Lee Tank Information

Late production Lee with cast hull, long barrel 75mm cannon, and heavy suspension, with Canal Defense Light turret.  You can see in the background there are spare gun turrets and more CDLs.

I put a bit of wooden dowel on the bottom of the CDL turret to make it fit better on the Lee.

The workspace as the Lees get built.

M3A5 Lee tanks for Makin Island.

M3 Lee for the US Army in North Africa, Germany, and eventually the USSR.

A few mis-cast parts that were replaced by Reviresco, without charge.  Great customer service.

The typical Lee M3 tank used by the US Army from the Reviresco package.

So my total Lee / Grant plan is:

3 Grant tanks for US Army with the British Army in North Africa.

17 Lee M3A5 diesel engine tanks for Makin Island battle.

2 Lee M3 Lee tanks for WWII German.

54 M3 Lee tanks for US Army North Africa.

36 Lee tanks of various makes for use in CONUS along with the 17 Makin Island tanks, to include two M3A3 diesel engined welded hull tanks that can be swapped out for two of the Makin Island tanks.

10 Lee M3 Lee tanks for the USSR Lend Lease.

122 total Lee / Grant tanks.  Nearly all are Reviresco, but a few are Heiser Models.
 

Lee Tank Parts and Sorting

The Germans captured several Lee tanks, from the US Army and Russia, mostly.  My plan is to field one as the Kummersdorf Army testing tank, captured by the Germans in North Africa from North Africa.  The other one I intend to use a a captured tank from Russia and I am going to paint it as a George Washington Legion tank.  It probably did not exist, or if it did exist is was a propaganda rather than actual combat unit.  I am building a small, platoon size unit with a couple tanks and a few other vehicles.  The troops will fight on the Russian front and are equipped with a variety of US and German weapons and equipment.

Grant tanks, the main difference is the turret, sand skirts, and the storage boxes from American Lee tanks.

I have been inspecting and sorting my Lee tanks and putting them into boxes once they are complete as North African Lee tanks.

Part of my plan is to build a battalion of Lee tanks for North African, US Army use.  I am still doing some of the research.

I got some small boxes to hold my Lee / CDL turrets in when they are not in use on the tanks.

Extra parts.  As I build the Lees I choose from two different 37mm guns, three different 75mm guns.
 three sets of side hatches or not side hatches, different storage boxes and other bits and bobs.

Lee Construction

These are the Lee tanks I am building in addition to the ones for Makin Island.

I made a chart showing all the versions that I could find in looking through my books and on line.  Lots of variation in guns and hulls, and other details.

I am making Canal Defense Lights for many of my Lee tanks.  So they will act as a regular tank in some games and later in the war they will swap out their gun turret for a light turret.

The US Army deployed a small unit of American troops with the British Army in North Africa early in the war so they US could get some experience with the Grant, they used Grant tanks.  These are two white primer painted Grants and a box of Canal Defense Lights.

In going through my 90+ Lee / Grant tanks I ended up with one defective track section, and including that one, for right side tracks without a left side partner!  I sent a message to Reviresco and they made it good right away at no charge!

Here is one of the boxes I am using to hold tank parts for a few tanks that will be built later.

 

Lee and a Pickup Truck

Reviresco M3 Lee medium tank.

Painted with Testors Olive Drab.

The Lee was a upgrade of the M2 Medium tank with an added 75mm gun.  There had been a proposed 75mm self-propelled gun in a sponson and the blue prints were used to help speed the design and building of this tank.  It was intended as a training tank to give US troops a chance to train with the 75mm gun after US observers saw the German Panzer IV using the short barrel Panzer IV in the battle of France.  They were not intended for use in combat but due to the desperate need for tanks by the Soviet Union and the UK they were eventually used in combat.

The US Army used them to good effect on Makin Atoll and also they served in North Africa until gradually being replaced by Shermans as the Lees were damaged.

I like to keep my eyes out of interesting vehicles, this little truck is from the dollar store, originally as a Christmas decoration hauling a tree.  Once the tree was removed it was repainted as an Army vehicle.  In the continental US administrative vehicles often had chrome on them.
 

Tank Crews

 

Loading ammo was a difficult and time consuming job.

But needed to be done.

This guy would fit into the turret hatch.

Might have to cut the base off or down a bit to get him inside.

Having a leisurely smoke break.

Leaning on the fender.

Lee / Grant Tanks

Reviersco makes a series of HO scale M3 series tanks.

They have the basic M3 tank.

But they also make the diesel engine and the gasoline engine.

The welded, cast, and riveted hulls.

And the short gun, gun with counterweight, and long gun.

Loads of options to make at least 24 different versions of the Lee / Grant series of tanks.
 

Lee Tank with Side Skirts

The US Army did use at least one M3 Lee tank with sand shields.

The British Army also used them in North Africa alongside their Grant tanks.

The Lee tank was in production and there was a short delay until the Grant version could be produced and shipped.

The US Army intended these tanks would only be used in training to get troops used to the 75mm gun.

The blueprints were based in part on a self-propelled experimental gun that was not adopted for service.  Using those blueprints sped up production of the Lee.

The US Army wanted this medium length 75mm gun to counter the short 75mm gun on the early Panzaer IV used in France in 1940.