During WWII, the frst American fully tracked Self Propelled Howitzer was the M8. It used the chassis of the M5 and had an open topped turret which was armed with a 75mm Howitzer and 12.7cm M2 machine gun. From September 1942 to January 1944, approximately 1,800 units were produced with the firstM8 seeing action from mid 1943. They were seen used at the Italian and North West European fronts as well as the Pacific Theater for fire support duties. Even after WWII, the M8 could be seen in service with the French army during the Indochina Wars.
Mr. Yoshio Tamiya founded a saw mill/lumber factory in Shizuoka-City. Tamiya ventured into the modeling business in 1948, with a scale wooden ship model kit. Since then, Tamiya has been striving to offer merchandise that can truly be called "First in Quality Around the World."
Now Tamiya is offering more than 3000 different products, both in the fields of precision static models and high performance radio control vehicles. These products are not only sold in Japan but also exported in vast quantities to the United States, Europe, South East Asia, and to many other parts of the world. The standard of excellence achieved by Tamiya is regarded as among the very finest in the world of model hobbies.