Description
Item Overview
TM 9-2300-216-ESC, dated August 1975, is a U.S. Army Equipment Serviceability Criteria manual for the 175mm M107 Self-Propelled Field Artillery Gun and the 8-inch M110 Self-Propelled Howitzer. This publication belongs to the technical manual series supporting two U.S. Army heavy artillery vehicles of the Cold War. Its manual number, date, and listed National Stock Numbers identify a specific inspection reference within the M107 and M110 publication family.
Publication Details
The manual is identified by the following publication information and equipment applications.
- Publication number: TM 9-2300-216-ESC
- Publication type: Equipment Serviceability Criteria
- Issue date: August 1975
- Issuing department: Department of the Army
- M107 application: 175mm self-propelled field artillery gun
- M107 National Stock Number: 2350-00-436-6635
- M110 application: 8-inch self-propelled heavy howitzer
- M110 National Stock Number: 2350-00-439-6243
Publication History
The Army's TM 9-2300-216 series was already in print in 1962, as the M107 and M110 vehicle family entered service. Publications in the series addressed operation, maintenance, repair parts, and other support needs. This August 1975 ESC issue dates from the period after the Vietnam War, when the Army continued to maintain its heavy artillery fleet. Its date places it within the vehicles' established service life, rather than their initial development. For collectors, the ESC suffix identifies the condition-evaluation branch of this broader technical publication series.
Function and Contents
The ESC designation stands for Equipment Serviceability Criteria. This type of manual sets standards for judging whether equipment is fit for service. Its focus is condition assessment, giving inspection and maintenance personnel a common basis for evaluating the listed artillery vehicles. Serviceability criteria help connect inspection findings with maintenance needs and equipment readiness. Within the Army's publication system, this manual worked alongside the M107 and M110 operator, organizational maintenance, and support maintenance manuals, each serving a different part of equipment care.
Documented Applications
This publication identifies the M107 gun and the original M110 howitzer under their respective National Stock Numbers. Both were full-tracked artillery vehicles, but their cannon assemblies gave them different fire-support roles. The M107 carried a long 175mm gun, while the M110 mounted a shorter 8-inch howitzer. Their shared vehicle design explains why one technical manual series supported both systems. The listed stock numbers refer to the complete artillery vehicles and help distinguish this manual's applications from later M110 variants.
M107 Field Artillery Gun Equipment History
The M107 was first accepted in 1962, bringing a new long-range gun into the Army's heavy artillery inventory. Manufacturers included Pacific Car and Foundry, FMC, and Bowen-McLaughlin-York. The vehicle combined a very long 175mm cannon with a low tracked carrier and an open working area for the gun crew. Its design emphasized heavy artillery fire and mobility between positions. The long barrel made the M107 easy to recognize among Army artillery vehicles. U.S. M107 carriers were later converted into M110A2 howitzers, extending the service life of their shared vehicle design.
M110 Heavy Howitzer Equipment History
The M110 entered U.S. Army service in 1963. It paired the common tracked carrier with an 8-inch, or 203.2mm, howitzer. The original model had a short barrel and an open crew platform, giving it a much different profile from the M107. Later development produced the longer-barrel M110A1 and M110A2, which carried the heavy howitzer family into another generation of service. M110A2s were still deployed during Operation Desert Storm in 1991. The original M110 named in this manual belongs to the earlier stage of that equipment history.
Shared Vehicle Equipment
The M107 and M110 used a common chassis with a diesel engine, a cross-drive transmission, and torsion-bar suspension. The driver sat near the front, while the cannon and its crew stations occupied the rear. A large hydraulic spade helped steady the vehicle during firing. The weapon installation also used recoil equipment and a powered loader and rammer to handle heavy projectiles. These vehicles combined automotive equipment with an artillery mount, so their upkeep involved both the tracked carrier and the weapon systems it supported.
Weapon-System Background
The two systems served different needs within heavy field artillery. The M107's 175mm gun could reach nearly 33 kilometers, about 20 miles, giving commanders fire support across a wide area. The original M110's 8-inch howitzer reached about 17 kilometers, roughly 10.5 miles, and was known for accurate fire with a heavy projectile. Their common carriage allowed the Army to use closely related equipment for these separate roles. Both supported forces beyond the range or capability of lighter artillery, with the choice of weapon guided by the mission.
History of Manual Use
Army maintenance publications list TM 9-2300-216-ESC among the references supporting the M107 and M110. TM 9-2300-216-34-1, issued in April 1977, cites it alongside operator and organizational maintenance publications. The Army's SB 740-95-100 storage serviceability bulletin also lists it in its inspection references for self-propelled howitzers. These records connect the ESC manual to the Army's maintenance and inspection system. Today, it is useful for studying period equipment standards and building a reference collection around these heavy artillery vehicles.
Ideal For
This Equipment Serviceability Criteria manual is suited to collectors and researchers interested in Army inspection publications and Cold War heavy artillery.
- U.S. Army technical manual collectors
- M107 and M110 artillery historians
- Military vehicle restoration reference libraries
- Museum archives and educational collections
- Researchers studying equipment inspection and maintenance history
Approx length 9.5", Approx width 7", Approx height .15", Approx weight .2lbs.
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