Ho-Ri Prototype

From War Thunder Wiki
Jump to: navigation, search
Rank VI | Premium | Golden Eagles
Chinese A-5C Pack
This page is about the premium Japanese tank destroyer Ho-Ri Prototype. For the regular version, see Ho-Ri Production.
Ho-Ri Prototype
jp_type_5_ho_ri_prototype.png
GarageImage Ho-Ri Prototype.jpg
ArtImage Ho-Ri Prototype.png
Ho-Ri Prototype
Purchase:6 090 Specs-Card-Eagle.png
Show in game

Description

The Experimental Type 5 Gun Tank (Ho-Ri) (試製五式砲戦車 「ホリ」) was one of 3 tank designs for a new Japanese tank destroyer housing the new powerful Type 5 (105 mm) anti-tank gun to deal with the heaviest of Allied armour the US might throw at the Japanese mainland. This Ho-Ri was the final design out of the 3: unlike the 2 previous designs, it was not directly based on the Chi-Ri, but only a hull based on the Chi-Ri, featuring the same engine but with a sloped front hull design to increase armour effectiveness.

The Ho-Ri Prototype was introduced as a premium pack in Update 1.71 "New E.R.A." and was removed from sale after the 2019 New Year sale. It later returned for purchase in-game with Golden Eagles Ge icon.png during the 2020 May sale. While very similar to the Ferdinand, it does differ slightly, while the hull of the Ho-Ri provides the same armour effectiveness of around ~200 mm with a lower front plate being a weakness to lose driver, radio operator and transmission, the superstructure of the tank only maxes out at 150 mm effective, with the cheeks only protecting up to 125 mm being relatively easy to penetrate for its opponents. The best course of action is to hull down the tank and peek over ridges while using its -10° depression to increase its armour effectiveness and play it in a safe sniping position. The trade-off of superstructure armour gets rewarded in forward mobility going up to 40 km/h relatively quickly. A special feature of the Ho-Ri is its elevating roof armour, to reduce its vertical silhouette, the cannon breach can elevate up, pushing the roof with it, to allow for the -10° depression it offers, this will expose the crew members but won't be much of a threat as it's a very narrow-angle for planes to strafe through, and it doesn't cause the crew to be affected by explosive overpressure.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back
Hull75 / 55 / 35
Turret150 / 55 / 35
Crew6 people
Visibility130 %

Armour type:

  • Rolled homogeneous armour
  • Cast homogeneous armour
Armour Front (Slope angle) Sides Rear Roof
Hull 75 mm (70°) Front glacis
75 mm (8°), 50 mm (67°) Lower glacis
55-65 mm (16-17°) Top
55 mm Bottom
35 mm (5°) Top
35 mm (10-40°) Bottom
20 mm
Casemate 120-150 mm (5-20°) Turret front
250 mm Gun mantlet
50-200 mm (2-65°) Barrel shroud
55-65 mm (17°) 35 mm (5°) 20-50 mm

Notes:

  • Suspension wheels and bogies are 15 mm thick while the tracks are 20 mm thick.
  • Belly armour is 20 mm thick.
  • Two 5 mm structural steel plates separate the engine compartment from the crew compartments.
  • Small parts of the suspension on the hull sides give 10 mm thick protection at their area.

Mobility

Speedforward / back
AB44 / 9 km/h
RB and SB41 / 8 km/h
Number of gears6 forward
2 back
Weight51.0 t
Engine power
AB1 049 hp
RB and SB550 hp
Power-to-weight ratio
AB20.6 hp/t
RB and SB10.8 hp/t
Game Mode Max Speed (km/h) Weight (tons) Engine power (horsepower) Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
Forward Reverse Stock Upgraded Stock Upgraded
Arcade 44 9 51 781 1,049 15.31 20.57
Realistic 41 8 486 550 9.53 10.78

Modifications and economy

Repair cost
AB2 548 Sl icon.png
RB2 788 Sl icon.png
SB4 053 Sl icon.png
Crew training10 000 Sl icon.png
Experts340 000 Sl icon.png
Aces890 Ge icon.png
Research Aces1 140 000 Rp icon.png
Reward for battleAB / RB / SB
Talisman.png 2 × 130 / 200 / 250 % Sl icon.png
Talisman.png 2 × 178 / 178 / 178 % Rp icon.png
Modifications
Mobility Protection Firepower
Mods new tank traks.png
Tracks
Mods new tank suspension.png
Suspension
Mods new tank break.png
Brake System
Mods new tank filter.png
Filters
Mods new tank transmission.png
Transmission
Mods new tank engine.png
Engine
Mods tank tool kit.png
Improved Parts
Mods extinguisher.png
Improved FPE
Mods tank reinforcement jp.png
Crew Replenishment
Mods new tank horizontal aiming.png
Horizontal Drive
Mods tank cannon.png
Adjustment of Fire
Mods new tank vertical aiming.png
Elevation Mechanism

Armaments

Main armament

105 mm Experimental High Velocity cannon
Ammunition51 rounds
Reloadbasic crew → aces
11.1 → 8.6 s
Vertical guidance-10° / 20°
Horizontal guidance-10° / 10°
105 mm Experimental High Velocity Turret rotation speed (°/s) Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode Capacity Vertical Horizontal Stabilizer Stock Upgraded Full Expert Aced Stock Full Expert Aced
Arcade 51 -10°/+20° ±10° N/A 5.3 7.3 8.9 9.8 10.5 11.18 9.89 9.12 8.60
Realistic 3.6 4.2 5.1 5.6 6.0

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
10 m 100 m 500 m 1,000 m 1,500 m 2,000 m
Type 2 APHE APHE 205 201 181 159 140 123
Experimental HE HE 30 30 30 30 30 30
Shell details
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Velocity
(m/s)
Projectile
mass (kg)
Fuse delay
(m)
Fuse sensitivity
(mm)
Explosive mass
(TNT equivalent) (g)
Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
Type 2 APHE APHE 916 16 1.2 19 200 47° 60° 65°
Experimental HE HE 920 16 0 0.1 2,520 79° 80° 81°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the Ho-Ri Prototype
Full
ammo
1st
rack empty
2nd
rack empty
3rd
rack empty
4th
rack empty
5th
rack empty
Visual
discrepancy
51 46 (+5) 40 (+11) 30 (+21) 12 (+39) (+50) No

Notes:

  • Shells are modeled individually and disappear from the rack after having been shot or loaded.
  • To go into battle with the flanks empty of ammo, pack 40 (+11) shells or fewer.

Usage in battles

The Ho-Ri can be used in multiple roles. Its most effective at medium range, where it's harder for the enemy to aim for the lower plate and shells have a harder time penetrating the mantlet, making it easy for you to destroy them. Another option, although risky is to sit on a road that players like to go down and use your armour to bounce and take shot and return fire on enemy tanks.

Enemies worth noting:

  • IS-2 / IS-2 (1944) / ISU-122: These machines carry a huge 122 mm cannon that penetrates literally anything they see, including the Ho-Ri. Their shells will go through Ho-Ri's vertical armour of the fighting compartment pretty easily, killing the crew inside or detonating the ammo. To deal with the IS-2, try get a shot at them before the notice you / when they are reloading. These tanks tend to get one-shot due to their lack of crew or the cramped interior. For IS-2 mod.1943, aim for the hull armour that curves and blends into the side, or aim at the turret cheeks. For mod.1944, only go for the turret as the hull is very thick and well sloped. For the ISU-122, aim at anywhere but the gun mantlet, as it often absorb shells or cause ricochet.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Good sloping armour on the front
  • High velocity high penetrating gun with APHE filler
  • Rather good gun depression
  • Not slow considering its armour and weight
  • Spaced out crew
  • Central engine could absorb penetrating front shots

Cons:

  • Armour is not 100% reliable. Fighting compartment can get penetrated by the IS-2 easily
  • It is barely ever going to reach its top speed (40 km/h or 25 mph)
  • Side armour is quite bad
  • Depressing the gun all the way will open roof for the breech, possibly exposing crew to strafing fire.

History

In September 1942, the Japanese Army Staff received word of the new American M4 Sherman tank, which they realized had completely outclassed every Japanese tank in production at the time. There were three projects proposed by the Staff, each bearing their own gun selection; the 47 mm Kou, 57 mm Otsu, and 75 mm Hei designs. As combat data was filtered to the Japanese High Command, they ordered that the model Kou and Otsu merge to become the basis of what would eventually become the Type 4 Chi-To. Meanwhile, the Hei proposal would lead to the development of the Type 5 Chi-Ri.

Additional development projects came from a change in the Weapons Administration Headquarters Research Policy in July of 1943, a change that was made due to analyzing tank warfare between the German Army and the Soviet Union. Through the analysis of said data, the Japanese Army shifted their tank doctrine towards an emphasis on developing tanks that prioritized anti-armour missions instead of infantry support. Upon the enacting of this policy, the Army started a program to develop a series of tank destroyers based on the chassis of the medium tanks being designed.

The Type 5 Chi-Ri was chosen to become the basis for a new tank destroyer, as it was Japan's primary medium tank project and was more mature than other alternatives, while also mounting some of the most advanced technology Japan had produced at the time.

The tank destroyer would eventually be titled the Ho-Ri. Development of the vehicle began shortly after the Chi-Ri's, and after the decision was made to use the reliable coil spring suspension system that the Japanese manufacturers were familiar with, the Army began work on designing the superstructure and casemate with the first design mimicking the Chi-Ri chassis entirely and replacing the turret with a reinforced rear-mounted superstructure.

During the development of the new tank destroyer series, the Army chose to design a new anti-tank gun to fit the role. In July of 1943, the Army Military Customs Council began designing a 105 mm anti-tank gun based off of the Type 96 150 mm Strategic artillery cannon. It was shortened and given a single piece barrel and tank breech. Unfortunately, the two chief engineers of the cannon project the task that it meet a requirement of penetrating 200 mm at 1,000 m with a 1,000 m/s muzzle velocity. Naturally, the tank gun was not capable of this and instead was only able to penetrate 150 mm at 1,000 m with a 915 m/s muzzle velocity. Although it did not meet the requirements, it was still superior to any other Japanese tank gun and was accepted into service as the Type 5 10cm.

Originally, the Ho-Ri was to keep the hull-mounted Type 1 37 mm from the Chi-Ri due to the idea that the primary cannon could only do so much for itself and a secondary weapon was required. The development of the design was split into to concepts; one being a rear mounted superstructure with a central engine (Ho-Ri I) and the other being a centralized superstructure with a rear engine placement (Ho-Ri II). The engine selection was quite different from the traditional diesel engines that powered most Japanese tanks throughout their production. Instead, Japan had used a V12 gasoline aircraft engine designed by BMW, making 550 horsepower at 1,500 RPM. This engine was chosen due to the industrial capacity of Japan reaching its peak, and many assets from aircraft development were readily available for usage.

However, by the time both designs of the vehicle were proposed, the armour was no longer sufficient to thwart most US anti-tank armaments. Despite this, the design showed considerable promise and it was ordered that a third vehicle be designed with significantly improved armour. This new design was commonly labeled as Ho-Ri III.

The Ho-Ri III took the basis of the Ho-Ri I and revamped it, changing the frontal plate from a flat 75 mm thick plate to a 120 mm thick plate sloped at 70°, deleting the hull-mounted 37 mm gun in the process. Although this was seen as a considerable blow to the tank's self-defense capabilities, it was accepted due to its vastly improved survivability. The removal of the 37 mm gun meant that the extra crew member who previously operated the gun could be used as a second loader to assist with the autoloading mechanism and provide shells for the primary loader.

The construction of the prototype was completed in 1944 and achieved a top speed of 40 km/h during trials. Being seen as a success, the Army ordered 5 units of the vehicle and put it into service as the Type 5 Ho-Ri. However only one operable prototype was fully completed by the war's end and the series only made it to 50% completion, resulting in the design being scrapped and no further testing was pursued.[1]

Media

Skins
Videos

See also

External links

References

  1. Sun, Eun Ae. The Ho-Ri Tank Destroyer SENSHA. Blogger.com, 03 Sep. 2017. Web. 28 Aug. 2020. Website (Archived)


Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (三菱重工業株式会社)
Light Tanks 
Type 95  Ha-Go · Ha-Go Commander
Medium Tanks 
Type 89  I-Go Ko
Type 97  Chi-Ha · Chi-Ha Kai
Type 1  Chi-He · Chi-He (5th Regiment)
Type 3  Chi-Nu · Chi-Nu II
Type 4  Chi-To · Chi-To Late
Type 5  Chi-Ri II
SPGs 
Chi-Ha Derived  Ho-Ro
Chi-He Derived  Ho-I
Chi-Ri Derived  Ho-Ri Prototype · Ho-Ri Production
Other  Na-To · Ro-Go Exp.
Captured  ␗Chi-Ha · ␗Chi-Ha Kai
Note  Most tank designs would be contracted by the Army Technical Bureau to Mitsubishi
See also  Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. (Post-War)

Japan tank destroyers
Ro-Go Derivatives  Ro-Go Exp.
Chi-Ha Derivatives  Ho-Ni I · Ho-Ni III · Ho-Ro · Chi-Ha LG
Ho-Ri  Ho-Ri Prototype · Ho-Ri Production
Other  Na-To
JGSDF 
SPRG  Type 60 (C)
SPH  Type 75 · Type 99
ATGM  Type 60 ATM
Rocket  Type 75 MLRS
USA  ▅M36

Japan premium ground vehicles
Light tanks  Ha-Go Commander · Type 16 (FPS)
Medium tanks  Chi-Ha Short Gun · Chi-He (5th Regiment) · Ka-Chi · Chi-Nu II · Type 74 (G) · Type 90B "Fuji"
Heavy tanks  Ro-Go · ▅Heavy Tank No.6
Tank destroyers  Ho-Ri Prototype · Type 75 MLRS