Id. japanese heavy artillery

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Sturm78
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Id. japanese heavy artillery

#1

Post by Sturm78 » 07 Aug 2009, 13:20

Hi all,

I found these photos on http://www.ww2incolor.com, showing japanese heavy guns captured by soviet troops in 1939 (the last two images). Can anyone help me to identify them? I have thought in the 15cm Type 96 but I'm not quite sure. :?


There is not many good pictures and information about the WW2 Japanese artillery on the Web. The best webpage on the topic is http://www.ww2technik.de, but it is a pity that the webmaster (Tom) deleted the photos. Can anyone recommend to me any good book (in English) about the Japanese artillery of World War II?

Thanks in advance. Sturm78
Attachments
japanese soldier guarding a mountain gun (winter 1939).jpg
japanese soldier guarding a mountain gun (winter 1939).jpg (20.09 KiB) Viewed 10621 times
gun in transport position, captured by tankmen of 11th armoured brigade at Halkin-Gol (Nomonhan).jpg
gun in transport position, captured by tankmen of 11th armoured brigade at Halkin-Gol (Nomonhan).jpg (19.36 KiB) Viewed 10621 times
Artillery from 1st heavy field art. reg. captured by Russian.jpg
Artillery from 1st heavy field art. reg. captured by Russian.jpg (18.76 KiB) Viewed 10621 times

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tom!
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#2

Post by tom! » 07 Aug 2009, 14:21

Hi.

I had to remove the pictures from my website due to (still) unsolved copyright problems.

The upper gun is a type 94 75 mm pack howitzer and the other pictures show type 89 150 mm guns. The type 96 150 mm howitzer had a different recoil mechanism housing:
jap typ 94 75 mm berggeschuetz colour.jpg
jap typ 94 75 mm berggeschuetz colour.jpg (63.51 KiB) Viewed 10661 times
Type 94 75 mm pack howitzer


jap typ 96 150 mm haubitze fabrik.jpg
jap typ 96 150 mm haubitze fabrik.jpg (119.55 KiB) Viewed 10661 times
Type 96 150 mm howitzer


There was a nice picture series of IJA artillery guns in several 2008 "Ground Power" issues.

Yours

tom! :wink:


Sturm78
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#3

Post by Sturm78 » 07 Aug 2009, 19:56

Thank you very much for your information, Tom. :D

Was the 150mm Type 89 transported on a single load or on two separate loads? I think my second picture could show a barrel trailer or am I wrong? Have you any other picture of this gun?

Regards Sturm78

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tom!
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#4

Post by tom! » 07 Aug 2009, 23:30

Hi.

The type 89 15 cm gun was nearly 10,5 t heavy and so it had to be transported in 2 loads, lafette and barrel.

Yes, the middle picture shows the barrel trailer. The lower picture shows the whole gun with the supporting wheels of the lafette trailer. On short ranges and during emergency retreats the gun could be towed this way by two type 92 8t prime movers.

Various detail pictures from the Yasukuni Shrine Museum´s type 89 gun:
http://sus3041.web.infoseek.co.jp/conte ... cm_gun.htm

Yours

tom! :wink:

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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#5

Post by Sturm78 » 08 Aug 2009, 12:31

Thank you very much Tom. :D

Sturm78.

Al Kelly
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#6

Post by Al Kelly » 10 Oct 2009, 00:04

I have a few questions about the Type89 15cm gun:
Hi folks,

What would the crew have been for a gun of this size? As many as eight?

How would the ammunition have been packed, given that each shell weighed about 38kg?

Would the shells have been packed individually in wooden boxes, for example? Would the casings have been packed two or even four to a crate? I estimate they'd weigh only about 10kg each with charges.

I have one photograph of this gun in action with a pile of wooden boxes visible. The boxes don't look much bigger than for one shell.

Any and all info will be much appreciated.

Regards,

Al

Carl Schwamberger
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#7

Post by Carl Schwamberger » 10 Oct 2009, 22:19

Not the expert on Japanese artillery, but I can give some clues from the perspective of US artillery.
Al Kelly wrote:I have a few questions about the Type89 15cm gun:
Hi folks,

What would the crew have been for a gun of this size? As many as eight?
At a minimum. For our eight ton howitzers the crew was nominally eleven.
Al Kelly wrote:How would the ammunition have been packed, given that each shell weighed about 38kg?

Would the shells have been packed individually in wooden boxes, for example? Would the casings have been packed two or even four to a crate? I estimate they'd weigh only about 10kg each with charges.
Depends of if a metal cartidge case was used for the propellant charge bags -the Semi Fixed type of ammunition, or if the charges were only bagged - the 'Seperate Loading' type. With the semi fixed type the projectile came set in the end of the metal case and both together were packed in a wooden crate. Seperate loading ammo had the projectiles loose, or with dozen strapped to a skid. One or several stacked skids could be moved off a ship, train wagon, or auto truck with a crane or forklift vehical. The bagged charges were packed in waterproof cardboard tubes, or thin aluminum tubes. The tubes also were packed on wooden skids for moving with a crane or forklift vehical. The ready ammo was removed from the skids and distributed amoung the battery ammo trucks and their trailers (cassions). The projectiles came with a Lifting Plug' pr 2-3 cm ring screwed into the fuze hole. A stevedores or longshoremans hook could be used to grab this ring and lift the projectile out of the pile.

Fuzes came in sets of six to eight in water tight steel boxes.
Al Kelly wrote:I have one photograph of this gun in action with a pile of wooden boxes visible. The boxes don't look much bigger than for one shell.
Can you post the photo, and do any of your photos show any of the Japanese fire control equipment for the artillery?

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tom!
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#8

Post by tom! » 11 Oct 2009, 00:55

Hi.

There were several artillery pictures in several Groound Power issues of late 2008/early 2009 showing a gun crew of 15 men for the 150 mm Type Taisho 4 and Type 96 howitzers and the Type 92 105 mm cannon. So I assume that the gun crew of the Type 89 gun also consisted of around 15 men.

Due o the lack of steel most ammunition boxes were wooden.

Yours

tom! :wink:

Al Kelly
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#9

Post by Al Kelly » 12 Oct 2009, 00:13

http://s153.photobucket.com/albums/s230 ... cmgun3.jpg

I hope this image is ok to put up here. It is from the "Handbook on Japanese Military Forces"originally published by the U.S. War Department and reprinted in 1991. (Sorry, it is only a link - I can't work out the correct syntax to post the photo.)

Wow. A crew of 15. So what would their roles have been? I'm afraid I know precious little about artillery (I'm more of a tread-head).

Thanks for the replies.

Regards,

Al

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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#10

Post by Sturm78 » 28 Oct 2009, 16:38

Hi all,

Can anybody Id. this japanese field gun. I think 75mm Type 38 or perhaps 75mm Type 41. 75mm Type 95 is another option. :?

Image from AXH Forum (Japan at War section)
Regards Sturm78
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75mm japanese field gun firing.jpg
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Al Kelly
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#11

Post by Al Kelly » 28 Oct 2009, 22:30

Hi Sturm78,

My money's on it being a Type 38. Curved shield, not split-trail, and the caisson looks right for the Type 38 as well.

The Type 41 didn't have a curved shield and the Type 95 had a split trail.

But I'm no artillery expert...

Regards,

Al

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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#12

Post by tom! » 29 Oct 2009, 01:03

hI:

This is a Type Meiji 38 or Type Meiji 38 KAI 75 mm field gun. But it is impossible to say which because the differences are covered by the crew or the ammuntion trailer on this picture. The gun in the rear right is a Type Meiji 38 75 mm field gun following the shape of the inlet valve cover on the recoil cylinder.

The type Meiji 41 75 mm field gun had a srew breech not the sliding wedge breech visible.

The type 95 75 mm field guns gun shield wasn´t curved to such an extend.

Yours

tom! :wink:

Sturm78
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#13

Post by Sturm78 » 29 Oct 2009, 12:30

Thank you very much for your help, Al and Tom. :D

Regards Sturm78

Sturm78
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#14

Post by Sturm78 » 02 Nov 2009, 11:14

Hi all,

I found this image on Ebay and I am not sure about model of this weapon. I think perhaps 12cm L45 Type 10 gun or 12.7cm L40 Type 89. Have anybody any ideas?

According to photocaption this gun was captured in Philippines.

Regards Sturm78
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japanese coastal gun captured in Philippines.jpg
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Re: Id. japanese heavy artillery

#15

Post by tom! » 02 Nov 2009, 19:39

Hi.

There are three guns with a similar recoil mechanism:
- Type Taisho 10 120 mm
- Type 89 127 mm
- Type Taisho 3 140 mm

It´s hard to identify them from this angle.

Yours

tom! :wink:

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