BIG SHOCK on display engine

[rotorwrench]

Originally Posted by 19Fordy

Lawson, after all the work and frustration you have endured to build your display engine, spend the extra dough to get whatever plaque you desire as a tribute. The cost will soon be forgotten the very first time you see the entire display - just the way you planned - and it will endure for many, many years giving enjoyment to others. After our dad died my brother and I paid about $1000 to have a bronze plaque cast as part of a memorial to remember our dad. It was worth it. No regrets. Do what you feel is right. It's part of your contribution to your flathead legacy and footprint.

The 3rd Armored Division was a busy bunch in France and Belgium during WWII. Busting out of the hedge grows in Normandy was a big accomplishment where they welded cutters on the front of the tanks. They were then moving on through France where they moved to contain the Argentan-Falaise pocket of the German 7th Army. From there they went on to cross the Seine river and then on up into Belgium where they were involved into the capture of near 8000 German troops at Mons. They pushed to the Seigfried Line and lobbed the first artillery shells onto German soil. The battle of the Hurtgen Forest was next.

Most know of Pattons 3rd Army pushing up into the Battle of the Bulge but the 3rd Armored was pushing down that way just as hard. After the Bulge push and relief it was on to the Reine after crossing the Roer and the Erft rivers. The capture of Cologne saw the first use of the M26 Pershing heavy tanks. They then moved up to Paderborn to shut the door on the Ruhr Pocket. Moving across the Saale river near Halle and pushing on up to the Elbe they found the Dora-Mittlebau concentration camp near Nordhausen. Their last major fighting was at the battle of Dessau in late April 1945.

Being a tanker was one of the most dangerous jobs in the US Army during the war. The broken tanks could be fixed but a lot of lives were lost and there was no fixing that. I have had the privilege of knowing several tankers from WWII and I had a hard time getting them to talk about it. The job wasn't for the faint of heart. Their favorite Tanks were the M4A3E8 Sherman with the 76MM high velocity gun and the M26E Pershing with the 90MM gun. Both were powered by the big Ford GAA DOHC V8s.