Difference between revisions of "Chi-Ha Short Gun"

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{{Specs-Card|code=jp_type_97_chi_ha_12cm}}
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{{About
 +
| about = premium Japanese medium tank '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
 +
| usage = other versions
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| link = Chi-Ha (Family)
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}}
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{{Specs-Card
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|code=jp_type_97_chi_ha_12cm
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|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|ArtImage_{{PAGENAME}}.png}}
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}}
  
 
== Description ==
 
== Description ==
''In the description, the first part needs to be about the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle, as well as its key features. In the second part, tell the reader about the ground vehicle in the game. Insert the screenshot of the vehicle. If the novice player does not remember the vehicle by name, they will immediately understand what kind of vehicle it is talking about.''
+
<!-- ''In the description, the first part should be about the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle, as well as its key features. In the second part, tell the reader about the ground vehicle in the game. Insert a screenshot of the vehicle, so that if the novice player does not remember the vehicle by name, he will immediately understand what kind of vehicle the article is talking about.'' -->
 +
The '''{{Specs|name}} / Short 12cm SPG''' ({{Annotation|短十二糎自走砲|Tan-Jūni Senchimētoru Ji Hashi-Hō}}) is a later iteration of the [[Chi-Ha]] with a modified turret coming from the [[Chi-Ha Kai]], boasting a [[Navy short gun (120 mm)]] meant to defend naval bases and merchant ships in a multipurpose role. The Navy's modification of the Chi-Ha was meant to mimic the role of the Army's [[Ho-I]] tank to support infantry as a gun tank during the defense of the homeland.
 +
 
 +
The {{PAGENAME}} was introduced along with the initial Japanese Ground Forces tree in [[Update 1.65 "Way of the Samurai"]] as a pre-order [[wt:en/news/4379-japanese-pre-order-packs-en|premium pack]]. It packs a relatively powerful 120 mm cannon that can destroy most enemies with one shot. However, it has a considerable reload time of 10s aced, poor turret traverse, and low shell velocity that make it hard to aim and fight with. It will be able to destroy the lightest targets with near misses, and will need some aim on more armoured targets trying to splash the explosive mass into the bottom or top armour of tanks.
  
 
== General info ==
 
== General info ==
 
=== Survivability and armour ===
 
=== Survivability and armour ===
''Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpfull for survival in combat?''
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{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}
 +
<!-- Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpful for survival in combat? If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour. -->
  
''If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.''
+
'''Armour type:'''
 +
* Rolled homogeneous armour (hull, turret, cupola)
 +
 
 +
[[File:{{PAGENAME}}_(2).png|thumb|right|300px|{{PAGENAME}} scanning the seaside]]
 +
 
 +
{| class="wikitable"
 +
|-
 +
! Armour !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
 +
|-
 +
| Hull || 25 mm (11-31°) ''Front plate'' <br> 15-17 mm (62-80°) ''Front glacis'' <br> 15 mm (37-59°) ''Lower glacis'' || 25 mm (25 / 40°) ''Top'' <br> 25 mm ''Bottom'' || 15 mm (69°) ''Top'' <br> 20 mm (5-57°) || 12 mm
 +
|-
 +
| Turret|| 25 mm (9-10°) ''Turret front'' <br> 32-35 mm ''Gun mantlet'' || 25 mm (9-10°) || 25 mm || 10 mm
 +
|-
 +
| Cupola || colspan="3" style="text-align:center" | 25 mm (cylindrical) || 10 mm
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
'''Notes:'''
 +
 
 +
*Suspension wheels and tracks are 15 mm thick.
  
 
=== Mobility ===
 
=== Mobility ===
''Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and maneuverability as well as the maximum speed forward and backward.''
+
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}
 +
<!-- ''Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and manoeuvrability, as well as the maximum speed forwards and backwards.'' -->
 +
 
 +
{{tankMobility|abMinHp= 263|rbMinHp= 150}}
 +
 
 +
The Type 97 [[Chi-Ha]] is an upgraded version of the earlier Type 89 [[I-Go Ko]]. The engine has been upgraded, from the Mitsubishi A6120VD air-cooled straight-six diesel with 120 hp to a Mitsubishi SA12200VD air-cooled V12 diesel with 170 hp. As such, the top speed has increased from 27 km/h on the [[I-Go Ko]] to 40 km/h on the [[Chi-Ha]].
 +
 
 +
=== Modifications and economy ===
 +
{{Specs-Economy}}
  
 
== Armaments ==
 
== Armaments ==
 +
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
 
=== Main armament ===
 
=== Main armament ===
''Give the reader information about the characteristics of the main gun. Assess its effectiveness in a battle based on the reloading speed, ballistics and the power of shells. Do not forget about the flexibilty of the fire, that is how quickly the cannon can be aimed at the target, open fire on it and aim at another enemy. Add a link to the main article on the gun: <code><nowiki>{{main|Name of the weapon}}</nowiki></code>. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.''
+
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}
 +
<!-- ''Give the reader information about the characteristics of the main gun. Assess its effectiveness in a battle based on the reloading speed, ballistics and the power of shells. Do not forget about the flexibility of the fire, that is how quickly the cannon can be aimed at the target, open fire on it and aim at another enemy. Add a link to the main article on the gun: <code><nowiki>{{main|Name of the weapon}}</nowiki></code>. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.'' -->
 +
[[File:{{PAGENAME}}_(4).png|thumb|{{PAGENAME}} firing]]
 +
{{main|Navy short gun (120 mm)}}
 +
 
 +
The 120 mm Navy short gun is built to deal with submarines and close range naval combat, and that does translate over in-game as a gun that have a very low muzzle velocity, which on the bright side can be used to shoot at vehicles over cover.
  
=== Additional armament ===
+
The gun can only fire an HE round by default. However, the shell contains 2.64 kg of TNT equivalent, which is enough to cause a lethal overpressure damage against almost any enemy the tank has to face at its BR.
''Some tanks are armed with several guns in one or more turrets. Evaluate the additional weaponry and give advice on its use. Describe the ammunition available for additional weaponry. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage. If there is no additional weaponry remove this subsection.''
+
 
 +
While the shell is certainly powerful, it is not as powerful as the [[Ho-Ro]]'s 150 mm howitzer rounds. This means careful aim is still needed when facing a more well-armoured opponents. Against these targets, aim at any deflective angles that can cause the explosion effect to deflect on the weak hull roof.
 +
 
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
 +
|-
 +
! colspan="5" | [[Navy short gun (120 mm)|120 mm Navy short gun]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
 +
|-
 +
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
 +
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
 +
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
 +
|-
 +
! ''Arcade''
 +
| rowspan="2" | 23 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+15° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | - || 5.7 || 7.9 || 9.6 || 10.6 || 11.3 || rowspan="2" | 13.00 || rowspan="2" | 11.50 || rowspan="2" | 10.60 || rowspan="2" | 10.00
 +
|-
 +
! ''Realistic''
 +
| 3.6 || 4.2 || 5.1 || 5.6 || 6.0
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
 
 +
==== Ammunition ====
 +
{{:Navy short gun (120 mm)/Ammunition|Short Ordinary HE}}
 +
 
 +
==== [[Ammo racks]] ====
 +
[[File:Ammoracks_{{PAGENAME}}.png|right|thumb|x250px|[[Ammo racks]] of the {{PAGENAME}}]]
 +
<!-- '''Last updated: 2.3.0.117''' -->
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
 +
|-
 +
! Full<br>ammo
 +
! 1st<br>rack empty
 +
! 2nd<br>rack empty
 +
! Visual<br>discrepancy
 +
|-
 +
| '''23''' || 18&nbsp;''(+5)'' || 0&nbsp;''(+23)'' || No
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
'''Note''':
 +
 
 +
* Racks disappear after you've fired all shells in the rack.
 +
 
 +
<!-- ==== [[Optics]] ====
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
 +
! colspan="3" | {{PAGENAME}} Optics
 +
|-
 +
!
 +
! Default magnification
 +
! Maximum magnification
 +
|-
 +
! Main Gun optics
 +
| X1.8 || X3.5
 +
|-
 +
! Comparable optics
 +
| colspan="2" | ___
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
-->
  
 
=== Machine guns ===
 
=== Machine guns ===
''Offensive and anti-aircraft machine guns not only allow you to fight some aircraft, but also are effective against lightly armoured vehicles. Evaluate machine guns and give recommendations on its use.''
+
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}
 +
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|3}}
 +
<!-- ''Offensive and anti-aircraft machine guns not only allow you to fight some aircraft but also are effective against lightly armoured vehicles. Evaluate machine guns and give recommendations on its use.'' -->
 +
{{main|Type 97 (7.7 mm)}}
 +
 
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
 +
|-
 +
! colspan="5" | [[Type 97 (7.7 mm)|7.7 mm Type 97]]
 +
|-
 +
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
 +
|-
 +
| Hull || 3,000 (20) || 499 || ±10° || ±15°
 +
|-
 +
| Pintle || 1,000 (20) || 499 || ±20° || ±60°
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
 
 +
== Usage in battles ==
 +
<!-- ''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).'' -->
 +
[[File:{{PAGENAME}}_(5).png|thumb|left|{{PAGENAME}} coming out behind a rock]]
 +
Because the {{PAGENAME}} was designed for an infantry support role, its performance shows how tank combat wasn't put in mind for the vehicle. With awfully slow turret traverse and poor shell trajectory harming the tank's combat effectiveness. However, with each shell having 2.64 kg of TNT equivalent of explosives, it can easily deal overpressure damage against most tank it will face.
  
== Usage in the battles ==
+
Most lightly-armoured vehicles and tanks with less than 30 mm of armour will be able to be destroyed from crew knock-out wherever you hit them. But when you start opposing medium to heavy tanks, you should fall back for friendlies to deal with the target. It might be possible fire a shot to deal overpressure damage against weak hull roof, but it's a tricky shot and won't always deal a fatal blow on first hit.
''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''
 
  
 
=== Pros and cons ===
 
=== Pros and cons ===
''Summarize and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Do not use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - they have a substitution in the form of softer "inadequate", "effective".''
+
<!-- ''Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".'' -->
  
 
'''Pros:'''
 
'''Pros:'''
*
+
 
 +
* Familiar [[Chi-Ha (Family)|Chi-Ha]] chassis
 +
* {{Annotation|Ten-seconds|10.6s Expert; 10.0s Ace}} reload with a 120 mm cannon
 +
* Huge explosive mass for 120 mm HE shell means it can destroy every tank it faces via overpressure
 +
* Five crew members
  
 
'''Cons:'''
 
'''Cons:'''
*
+
 
 +
* Slow reload compared to cannons commonly met at this BR (37 to 75 mm)
 +
* Only fires high explosive rounds
 +
* As the shell is much less effective than the 150 mm howitzers, it requires some knowledge for where to aim on enemy's tanks to cause overpressure effect
 +
* Poor turret traverse, just 5.1°/s
 +
* Very slow muzzle velocity (290 m/s) causes large shell drop
  
 
== History ==
 
== History ==
''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the ground vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too big, take it to a separate article, taking a link to an article about the vehicle and adding a block "/historical reference" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/Name-vehicles/historical reference) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to include links to sources at the end of the article.''
+
<!-- Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable). -->
 +
{{main|Chi-Ha (Family)|l1=History of the Type 97 Chi-Ha}}
 +
 
 +
=== Development ===
 +
The {{PAGENAME}}, designated the ''Short 12 cm Self-propelled artillery'' ({{Annotation|短十 二糎 自走砲|Tan Jū ni-senchimētoru Jisōhō}}) was a navy refit of the [[Chi-Ha Kai|Type 97 Chi-Ha Kai]] to make a similar gun tank as the Army's [[Ho-I|Type 2 Ho-I]] with greater firepower to support the Special Naval Landing Forces (SNLF).
 +
 
 +
To get greater firepower than the Type 2 Ho-I, a naval short barrel 120 mm was chosen with an additional bespoke muzzle brake, the official designation of this 120 mm gun is unclear but may greatly be the [[wikipedia:12_cm/12_short_naval_gun|12cm/12 short naval gun]]. Additionally, there was a small storage compartment added onto the back of the ShinHoTo Chi-Ha turret.
 +
 
 +
=== Combat usage ===
 +
The only certain information on this variant is that only a dozen or so vehicles were built and all were assigned to the Yokosuka No. 16 Special Land Battle Corps. The Chi-Ha's weren't the only vehicles assigned to this squadron and saw service next to the Type 2 [[Ka-Mi]] and Type 3 [[Ka-Chi]] amphibious tanks.
 +
 
 +
These vehicles would most likely have seen service in defense of the homeland next to the SNLF infantry. But in-case that these tanks would be required to move to forward islands, they would most likely be transport by [[Daihatsu-class Landing Craft]]'s just like the infantry accompanied and escorted by the Amphibious tanks during landings.
 +
 
 +
There's only a handful of images of Chi-Ha 120 mm, all being American and taken at the naval yard in Sasebo, Japan, October 1945. None of the vehicles survive today.
 +
<gallery mode="packed" widths="300" heights="200">
 +
File:Chi-Ha-120-Inspection.jpg|American Inspection
 +
File:Chi-ha-120-1.jpg|Stored Chi-Ha 12 cm's
 +
File:Chi-Ha-120-3.jpg|Inside picture of the breech, seen from the commander's port
 +
</gallery>
  
 
== Media ==
 
== Media ==
''An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.''
+
<!-- ''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.'' -->
 +
{{main|Chi-Ha (Family)#Media|l1=Media of the Type 97 Chi-Ha}}
 +
 
 +
;Skins
 +
* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicle=jp_type_97_chi_ha_12cm Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]
 +
 
 +
;Images
 +
<gallery mode="packed-hover" heights="200px">
 +
Chi-Ha Short Gun (3).png|{{PAGENAME}} coming from the sea
 +
Chi-Ha Short Gun (1).png|{{PAGENAME}} engaging an enemy
 +
Chi-Ha Short Gun (6).png|{{PAGENAME}} back view
 +
</gallery>
 +
 
 +
;Videos
 +
{{Youtube-gallery|VFEv4q3G5Us|'''Most unusual vehicles'''  discusses the {{PAGENAME}} at 2:15  - ''War Thunder Official Channel''|grWpd6A4zbY|''What 120mm of Power is doing at 1.7 BR? - Chi-Ha Short Gun''' - ''HowToPlay1337''}}
  
== Read also ==
+
== See also ==
''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example,''
+
<!-- ''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''
 
* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
 
* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''
+
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.'' -->
''ETC.''
+
 
 +
;Related development
 +
 
 +
* Directly Related:
 +
** [[Chi-Ha Kai|Type 97 Chi-Ha]] <small>(base hull)</small>
 +
** [[Chi-Ha Kai|Type 97 Chi-Ha Kai]] <small>(base turret)</small>
 +
** [[Ho-I|Type 2 Ho-I]] <small>(reference role)</small>
 +
 
 +
* Related:
 +
** [[Chi-Ha LG|Type 97 Chi-Ha Long Gun]] <small>(another navy variant)</small>
 +
 
 +
;Tanks of comparable role, configuration and era
 +
 
 +
* [[M8 Scott]]
  
== Sources ==
+
== External links ==
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''
+
<!--Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
 
* ''topic on the official game forum;''
 
* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''page on the Wikipedia;''
+
* ''other literature.''-->
* ''other literature.''
+
 
 +
* [[wt:en/news/4394-development-chi-ha-short-gun-naval-caliber-en|[Development] Chi-Ha Short Gun: Naval Caliber]]
 +
* [http://sakurasakujapan.web.fc2.com/main03/weaponjpngunshort12cm20cm/short12cm20cm.html Short 12cm/20cm Gun (JP)]
 +
 
 +
{{ShipManufacturer Sasebo Naval Arsenal}}
 +
{{Japan medium tanks}}
 +
{{Japan premium ground vehicles}}

Latest revision as of 21:15, 13 October 2023

RANK 5 FRANCE
Somua SM PACK
This page is about the premium Japanese medium tank Chi-Ha Short Gun. For other versions, see Chi-Ha (Family).
Chi-Ha Short Gun
jp_type_97_chi_ha_12cm.png
GarageImage Chi-Ha Short Gun.jpg
ArtImage Chi-Ha Short Gun.png
Chi-Ha Short Gun
AB RB SB
2.0 1.7 1.7
Purchase:1 000 Specs-Card-Eagle.png
Show in game

Description

The Type 97 Chi-Ha Short Gun / Short 12cm SPG (短十二糎自走砲) is a later iteration of the Chi-Ha with a modified turret coming from the Chi-Ha Kai, boasting a Navy short gun (120 mm) meant to defend naval bases and merchant ships in a multipurpose role. The Navy's modification of the Chi-Ha was meant to mimic the role of the Army's Ho-I tank to support infantry as a gun tank during the defense of the homeland.

The Chi-Ha Short Gun was introduced along with the initial Japanese Ground Forces tree in Update 1.65 "Way of the Samurai" as a pre-order premium pack. It packs a relatively powerful 120 mm cannon that can destroy most enemies with one shot. However, it has a considerable reload time of 10s aced, poor turret traverse, and low shell velocity that make it hard to aim and fight with. It will be able to destroy the lightest targets with near misses, and will need some aim on more armoured targets trying to splash the explosive mass into the bottom or top armour of tanks.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back
Hull25 / 25 / 20
Turret32 / 25 / 25
Crew5 people
Visibility75 %

Armour type:

  • Rolled homogeneous armour (hull, turret, cupola)
Chi-Ha Short Gun scanning the seaside
Armour Front (Slope angle) Sides Rear Roof
Hull 25 mm (11-31°) Front plate
15-17 mm (62-80°) Front glacis
15 mm (37-59°) Lower glacis
25 mm (25 / 40°) Top
25 mm Bottom
15 mm (69°) Top
20 mm (5-57°)
12 mm
Turret 25 mm (9-10°) Turret front
32-35 mm Gun mantlet
25 mm (9-10°) 25 mm 10 mm
Cupola 25 mm (cylindrical) 10 mm

Notes:

  • Suspension wheels and tracks are 15 mm thick.

Mobility

Speedforward / back
AB45 / 21 km/h
RB and SB40 / 19 km/h
Number of gears8 forward
2 back
Weight14.8 t
Engine power
AB324 hp
RB and SB170 hp
Power-to-weight ratio
AB21.9 hp/t
RB and SB11.5 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 45 21 14.8 263 324 17.77 21.89
Realistic 40 19 150 170 10.14 11.49

The Type 97 Chi-Ha is an upgraded version of the earlier Type 89 I-Go Ko. The engine has been upgraded, from the Mitsubishi A6120VD air-cooled straight-six diesel with 120 hp to a Mitsubishi SA12200VD air-cooled V12 diesel with 170 hp. As such, the top speed has increased from 27 km/h on the I-Go Ko to 40 km/h on the Chi-Ha.

Modifications and economy

Repair cost
AB934 Sl icon.png
RB498 Sl icon.png
SB1 235 Sl icon.png
Crew training2 300 Sl icon.png
Experts15 000 Sl icon.png
Aces115 Ge icon.png
Research Aces320 000 Rp icon.png
Reward for battleAB / RB / SB
Talisman.png 2 × 40 / 50 / 70 % Sl icon.png
Talisman.png 2 × 112 / 112 / 112 % 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
Mods art support.png
Artillery Support

Armaments

Main armament

120 mm Navy short gun
Ammunition23 rounds
Reloadbasic crew → aces
13.0 → 10.0 s
Vertical guidance-10° / 15°
Chi-Ha Short Gun firing

The 120 mm Navy short gun is built to deal with submarines and close range naval combat, and that does translate over in-game as a gun that have a very low muzzle velocity, which on the bright side can be used to shoot at vehicles over cover.

The gun can only fire an HE round by default. However, the shell contains 2.64 kg of TNT equivalent, which is enough to cause a lethal overpressure damage against almost any enemy the tank has to face at its BR.

While the shell is certainly powerful, it is not as powerful as the Ho-Ro's 150 mm howitzer rounds. This means careful aim is still needed when facing a more well-armoured opponents. Against these targets, aim at any deflective angles that can cause the explosion effect to deflect on the weak hull roof.

120 mm Navy short gun Turret rotation speed (°/s) Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode Capacity Vertical Horizontal Stabilizer Stock Upgraded Full Expert Aced Stock Full Expert Aced
Arcade 23 -10°/+15° ±180° - 5.7 7.9 9.6 10.6 11.3 13.00 11.50 10.60 10.00
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
Short Ordinary HE HE 31 31 31 31 31 31
Shell details
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Velocity
(m/s)
Projectile
mass (kg)
Fuse delay
(m)
Fuse sensitivity
(mm)
Explosive mass
(TNT equivalent) (kg)
Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
Short Ordinary HE HE 290 13 0.1 0.1 2.64 79° 80° 81°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the Chi-Ha Short Gun
Full
ammo
1st
rack empty
2nd
rack empty
Visual
discrepancy
23 18 (+5) (+23) No

Note:

  • Racks disappear after you've fired all shells in the rack.


Machine guns

Ammunition3 000 rounds
Belt capacity20 rounds
Reloadbasic crew → aces
3.9 → 3.0 s
Fire rate499 shots/min
Ammunition1 000 rounds
Belt capacity20 rounds
Reloadbasic crew → aces
3.9 → 3.0 s
Fire rate499 shots/min
Main article: Type 97 (7.7 mm)
7.7 mm Type 97
Mount Capacity (Belt) Fire rate Vertical Horizontal
Hull 3,000 (20) 499 ±10° ±15°
Pintle 1,000 (20) 499 ±20° ±60°

Usage in battles

Chi-Ha Short Gun coming out behind a rock

Because the Chi-Ha Short Gun was designed for an infantry support role, its performance shows how tank combat wasn't put in mind for the vehicle. With awfully slow turret traverse and poor shell trajectory harming the tank's combat effectiveness. However, with each shell having 2.64 kg of TNT equivalent of explosives, it can easily deal overpressure damage against most tank it will face.

Most lightly-armoured vehicles and tanks with less than 30 mm of armour will be able to be destroyed from crew knock-out wherever you hit them. But when you start opposing medium to heavy tanks, you should fall back for friendlies to deal with the target. It might be possible fire a shot to deal overpressure damage against weak hull roof, but it's a tricky shot and won't always deal a fatal blow on first hit.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Familiar Chi-Ha chassis
  • Ten-seconds reload with a 120 mm cannon
  • Huge explosive mass for 120 mm HE shell means it can destroy every tank it faces via overpressure
  • Five crew members

Cons:

  • Slow reload compared to cannons commonly met at this BR (37 to 75 mm)
  • Only fires high explosive rounds
  • As the shell is much less effective than the 150 mm howitzers, it requires some knowledge for where to aim on enemy's tanks to cause overpressure effect
  • Poor turret traverse, just 5.1°/s
  • Very slow muzzle velocity (290 m/s) causes large shell drop

History

Development

The Chi-Ha Short Gun, designated the Short 12 cm Self-propelled artillery (短十 二糎 自走砲) was a navy refit of the Type 97 Chi-Ha Kai to make a similar gun tank as the Army's Type 2 Ho-I with greater firepower to support the Special Naval Landing Forces (SNLF).

To get greater firepower than the Type 2 Ho-I, a naval short barrel 120 mm was chosen with an additional bespoke muzzle brake, the official designation of this 120 mm gun is unclear but may greatly be the 12cm/12 short naval gun. Additionally, there was a small storage compartment added onto the back of the ShinHoTo Chi-Ha turret.

Combat usage

The only certain information on this variant is that only a dozen or so vehicles were built and all were assigned to the Yokosuka No. 16 Special Land Battle Corps. The Chi-Ha's weren't the only vehicles assigned to this squadron and saw service next to the Type 2 Ka-Mi and Type 3 Ka-Chi amphibious tanks.

These vehicles would most likely have seen service in defense of the homeland next to the SNLF infantry. But in-case that these tanks would be required to move to forward islands, they would most likely be transport by Daihatsu-class Landing Craft's just like the infantry accompanied and escorted by the Amphibious tanks during landings.

There's only a handful of images of Chi-Ha 120 mm, all being American and taken at the naval yard in Sasebo, Japan, October 1945. None of the vehicles survive today.

Media

Skins
Images
Videos

See also

Related development
Tanks of comparable role, configuration and era

External links


Sasebo Naval Arsenal (佐世保海軍工廠)
Destroyers 
Mutsuki-class  IJN Mutsuki
Hatsuharu-class  IJN Hatsuharu
Shiratsuyu-class  IJN Yuudachi
Light Cruisers 
Agano-class  IJN Agano
Unique Ships  IJN Yubari
Tanks  Chi-Ha Short Gun

Japan medium tanks
Type 97  Chi-Ha · Chi-Ha Kai · Chi-Ha Kai TD · Chi-Ha Short Gun
Type 1  Chi-He · Chi-He (5th Regiment) · Ho-I
Type 3  Chi-Nu · Chi-Nu II
Type 4  Chi-To · Chi-To Late
Type 5  Chi-Ri II
Type 61 MBT  ST-A1* · ST-A2* · ST-A3* · Type 61
Type 74 MBT  ST-B2* · Type 74 (C) · Type 74 (E) · Type 74 (F) · Type 74 (G)
Type 90 MBT  Type 90 · Type 90 (B) · Type 90 (B) "Fuji"
Type 10 MBT  TKX (P)* · TKX* · Type 10
Other  Ka-Chi
USA  ▅M4A3 (76) W · ▅M47
  *Prototype

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 90 (B) "Fuji"
Heavy tanks  Ro-Go · ▅Heavy Tank No.6
Tank destroyers  Ho-Ri Prototype · Type 75 MLRS