Ro-Go Exp.

This page is about the Japanese tank destroyer Ro-Go Exp.. For the heavy tank, see Ro-Go.

Ro-Go Exp.

Ho-Ro

Ho-Ni I

Ro-Go Exp.

Ho-Ro

Ho-Ni I

Japan

I Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
1.7	1.7	1.7

Class:

Tank destroyer

Research:4 000

Purchase:2 100

Show in game

Description

The Type 95 Experimental 12cm Self Propelled Gun was a modification of the Ro-Go platform. It features a French model 120 mm Schneider-Canet 1898 cannon as its main armament to up-gun unused hulls and press them into service as capable glass-cannon self-propelled guns.

Ro-Go Experimental was introduced in Update "Ixwa Strike". It is a very strong cannon against the vehicles it faces with the main drawback being based on a slow and sluggish heavy tank hull. Additionally, it being open top, relatively thin armoured, and once again on a sluggish hull, the best course of action is to use this glass cannon in a sniping position, dealing with targets at a range.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back

Hull25 / 25 / 25

Turret12 / 0 / 0

Crew7 people

Visibility107 %

Similar to the Ro-Go it is based off of, the Ro-Go Experimental's armour is mostly comprised of large flat armour plates, though some are slightly angled. Front armour maxes out at 30 mm, with the angled sections such as the upper glacis being 25 mm thick. The shield surrounding the cannon, and by extension the crew, is 12 mm thick. Given the mostly flat shape of the Ro-Go Experimental's hull and relatively average armour thickness for its battle rating, a majority of incoming fire will be taken with full force, especially if it hits the flat plates at the front of the vehicle. Slightly angling the front of the Ro-Go Exp. may result in some shell ricochets, however. Much like its predecessor, the Ho-Ro, the Ro-Go Exp. can be easily penetrated by most other vehicles at its battle rating, but it does feature some odd angles that may result in lucky bounces. The Ro-Go Exp. does have a large crew count of 7, although they are rather lined up and a majority of them are in the open.

Armour type:

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	25 - 30 mm	25 mm Top 30 mm Bottom	25 mm	12 - 25 mm
Gun shield	12 mm

Notes:

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB25 / 8 km/h

RB and SB23 / 7 km/h

Number of gears5 forward

1 back

Weight25.5 t

Engine power

AB553 hp

RB and SB290 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB21.7 hp/t

RB and SB11.4 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	25	8	25.5	412	553	16.16	21.69
Realistic	23	7		256	290	10.04	11.37

The Ro-Go Experimental shares the same drivetrain as the Ro-Go, featuring an inline 6-cylinder engine. It has mediocre mobility, noticeably more sluggish than its Chi-Ha based counterparts.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB193 → 238

RB229 → 283

SB271 → 335

Total cost of modifications4 450

2 680

Talisman cost300

Crew training600

Experts2 100

Aces45

Research Aces110 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

20 / 20 / 30 %

100 / 100 / 100 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Research: 300 Cost: 180 55 Suspension Research: 250 Cost: 150 45 Brake System Research: 250 Cost: 150 45 Filters Research: 370 Cost: 220 65 Transmission Research: 720 Cost: 440 130 Engine Research: 720 Cost: 440 130	Improved Parts Research: 300 Cost: 180 55 Improved FPE Research: 250 Cost: 150 45 Crew Replenishment Research: 370 Cost: 220 65	Horizontal Drive Research: 300 Cost: 180 55 Adjustment of Fire Research: 250 Cost: 150 45 Elevation Mechanism Research: 370 Cost: 220 65

Armaments

Main armament

120 mm Schneider-Canet 1898 cannon

Ammunition16 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

13.0 → 10.0 s

Vertical guidance-10° / 15°

Horizontal guidance-12° / 12°

The 120 mm main armament of the Ro-Go Experimental will penetrate almost everything at its BR within a reasonable distance. The cannon, while considerably antiquated having been designed in 1897, fires a Semi-Armour-Piercing Capped Ballistic Capped round, which penetrates a maximum of 68 mm of armour at 10 m, even at 1,000 m the SAPCBC round can penetrate 53 mm of armour, certainly powerful enough to deal with most opponents at this BR. The round has a relatively low muzzle velocity and an average firing arc. The HE round has a significant amount of filler but does not have one shot potential like the HE round of the Ho-Ro or the S.I.G.33 (150 mm). The SAPCBC round can also incur HE-type damage even if it does not penetrate due to its high filler content. However, it may be wise to carry a few dedicated HE rounds.

120 mm Schneider-Canet 1898					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	16	-10°/+15°	±12°	N/A	8.8	12.2	14.8	16.4	17.4	13.00	11.50	10.60	10.00
Realistic					5.9	7.0	8.5	9.4	10.0

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
Schneider-Canet HE	HE	25	25	25	25	25	25
Schneider-Canet SAP	SAPCBC	63	62	58	53	49	45

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%
Schneider-Canet HE	HE	580	20.4	0	0.1	1.97	79°	80°	81°
Schneider-Canet SAP	SAPCBC	580	20.46	1.2	19	1.43	48°	63°	71°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the Ro-Go Exp.

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	Visual discrepancy
16	9 (+7)	1 (+15)	No

Notes:

• Shells are modeled individually and disappear after having been shot or loaded.
• If you pack 9 (+7) shells, it will keep the left side of the hull empty of ammo.

Machine guns

7.7 mm Type 97 machine gun

Ammunition1 960 rounds

Belt capacity20 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

3.9 → 3.0 s

Fire rate499 shots/min

7.7 mm Type 97
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Rear	1,960 (20)	499	-8°/+20°	±110°

Usage in battles

The Ro-Go Experimental plays like its predecessor on the tech tree, the Ho-Ro, but with some key differences. It has a faster reload time, but is noticeably less mobile and a larger target, a trait inherited from its basis on the Ro-Go chassis. Also unlike the Ho-Ro, the SAPCBC round has very good penetration and does not rely solely on HE filler to cause damage. It is completely open topped and the gun shield is only 12 mm thick, making the exposed crew extremely vulnerable to CAS and heavy machine gun fire. However, the Ro-Go Exp. does have some tricks up its sleeve - specifically the rear machine gunner. Like the Ro-Go, this crewman is largely useless in terms of offense, but will rarely be the first to be knocked out in a fight, essentially giving the player a somewhat guaranteed crew replacement. Play the Ro-Go Exp. like you would other Rank I and II Japanese Tank Destroyers, either freelance and find a good spot to get the jump on opponents, or stay back with other players and support from the rear. Like other Japanese SPG's, you are somewhat of a glass cannon. Remember that you can only spawn with 16 rounds maximum.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Fantastic main armament for the BR.
  • Low penetration fall off even at extreme ranges.
  • One shot potential against most matchups.
  • Faster reload than the Ho-Ro.
• More crew members than other tank destroyers in the lower rank Japanese tree (Ho-Ro and Ho-Ni series).
  • Rear machine gun position provides opportunities for a "free" crew replacement.

Cons:

• Overall the armour is average at best, poor at worst.
  • The crew is mostly exposed and is at the mercy of .50 calibers, aircraft, artillery and if flanked LMG fire.
• Mobility is overall worse compared to the majority of Chi-Ha based tank destroyers, the Ro-Go Experimental is comparatively sluggish.
  • Mediocre top speed of 25 km/h.
• 16 shell maximum ammo count.
• Somewhat slow shell velocity can be hard to aim.

History

The Ro-Go Experimental (sometimes incorrectly referred to as the Hi-Ro (sha) or Ji-Ro) was a prototypical field modification to the Type 95 Heavy Tank.

Ro-Go Experimental at factory grounds

The Type 95 Ro-Go Heavy Tank was in itself a low production experiment, but its hull was the basis for a few other trials, namely for its use as an SPG. The result of using a remaining unused Type 95 hull, field modifying the tank by replacing the two turrets with a 120 mm Schneider-Canet cannon mounted at the front of the chassis. Both a long and a short version of the cannon were tested. These cannons were originally of French origin and built under license by the Japanese.

A different configuration was brought to the drawing board by the original designer of the Type 95 Ro-Go, Tomio Hara. He designed what would be known as the Ji-Ro on the same hull but with more modification to the base hull, completely getting rid of all the 3 turrets, moving the engine and fully enclosing the casemate at the end of the vehicle.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Ro-Go Exp. from live.warthunder.com.

See also

Related development

• Ro-Go

Tanks of comparable role, configuration, and era

• Chi-Ha LG

External links

• [Forum] Original Suggestion
• [Reddit] Ji-Ro Experimental Tank Destroyer
• [Wikipedia] Type 95 heavy tank - Variants

References

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