re: Vader’s Model Desk: M3 Stuart Light Tank Top

You are comparing the M3 Stuart to Germany's heaviest tanks of 1941, so, of course, the Stuart would need to get within 500 meters to be a threat UNLESS it could get a flank shot, of which there were many in the mobile desert war.

Those "heavy" upgraded Pzkw III and Pzkw IV German tanks did not abound in the 1941 version of the Afrika Korps, so, the M3 Stuart was valuable in North Africa in 1941. The early Pzkw III and Pzkw IV models had fairly thin armor that was vulnerable to the Stuart's 37mm main gun.

I do not contend that it was the best tank in North Africa in 1941. I contend that it was not a "piece of shite."

The fact that the US Army fielded upgraded Stuarts until the end of WW2 supports the contention that it provided value on the battlefield, when it could avoid Germany's main battle tanks and heavy tanks.

1941 in North Africa is a fascinating campaign to study. Rommel was compelled to take his forces back to the campaign start line. The Allies managed to pushed him back.

I asked Grok how many Pzkw IIIs with the 50mm main gun Rommel had with him in 1941 and Grok says he had quite a few - more than I thought:

" Approximately 140–150 Panzer III tanks equipped with the short 50 mm KwK 38 L/42 gun (no long L/60 version arrived until 1942).
These were the only tanks in Rommel’s Afrika Korps (DAK) with a 50 mm main gun in 1941. No Panzer IIIs with the earlier 37 mm gun reached North Africa—all shipments used the upgraded 50 mm L/42 version (Ausf. G/H and similar). Panzer IIs had 20 mm guns, Panzer IVs had short 75 mm guns, and Italian tanks (M13/40 etc.) had 47 mm or less.
Breakdown by unit (upon arrival in North Africa):

5th Light Division (later 21st Panzer Division), Panzer Regiment 5 (arrived Feb–Mar 1941, full by early April):
~71–80 Panzer IIIs (sources vary slightly between 71 and ~80, mostly Ausf. G with 50 mm L/42; plus ~25 Panzer I, ~45 Panzer II, ~17–20 Panzer IV).
Example shipment (10–11 Mar 1941): 61 Panzer III, with ~10 more as April replacements for transit losses.
15th Panzer Division, Panzer Regiment 8 (arrived Apr–May 1941):
~71 Panzer IIIs (with 50 mm L/42; plus ~45 Panzer II, ~20 Panzer IV).

Total by mid-1941 (both divisions operational under Rommel): ~142–151 Panzer IIIs with 50 mm guns.
Additional small replacement batches arrived July–Aug (~25 more Panzer III) and late Dec (~34 more, some for lost companies), keeping the overall figure in the 140–160 range despite combat/mechanical losses."

Great stuff !