Didn't Sherman tanks (light) get mauled by larger German Tigers in WWII? What was learned from that, besides nothing?
The Sherman was a medium tank, actually, but where it lost to the Tiger was that the Tiger had an 88mm main gun. The same gun that could shoot down B-17s at 20,000 ft. proved to be an excellent field gun, and a terrifying main gun on a tank. The Tigers had a lot of problems with maintenance, required different tracks to be loaded onto rail cars from the ones used in the field, and other issues as well. The Shermans, however, were present in sufficient numbers to get around the Tigers and hit them in their rear or side armor, which was thinner than the frontal armor. (sometimes, quantity has a quality all its own, but that cost tank crews, and tanks which brewed up were often considered unrepairable. ). Others, remains were recovered, the tanks were cleaned out, the 'plug' that had been knocked out of the armor replaced with armor welded in, repainted and reissued. Had the Germans been able to field and fuel Tigers in the same numbers as the lighter tanks, that might have been a game changer.
I read a book years ago about an Army tank recovery unit that 'refurbished' knocked out tanks and returned them to battle, but cannot recall the title. It was an eye opener to realize that the tanks which had been knocked out and were returned to service were a key part of the armored efforts.
