US Tank DestroyersWalk Around Color Series #5703
Squadron Signal Publications
ISBN 0-89747-456-2
80 pages mostly in colour.
Review by Terry AshleyThis is the third in the Squadron Signal Armor Walk Arounds series and covers the three main US Tank Detroyers of WWII and beyond, the M10, M36 and M18.
The book is in the usual soft cover as previous Sqd/Sgn books. Its 80 pages are packed full of close-up photos of TDs. Most photos are of restored and surviving TDs, allowing the quality of the detailed photos.
Text is kept to a minimum, with a brief summery of the TDs on the first page with the rest of the text in the form of photo captions. The vast majority of photos are in colour with 3 pages of colour profiles showing some of the cam schemes of the different vehicles and the book is basically broken into three sections for each of the vehicles featured.
The first section (Pages 4 to 34) covers the M10 only and has superb close-up
of the exterior and interior of the hull and turret including four images of
the
GM
6046 12
cylinder
diesel engine out of the vehicle.
The photos cover everything you would want to know about from the suspension,
hull details from the rear deck, light fittings front and rear to the crew
hatches and everything in between.
The interior shots cover the front crew stations with details of the transmission,
gearbox and driver's controls to the side sponson details and rear engine bulkhead.
The turret is covered in equally fine fashion with details of the outside
and inside with many shots of the gun and mounting plus the ammo storage and
also of the different types of turret counterweights fitted.
The second section (Pages 35 to 54) covers the M36 only in much the same fashion as with the M10 with extreme close-up details of the exterior and interior. The Ford GAA 8-cylinder engine is shown outside of the vehicle with a few shots of the engine in the engine bay as well as additional shots of the .50cal MG on the rear turret pintle mount. The remainded of the photos follow the lead from the M10 section with details of everything you would want to know about an M36.
The final section (Pages 55 to 79) is of the M18 Hellcat and again follows the same formula of the M10/M36 section with superb close-ups of every part of the vehicle inside and out including an interesting shot of the front transmission being slid out throught the front hull opening.
This is a superb photo coverage of the three TDs featured and will prove invaluable when building any of the kits available from AFV Club and Academy.
Highly recommended.