 The carriage M1 and M2 were shared with the 8 inch Howitzer M1, differing only in the gun tube, sleigh, cradle, recoil and equilibrators, weight due to the heavier barrel.The Long Tom saw combat for the first time in the North African Campaign on December 24, 1942, with "A" Battery of the 36th Field Artillery Battalion.Eventually it equipped about 49 battalions, including 40 in the European Theater and 7 in the Pacific.