M3 Light

M3_Stuart_LL (Stock)

Totals

850 Cost

330 HPDurability

12.01 / 12.5 Weight

Crew

1. Commander
2. Loader
3. Gunner
4. Radio Operator
5. Driver

Armor

38/25/25Hull Armor(front/sides/rear, mm)

38/25/25Turret Armor(front/sides/rear, mm)

Maneuver

268 h.p.Engine Power

61 km/hTop Speed / Reverse Speed

40 deg/sTraverse Speed

Firepower

40

48 mmAverage Penetration

3.2 Time for Complete Loading

40 deg/sGun Traverse Speed

Communication

210 mView Range

500 mSignal Range

M3 Light

III

850

The most famous light tank of World War II, with a total of 13,859 vehicles manufactured from 1941 through September 1943. 1,576 tanks (mostly of the M3A1 version) were supplied to the U.S.S.R. under Lend-Lease, and many more to the British.

This tank was given to players on wargaming's 15th anniversary, and world of tanks blitz's first birthday. It is quite poorly armed, but is fast.

Turret

Level	Turret	Turret Armor (front/sides/rear, mm)	Gun Traverse Speed (deg/s)	View Range (m)	Experience	Weight (t)
II	D37812	38/25/25	40	210	0	1250

Level	Gun	Average Penetration (mm)		Rate of Fire	Dispersion at 100 m	Aiming Time	Experience	Weight (t)
II	37 mm M5	48/70/19	40/40/50	18.75	0.36	1.7	0	78

Engine

Level	Engine	Engine Power (h.p.)	Chance of Fire on Impact	Experience	Weight (t)
IV	Continental W-670	268	20	0	256

Level	Suspension	Load Limit	Traverse Speed (deg/s)	Experience	Weight (t)
II	Stuart E1	12.5	40	0	3000

Radio

Level	Radio	Signal Range (m)	Experience	Weight (t)
IV	SCR_209	500	0	80

Compatible Equipment

Compatible Consumables

Player Opinion

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Excellent top speed
• Good turret traverse speed and elevation arc
• Good rate of fire
• Very good frontal armor for light tank, immune to most machineguns and autocannons, (except weak spots like driver's hatch)

Cons:

• Poor damage and penetration
• Poor view range
• Iffy gun accuracy
• Low HP, can be quickly destroyed by tank destroyers like the SU-85B in 1-2 shots
• The M3 Stuart is better than it in every way except credit coefficient as this tank has the turret of the tier II light.

Performance

It is a very effective flanker, with a good rate of fire, but poor penetration, so hitting weakspots or sides is a must. The front is immune to autocannons, so keep this in mind. It also has an ability to be one Tier 3 tank that the T82 has a hard time one-shoting with its "derp" howitzer. To the annoyance of T82 drivers, the front armor cannot be penetrated by regular HE, and the sides are remarkably strong. Coupled with the tank's agility, this makes it a good tank to take on these destroyers.

Historical Info

From the summer of 1942, when enough US medium tanks had been received, the British usually kept Stuarts out of tank-to-tank combat, using them primarily for reconnaissance. The turret was removed from some examples to save weight and improve speed and range. These became known as "Stuart Recce". Some others were converted to armored personnel carriers and were known as "Stuart Kangaroo", and some were converted command vehicles and known as "Stuart Command". M3s, M3A3s, and M5s continued in British service until the end of the war, but British units had a smaller proportion of these light tanks than US units. The other major Lend-Lease recipient of the M3, the Soviet Union, was even less happy with the tank, considering it undergunned, underarmored, likely to catch fire, and too sensitive to fuel quality. The narrow tracks were highly unsuited to operation in winter conditions, as they resulted in high ground pressures under which the tank sank into the snow. Further, the M3's radial aircraft engine required high-octane fuel, which complicated Soviet logistics as most of their tanks used diesel. However, the M3 was superior to early-war Soviet light tanks such as the T-60, which were often underpowered and possessed even lighter armament than the Stuart. In 1943, the Red Army tried out the M5 and decided that the upgraded design was not much better than the M3. Being less desperate than in 1941, the Soviets turned down an American offer to supply the M5. M3s continued in Red Army service at least until 1944.

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USSR

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ja:Blitz:M3 Stuart LL