By: Graeylin
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Thought I would share some pics of Battlegear Toys Type 92 IJA heavy Machine Gun. It was nicknamed "the woodpecker" by US forces that faced it.
I bought this just recently from BGT, and it is a work of art. The Type 92 Heavy Machine Gun entered service in 1932 and was the standard Japanese heavy machine gun used during World War II. The Type 92 refers to the Japanese Imperial year 2592 (1932 in the Gregorian calendar) in which the gun entered service. The Type 92 was essentially a scaled-up version of the Type 3 Heavy Machine Gun, with its calibre increased to 7.7 mm, and like the Type 3 was air cooled, ammo strip fed, and based on the Hotchkiss M1914. It could use both a rimless and semi-rimmed 7.7x58mm Shiki round. The gun was intended to be fired on a tripod with a team of 3 men. The unusual tripod was designed with removable carry poles, so that the weapon could be transported fully assembled for quicker deployment. A major problem with this weapon was the short strip. This led to a lowering in the rate of fire, and could cause jams in the loading mechanism. To alleviate this the Japanese oiled the rounds in the factories producing the ammunition. However, this caused the problem to escalate, as the grease picked up dirt during operations. This grime was then deposited directly into the breech mechanism, worsening the problem. This was a problem common among Japanese machine guns. Despite these setbacks, it was still a formidable and feared weapon, and heavily used by the IJA across the Pacific and China. |
| Definitely a great looking gun old friend! It's great to see your awesome Japanese figures around here again too. I definitely think my own Japanese forces need one of those Woodpeckers! Special thanks for sending this cool set in and sharing it with us. - GL |
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