Frankenstein's Sherman | M4A4 FL-10

The M4A4 FL-10 was one of the last major modifications of the US Medium Tank, M4 in the mid-1950s. This modification was carried out by France for Egypt, which needed a more powerful vehicle to counter the fierce Israeli armored forces, which, although inferior in numbers, were superior in firepower and training.
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Article: tanks-encyclopedia.com/m4a4-f...
Sources:
Arabs at War: Military Effectiveness, 1948-1991 - Kenneth Michael Pollack
Egyptian Sherman - Christopher Weeks
The AMX-13 light tank Volume 2: Turret - Peter Lou
Egyptian Army Sherman - Wolfpack Design Pub.
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An article by Arturo Giusti
Narrated by Elrebelde28
Edited by Feldmarchall

[@chost-059]

The french put the fl-10 turret ontop of everything they could

[@a_random_tank_152mmera7]

They put a FL-10 on a Chaffee and put a Chaffe turret on an AMX-13 lol.

[@bryansammis998]

The FL-10 turret did have merit in its concept. But,alas, it’s defensive armor was a sad joke.

[@HanSolo__]

@@bryansammis998 Joke that was un-uparmorable because of the oscillation constraints.

[@inwedavid6919]

And turret still so good that Austria still use it on the K tank.

[@falanglao01]

@@inwedavid6919 The Kürassier, or SK-105 as it's known abroad, has already been phased out but allegedly some remain in service in Brazil etc. The turred was called FL-12, using a French 105mm gun. The last version, A2 had Israeli made thermal imager and ballistics computer, and was in use since around 1999 or 2000 until withdrawal from use.

[@ML-fc3je]

This tank looks so retro futuristic it looks like something you'd see in fallout universe

[@tipi5586]

Futurism only existed in art for a few years. But France kept it going in tanks for about half a century afterwards.

[@NoirChat138]

@@tipi5586 trust me, if it was "futuristic" it wouldn't look like a tank at all 😆

[@chefchaudard3580]

How to turn a cheap, obsolete platform in a potent tank destroyer.

[@dovidell]

the Egyptians had the British Archer tank destroyer for that purpose

[@RedXlV]

The "T-100" T-34 conversion was an even better example of that. A hopelessly obsolete platform, but it made an the time still-relevant 100mm field gun mobile instead of towed.

[@MrHSwager]

@@RedXlV The T-34 will never be obsolete. One was used in the Ukrainian Civil War in 2015

[@pirig-gal]

@@MrHSwager That's not what obsolete means. Bolt action guns are obsolete, but they're still in use.

[@charlesc.9012]

@@MrHSwager Obsolescent is not obsolete. By that time its original purpose could no longer be fulfilled to a reasonable degree, which would be infantry support and AT capacity. Protection, ergonomics and mobility were not strong suits in the first place due to a 4-speed gearbox and only 45mm of frontal armour. In Korea, it was obsolescent. The Shermans at the time were already dangerous as an opponent, but the t-34 could still perform infantry support since the early bazookas could not penetrate it. It is now obsolete. Any child soldier with an RPG-7 can blow it up from afar.

[@nonamesplease6288]

Does it strike anyone else as odd that the French were selling tanks to both sides in the Middle East conflict?

[@davidtapp3950]

If you want to be an arms seller, the first thing you need to cover about is any sense of morality.

[@comentedonakeyboard]

Who doesn't?

[@genericpersonx333]

Why not? France didn't lose by either side losing. Israel was not committed to conquering its neighbors, so if it won, the status quo remained, meaning more sales to both sides. If the anti-Israeli Coalition won, well the French still got the oil and more contracts for weapons because those allies would soon turn on each other because they all hated each other almost as much as they all hated Israel. France, in other words, was a neutral supplier with desirable product. USA also sold weapons to both sides for the same reason.

[@Stoner075C]

Doin' the "Nobel".

[@RedXlV]

France wasn't allied to either side. And selling to both sides means double the money.

[@alessiodecarolis]

This is the first time I' see this strange variant. Weren't afraid of friendly fire dangers? Therefore this was an attestation of Shermans' hulls adaptability, contrary to british ones. The principal drawback of the turrets' design was the few rounds in the rear, it's a little difficult to recharge your loading system during a firefight!

[@maxkronader5225]

Another great article. I had not known this modification of the Sherman existed.

[@reserva120]

Great inflection.. well done.

[@Condottiere1978]

Really good research! Also present in a couple of Italian War flicks shot on location in Egypt, "The long night of the deserters", "Kill Rommel", War Devils to name a few.

[@coryclemett5569]

Hi, I'm Early, I'd like to say I'm really enjoying Tank encyclopedia and its nice to see it starting to take off. Great content as always.

[@cosmoray9750]

What's ahead will be much worse. kzbin.info/www/bejne/q6LTgnWFrMuLpas

[@Muhammad_Rishad_Baldemar]

10:31 the tradition of photobombing a friend still continues from the old times till today

[@christopherkroussoratsky2014]

It would be interesting to do an article on the Yugoslavian Shermans re-armed with the Soviet 122mm gun and the Argentinian Shermans with the 60mm gun.

[@addis8228]

If you talk about the sherman so122 there's an article on thei website. Don't know about the Argentinian version

[@Muhammad_Rishad_Baldemar]

wait.... i thought it was the Chilean M4 with the 60mm HVG, or did both used em ?

[@deletethis7848]

@@Muhammad_Rishad_Baldemar only Chile used the 60mm HVMS gun. Argentina's "Sherman Repotenciado" used the AMX-13 105mm gun

[@MrHSwager]

Is that a PZ IV at the 14:07 mark?!!! I love that those tanks were still going into the 1960s too!

[@KrypticWarrior2]

No thats an AMX-13

[@michaelpalmer8098]

The narrator is excellent

[@joebronxer1204]

Nice summatuon

[@dovidell]

when I first saw this tank on display at Yad La Shiryon in Israel , I thought it was some kind of art installation !!

[@joelmartin2549]

No that would be the M4 that was on top of the water tower legs!

[@dovidell]

@@joelmartin2549 maybe they should BOTH be in the Israel museum then ?!!!

[@garrettknox5266]

Thanks! I knew "of" the tank but knew nothing of its service until now.

[@sergeantschlumpf6368]

That turret couldn’t even resist 20mm rounds? Wooow!

[@Xander_Zimmermann]

14:00 That Sherman has poor track tension, the Chieftain would be very displeased.

[@aymonfoxc1442]

It's great to see the awesome resource that is the Tank Encyclopaedia making its transition to the KZbin format. My only constructive comment (based on this video) is that y'all need to improve your audio quality and volume. Besides that, you're well informed and detailed it shows in the quality and breadth of the info presented. 👌

[@MatsKratz]

Great video, just be careful about the volume when recording, it's too low :/

[@pavelalexe9254]

You have volume bar :))

[@op0143]

Cool

[@comentedonakeyboard]

It's Aaaliiiive!!!!

[@mr.imperial8721]

This guy has a good story telling voice In the wise words of Ted from (TED2) I want to sleep on a pillow made from your voice

[@davidthomas2870]

I wonder if the FL-10 could be uparmored by having flat or semi circular plates sticking straight up in front of it attached to the rotating collar, with a slot for guns and sight to see through? Would probably look pretty goofy but would that theoretically work, especially if you slapped some ERA plates over it?

[@RedXlV]

There have been at least concepts for armoring an oscillating turret in exactly that manner. I'm not sure if it was ever actually done, though.

[@basketcase1235]

@@RedXlV in one of the YOH tanks i believe. but just a concept though.

[@Paciat]

Easily. Tho the tank still would be an incredibly fat and slow AMX13. Also in the cold war era you dont need armor as thick as an M4 has cause less 37-57mm guns are used. You want 20-40mm or 100-200mm.

[@gunner678]

'Mod-die' is the closest pronconciation.

[@patriotenfield3276]

Please Large Size Drawings.🙏

[@sergeantschlumpf6368]

4:02 The Sherman’s were crammed into a warehouse! 🤣! 4:16 !!!

[@dexexmachinatu4151]

WHy is the audio getting lower and lower as the video progressed?

[@jonathanhansen7734]

Woooo

[@robinbrowne5419]

It looks like Rommel gave it a paint job :-)

[@leonst.7471]

gotta sell those hulls somehow

[@SCP--op2eq]

War Thunder in a nutshell french sherman tanks are cringe as hell

[@janwitts2688]

If they had just dug a deeper hole the height would not be an issue... If they had committed the resources necessary to field them properly and actually exercis ed a bit they would have been quite effective.... The turret armour issue could be solved with a simple bolt on armour kit which would provide good enough protection vs infantry cannon... I cannot remember whether India did this... I remember a wargame long ago when I played the Indian side and had my shermans upgraded similur to this... but don't know if they did in real life....

[@HanSolo__]

You can't uparmor this turret easily. The balance of the oscillating turret was easy to disturb, and the overlapping of the armor planes made it very hard/impossible.

[@paulfrantizek102]

One advantage of the oscillating turret was an impressive degree of depression. With proper training in the desert environment it could have hidden behind sand dunes, darting forward to shoot and taking advantage of the high rate of fire.

[@arushreddi5419]

@@HanSolo__ it's a small bolt on kit not some complex heavy armor kit

[@joelmartin2549]

Oh the irony of that statement, as this photo is obviously at the Israeli tank museum at Latrun.

[@MrT67]

Was that a Semple tank in the first frame? My hopes were raised......

[@JohnSmith-yv6eq]

Yes, that was a Semple tank.....

[@HanSolo__]

How on earth could one obtain a budget upgraded tank and not even keep it in good shape or do the training/excersises for the crews? For this short distance and time you could even fail with such crucial thing as supply to the field. But the working condition and the crew skills? God damn thats stupid!

[@alessiodecarolis]

This was (is) typical of these third world armies, you could equip them with the best gear, and the results don't change, they simply lack the mentality/efficiency of their western counterparts

[@arushreddi5419]

@@alessiodecarolis 3rd world means non aligned countries not a measure of development.

[@andypaine7489]

@@alessiodecarolis Great point. I'll put my money on well trained crews over superior equipment everyday of the week.

[@alessiodecarolis]

@@arushreddi5419 at the start of the'60s this was their original definition, but at the end they sided for a the west (some, as Indonesia) or the USRR (mostly), so, expecially in Europe, the definition became synonimus of underdevelopment

[@omarrp14]

Video is too quiet. I normally don't have an issue hearing videos over the sound of doing dishes.

[@davidthomas2870]

I wonder if the Sherman could mount the upgunned versions of the FL-10?

[@skriv0in0navn]

you could most likley fit the later 90 or 105mm turrets on these, but the sherman was long out of service by the point when those upgrades was made

[@davidthomas2870]

@@skriv0in0navn I mean arent there still a few in service in Chile or something with 60mm autocannons and new engines? Or did those finally get retired? Against modern tanks the original or modified turret isnt any more protection than the FL-10 although it is better vs small arms

[@skriv0in0navn]

@@davidthomas2870 the 60mm armed shermans was retired in 09. but yes in a modern setting with darts and missiles 40mm vs 80mm thick armour dont change much

[@davidthomas2870]

@@skriv0in0navn ah thanks for the info. I wonder how they stacked up as longest running tank design still in use? Would have to imagine the only competitors would be some Frankenstein t-34 based spg somewhere

[@skriv0in0navn]

@@davidthomas2870 i do belive the next longest serving tank would be the M24 in venezuela which got retired in like 2018 and is still used for ceramonies to this day. so it would not really be a fair fight :P

[@prestonopp]

8:15 it was inspired by, although not derived from the German 75mm. Common misconception

[@Ugly_German_Truths]

that turret looked already decidedly french beore you even could mention them...

[@PalmettoNDN]

Johnny5 is Alive!

[@germen343]

Israel "liberated" the strip. Interesting way to phrase it.

[@adamrodaway1074]

Not interesting, an out and out lie. It was an attack that resulted in the massacre by Israeli troops of a significant number of civilians. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rafah_massacre Plus ça change…

[@billwilson-es5yn]

Was more like being stuck with something they were happy to give away in 1948.

[@lambastepirate]

Wow that's a huge gun on the T-34 hull at the 4:49 mark 120 mm?

[@pavelalexe9254]

122 mm D-30 field howitzer

[@HanSolo__]

If Fv4005 and T-34 had an ugly baby.

[@RedXlV]

Egypt did that with a lot of their old T-34s. Some of them had the 122mm D-30 howitzer as seen in that picture, while others carried the 100mm BS-3 anti-tank/field gun.

[@jessefarley4609]

Funny wot blitz has this tank but it's under the hybrid nation flag

[@solace9245]

the t55 is also there

[@stuthhamster]

It's also in war thunder

[@RedXlV]

WoT PC just has it as a French premium.

[@jessefarley4609]

@@RedXlV wish blitz wouldn't. Be lazy and actually give it to a country same as the idien panzer which was designed for India till the British offered a better deal

[@basketcase1235]

@@jessefarley4609 well they couldn't just add another country just for one tank.

[@idiedlongago2336]

💪😚 moar!!!!

[@michaeltopping3816]

Is that Dwight Schultz?

[@clivemattocks4899]

What did the French need it for?

[@mikeholland1031]

It has a good reverse gear

[@StarlightEater]

Is this in wot yet?

[@glm4914]

Yes in wot blitz

[@davey7452]

If it had been available in 1944 it could have taken on the panther and tiger tanks.

[@billwilson-es5yn]

There was, as the M36 turret set on M4 hulls.

[@reform-revolution]

why is the Sherman speaking French and demanding our banquettes?

[@Stoner075C]

But it looks so ugly... I mean, dear old Emcha was never no beauty queen, but this is overkill.

[@vonn4017]

sigh its not the caliber but the muzzle velocity that creates the pentation. the longer the barrel the greater the muzzle velocity and accuracy

[@duanesarjec6887]

the gun of the M4 was weak the new french turret carry a better gun than the english 17 PDR

[@tensionytdaily7436]

USA: good at make MBT and Aircraft USSR: Good at Mass producing Military Equipment UK: the pioneer of tank and Make a Good MBT Israeli and Egyptian: Well We Were good Of modification of Military equipment and make them Better.

[@mahmoodali5043]

very disappointed in the wording of the report. repeatedly calling izzy occupation of Egyptian lands "liberation" as if Egypt is an occupied Israeli land by Egyptians ? Also, if Egypt lost the 1956 war, it wouldn't have kept its lands. Read the book Key to the Sinai by George Walter Gawrych to avoid making the war look like a fast blitzkrieg when in reality the israeli forces were stopped in their tracks and did not achieve their objectives, which led to the british and french forces intervening opening a second front and losing the element of conspiracy of masking their intervention as peacekeeping, which led to the sailure of the tripartite invasion. very disappointed in the writing by a group i once was very proud to be part of, taking an ideological side, describing the occupations of their chosen side as "liberation" and the liberation by the other side as occupations.. along with twisting the historical narrative to a very narrow ideological point of view. you should know better. you normally know better.

[@Malefleur]

Sound to low

[@MrSvenovitch]

Wow 'Dan'. Feeling a bit snooty are we? For one thing your French really is too atrocious to warrant speaking in this tone, buddy.

[@NemoBlank]

The Arab armies seem to be universally terrible. It's not the religion, because the Turks are good, so what makes these ostensibly experienced and well equipped formations that have officer corps with decades of training such a bunch of useless scavengers? Perhaps its corruption? Do the officers rob the training budget, the cooks sell the ration and the men steal the gasoline? Maybe its tribalism, where everyone from the general down is untouchable in the tribal alliances and cannot be punished for their incompetence or peculation. I have never heard of an Arab army actually winning in a straight up fight against a competent foe.

[@billwilson-es5yn]

The Jordanian Army always has been highly skilled and competent due to having a smaller and better educated population. The rest filled their ranks with poor less educated men that were only interested in receiving 3 hots and a cot along with a small monthly income.

[@NemoBlank]

@@billwilson-es5yn Every soldier that ever joined in peacetime joined for the three hots and a cot. Even in a half decent western army they teach the boots everything, so I'm not buying poverty or ignorance. Maybe the Arab dictator fears the popular general, so only slobs get promoted. Armies rot from the head down.

[@dannyzero692]

@@NemoBlankyou hit it pretty much on the head, the Arab regimes (or any authoritarian government for that matters) very much fear the army as they were the ones with the guns so they tend to promote individuals based on loyalty to the regime in charge, whether they were competent or not doesn’t matter as long as they can keep the regime alive.

[@markaxworthy2508]

How can Israeli forces "liberate" anywhere in Egypt? There is other questionable pro-Israeli content in this piece as well. Stick to tanks and stay out of the politics.

[@samy7013]

Good catch!

[@neddyladdy]

Spitting out a mouthful of letters and numbers is meaningless unless the audience already knows. In which case it is still pointless as they already know