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Grizzly

1943 WORLD WAR 2

The Grizzly Story

Like Australia, Canada found itself without a large tank force (or facilities to produce such systems) at the start of WWII hostilities. Like the Australians, the Canadians were forced to rely on armour systems brought to them by the British and Americans. Sherman production in the U.S. is in full swing, with Canadians opting to produce local variants of the M4A1 Sherman model in their own backyards. However, American manufacturing facilities proved to be quite extensive, and the American-made Sherman flew off the assembly line, ready for any available buyer.

Thus, Project Grizzly proved to be a short-lived endeavor, but it still provided Canadians with a homegrown product and experience of a new age of armor design and the production standards that came with it.

The Grizzly maintains Sherman's general appearance throughout, complete with a high profile and rounded edge of the armor. Unlike its M4A1 origins, the Grizzly has CPD tracks, thicker armor protection and an extra 20 miles of range. Grizzly retains the Continental R-975-C1 9-cylinder radial gasoline engine that makes 353 hp at 2,400 rpm.

Performance is similarly similar, with a top speed of 24 mph (achievable in bursts) and a maximum range of 120 miles. Armor up to 2.95 inches at its thickest point.

Primary armament is a high-speed 75mm M3 L/40 main gun mounted in a fully movable turret. Secondary weapons include the heavy 12.7mm Browning machine gun for short-flying aircraft, light armoured vehicles or enemy infantry. Koaxis addresses further anti-infantry defense issues.

30-06 machine gun mounted on the turret (next to the main gun) and a bow mounted .30-06 caliber system in the right forward fuselage (on a flexible mount).

Like Sherman before it, the Grizzlies have a standard operating staff of five. These include the tank commander, loader, gunner, nose gunner/passenger and driver. The driver and gunner are seated in the front left and right front positions of the forward fuselage, respectively.

The gunner, loader and tank commander each sat in the turret.

Originally planned to have about 1,200 Grizzlies in service in early 1944, this plan was eventually dashed when the American M4 Sherman model became a very usable commodity for consumption in Canada, England and Australia. The Canadian War Office eventually scrapped plans for a locally built Sherman in favor of an American-made one.

The Montreal Locomotive Works signed a production contract with the Grizzly Company, and production began in August 1943. By decision of the War Department, production switched to the prized 25-pound SP gun.

Although more Grizzlies were officially cancelled, the first 23 finished systems were delivered in October 1943. This was followed by another 165 production prototypes, bringing the total to 188.

The Grizzly I Cruiser tank program was officially completed in January 1944. Some 55 grizzlies were shipped to Portugal in the post-war years, and many have since become collectors' items. The Grizzly was also converted into a makeshift armored personnel carrier with the Grizzly APC logo. Portugal also received around 40 of these systems and used a handful in driver training exercises.

The fate of armored personnel carriers found that they were sold at the end of a useful journey.

Surprisingly, the Grizzly-class Sherman tanks represent the many types of Sherman tanks still in service today.