Harq makes a great point about running scale tanks under scale conditions (i.e., not over rocks and stone larger than would be expected for that scale). Goes for all scale working models.

My Stuart did poorly in ice and snow but that was because I ran it in deep snow (over 6 inches -- not to scale!). It actually did well until the idlers and drive sprockets began to cake. This might have been avoided had I set the tank outside for an hour so as not to melt the snow and re-freeze as ice onto the tracks, road wheels, etc.

The M5 Stuart is fun and has lots of potential for upgrading.