Read Part 1 of Cookie Sewell's kitbashed 75mm Howitzer Motor Carriage M8, from the January 2017 issue of
FineScale Modeler.
There are times when you come across a story you know is true but still can’t believe — such as a Stuart-based assault gun taking out a German Panther. But as implausible as it seems, that one is backed up by the U.S. National Archives and a Presidential Unit Citation.
About 20 years ago, my wife and I were at the National Archives in College Park, Md., researching the combat history of Staff Sgt. Lafayette Pool, 3rd Armored
Division, who was possibly America’s topscoring tanker in World War II. While perusing the files of the 32nd Armor Regiment (Pool’s unit), I came across the typed input of a recommendation for a Distinguished Unit Citation for the Reconnaissance Co., 32nd Armored Regiment, regarding actions taken near Mons, Belgium, on Sept. 3-4, 1944. Central to the recommendation was the destruction of a German Panther — by a 75mm Howitzer Motor Carriage M8!
It was more than enough to inspire a model.
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