I've been in T-34 *scaup's* only twice, once as a driver, once in the turret. Crowded. I'm 5'8", and about 4 inches too tall to work in the T55's driver's seat without cramping up after about 4 hours. The Israeli Tiran-5, an upgraded captured T-55 with Israeli-built 105mm L7 main gun, is just as bad.
Yep, I've got extensive time in the M4A1, both in Israel and in one of the three Shermans used as *Illinois National Guard* tanks in the Blues Brothers movie. If you watch the VHS tape [scene was cut on some DVD copies I've seen] you'll note the main gun jerks as the gun is elevated/depressed- one counterbalance weight was missing, and a replacement wasn't immediately available in time for the filming...and my suggestion of four railroad tie plates as a field expedient was rejected. The same tank showed up on the CBS Program “America Tonight” with Debra Norvell in 1996, squashing a Mercedes, but I wasn't driving that time.
