• The Cleveland Tractor M2 7 ton High Speed Tractor.  I was a bit surprised to see the Cletrac in here, since I have always thought of it as an airfield service vehicle.  However, in amongst the 21 pages of photos there is a picture of one trying (in vain, it appears) to tow an M1918 155 mm. howitzer through sand.
• The Allis-Chalmers M4 18 ton High Speed Tractor.  The M4 HST is perhaps the most famous of these vehicles, being used during the war as the prime mover for the 90 mm. AAA gun and the 155 mm. Gun M1 and 8 inch Howitzer M1, the famous "Long Tom" guns.  25 pages of photos include some great shots of M4s attached to a 90 mm. AAA unit in Korea in 1950, with one of the vehicles towing the massive six-wheeled M23 ammunition trailer.
• The International Harvester M5 13 ton High Speed Tractor.  The M5 was used primarly to tow the 155 mm. Howitzer M1, although there is a fascinating photo of vehicles in Korea towing the SCR-584 counter-battery radar.  One of the more unusual features of the M5 was the location of the driver's doors, which were on the front of the vehicle.  The M5A1 version substantially altered the appearance of the vehicle, with a cab that looked much like that of the M4 HST.  This section comprises 26 pages, including a section on the M5A1 and two photos of the experimental M5A3 with a horizontal volute suspension system.    
• The Allis-Chalmers M6 38 ton High Speed Tractor. There are 24 pages devoted to this, one of the most impressive softskin vehicles ever built.  Designed to tow the huge 8 Inch Gun M1 and 240 mm. Howitzer M1, this vehicle saw service towards the end of the Second World War and into the postwar era.  I was particularly intrigued by the suspension of the M6, especially the exotic idler and the double-width drive sprocket.  One photo, showing an M6 being carried by an M26/M15 Dragon Wagon combination, illustrates vividly just how large this vehicle is.
• The Allis-Chalmers M8A1 and M8A2 High Speed Tractor.   The final chapter of this book, and the end of the line for fully tracked prime movers in the US Army, has 12 pages of photos showing the M8A1 and M8A2 HST.  Unlike the previous vehicles, this one used completely off the shelf suspension and automotive components, in this case from the M41 light tank.  Among the more interesting photos in this section are a series showing M8s on maneouvres in Alaska in 1962 and 1963.

Each of the sections includes some overall photos taken during Army testing and in action shots.  Most also include some marvelous factory photos which are rich with detail, as well as walkaround photos of preserved vehicles.  As always, the photo reproduction is superb, with most of the photos occupying the entire page.

There is no discussion of models of these subjects, perhaps because there has been a conspicuous lack of good kits of High Speed Tractors (or perhaps because it simply falls outside the mandate of the book).  In 1/35 scale, Nitto made models of the M4 and M8A1 that date from the 1960s, although they are still available in a variety of boxes these days.  By no stretch of the imagination could they be considered good kits, though.  There are a few resin kits (Hobby Fan M5, Masters Productions and PSP M4 HSTs), but they are quite expensive and not readily available.  In 1/48 scale, Monogram's B-24 Liberator kit comes with a Cletrac, and Lone Star Models is also rumoured to be doing an M2.  I also have fond memories of the old Aurora M8A1 (mine came in a set with the Long Tom), but this is neither readily available nor a terribly good model.  Finally, in 1/72 scale Hasegawa makes an M5 HST, and I believe there have been resin M4 HSTs produced.  As near as I can tell, nobody has ever done a kit of the impressive M6 HST.

I highly recommend this book for its excellent coverage of a neglected topic.  Perhaps the book's biggest failing is the fact that there are no good, readily available kits of its subjects; it is a great modeller's reference without the models.  I hope that the promised Hobby Boss 1/35 scale M4 HSTs are of high quality, and that this book might inspire manufacturers to produce more kits of these interesting and impressive subjects.  AFV Club would be a natural to do an M8A1, since the tracks and suspension are shared with the M41 Walker Bulldog family.  Alternately, at least the suspension could provide the basis for a scratchbuild?

My thanks to author David Doyle for the review sample.

June 28, 2006