37mm GMC M6 placed the 37mm gun M3 on the back of a four-wheel drive ¾-ton truck in order to give it increased mobility compared to its towed carriage. The weapon was intended to be fired to the rear, and the only armor on the vehicle was the gun shield. A 5,000lb (2,300kg) self-recovery winch was at the front of the vehicle. The gun mount was bolted to the rear floor, and the cradle or top assembly was the same as that on the top carriage of the towed 37mm carriage M4. The differences in the pedestal mounts M25 and M26 included the installation of revised firing controls and a recoil guard for the gunner on the gun mount M26. A 6-volt storage battery served the 6-volt electrical system, and a 1-quart (1L) CCl4 fire extinguisher was carried. The vehicle was standardized as the 37mm GMC M4 on 26 December 1941, but in February 1942 the designation was changed to M6 to avoid confusion with the M4 tank. The M6 was an interim design to be used until a fully-armored carriage was designed, and all but 100 of the remaining M6s were converted back to their truck base by November 1943. The M6 was classified as limited standard in September 1943, but not declared obsolete until January 1945.

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References

  1. Hunnicutt, R.P. Armored Car: A History of American Wheeled Combat Vehicles. Navato, CA: Presidio Press, 2002. Reprinted from Armored Car, R.P. Hunnicutt ©2002, available from Presidio Press, 505B San Martin Drive, Suite 160, Navato, CA 94945.
  2. FM 30-40 Military Intelligence Identification of United States Armored Vehicles. Washington, DC: War Department, 9 January 1943.
  3. Catalogue of Standard Ordnance Items, second edition 1944, volume I: Tank and Automotive. Washington, D.C.: Office of the Chief of Ordnance, Technical Division, 1 June 1945.
  4. Catalogue of Standard Ordnance Items, volume II. 2nd ed. 1944. Washington, D.C.: Office of the Chief of Ordnance, Technical Division, 1944.
  5. Moran, Nicholas. Can Openers: The Development of American Anti-Tank Gun Motor Carriages. Brattleboro, VT: Echo Point Books & Media, 2017.
  6. FM 23-70 37-mm Gun, Antitank, M3. Washington, DC: War Department, 1 October 1940.
  7. TM 9-2005 Ordnance Material - General, Volume V: Sighting and Fire-Control Equipment - General, Aircraft Cannon. Washington, DC: War Department, January 1942.
  8. TM 9-2800 Standard Military Motor Vehicles. Washington, DC: War Dept., 1 Sep 1943.
  9. Modern Ordnance Materiel. Metuchen, NJ: Publications Department, Raritan Arsenal, 18 February 1943.
  10. Crismon, Fred W. U.S. Military Wheeled Vehicles. Minneapolis: Victory Publishing, Ltd., 2001.
  11. Gill, Lonnie. Tank Destroyer Forces--WWII. Paducah, KY: Turner Publishing Co., 1992.
  12. Hogg, Ian V. The Greenhill Armoured Fighting Vehicles Data Book. London: Greenhill Books, 2000.
Last updated 6 Dec 2024.
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