What if the Chi-nu tank saw combat?

For the people that don't know, the Chi-nu was the closes that the japanese had to a "mass produced" medium tank (they only made 166 of it)

in OTL the Chi-nu was used to protect the home islands of japan, so it never saw combat, but what if they transported like, 40 of it to the chinese front? Or to the burmese frontline? How well would it do?

800px-Chi-Nu_4th_Tank_Division.JPG
 
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That 75mm L48 gun looks big enough to poke holes in Shermans.
I wonder what sort of muzzle velocity it achieved?
How heavy an HE shell could it cure?
How far could it loft an HE shell?
Did it have specialized anti-armour ammo?
Did it have smoke rounds?
 
With armour ranging from 12-50mm and a top speed of only 39 km/h, this thing is going to be a bit of a paper tiger compared to the Sherman. The lack of a coaxial machine gun isn't going to help either.
 
With armour ranging from 12-50mm and a top speed of only 39 km/h, this thing is going to be a bit of a paper tiger compared to the Sherman. The lack of a coaxial machine gun isn't going to help either.

And riveted armor to boot. Yes, the 75mm L/48 is a vast improvement over the 47mm L/48 but otherwise the Sherman had better armor, was faster and probably more reliable.

And of course the Sherman had a huge superiority in numbers - the Japanese simply couldn't afford to build many tanks period...
 
People here are assuming it would go against the Sherman. On what fronts of the Eastern Theatre were Shermans used? What tanks were used in Burma and China? And bare in mind, tanks will often have to fight AT guns, not mother tanks.

In what state was tank doctrine and training in the Japanese Army? I don't want to be overly dismissive or anything, but I can't imagine it's world-beating.
 
I believe a few units of Shermans were deployed in Burma in the later stages, but that's about it.
 
Once Japan was in war with USA, only ships and aircarft mattered when it is about equipment, plus of course logistics to support the sea/air warfare.
 
Shermans fought in every Pacific Island campaign except Guadalcanal and Makin. There were tank-v-tank engagements between Shermans and Japanese tanks on Saipan, Guam, Biak, Luzon, and maybe Okinawa. The Japanese 2nd Tank Division was on Luzon, and was destroyed there, though most of their tanks were used as dug-in pillboxes, some were used as intended. CORONET had XIII Corps with 13th and 20th Armored Divisions landing as part of the U.S. Eighth Army at Sagami Bay on Y-Day plus 10 to go north and isolate Tokyo. A clash between them and the Japanese 1st and 4th Tank Divisions, had CORONET launched, is very possible.
 
If they were deployed to China, and used during Operation Ichi-Go they might aid in its success. I do not think China had much viable tank forces available.
 
Shermans fought in every Pacific Island campaign except Guadalcanal and Makin. There were tank-v-tank engagements between Shermans and Japanese tanks on Saipan, Guam, Biak, Luzon, and maybe Okinawa. The Japanese 2nd Tank Division was on Luzon, and was destroyed there, though most of their tanks were used as dug-in pillboxes, some were used as intended. CORONET had XIII Corps with 13th and 20th Armored Divisions landing as part of the U.S. Eighth Army at Sagami Bay on Y-Day plus 10 to go north and isolate Tokyo. A clash between them and the Japanese 1st and 4th Tank Divisions, had CORONET launched, is very possible.

Yes, but it was a fight between shermans against horrible japanese light tanks like the Ha go, the Chi nu was a medium tank with a 75mm cannon, I want to know what could have happened if the chi nu saw combat
 
No contest: the Shermans had better-trained crews, and the M-26 was scheduled to come to the Pacific for CORONET. Thicker armor and a 90-mm gun. If standard Japanese AT guns had trouble with a Sherman, they would've had serious trouble with the M-26. Chi-nu vs. Sherman? Edge to the Sherman. Chi-nu vs. M-26? No contest: M-26 wins.
 
Thank you :D

But what about other vehicles? I mean, using the Chi nu as a infantry support tank, to fight against halftracks?
 
Yes, but it was a fight between shermans against horrible japanese light tanks like the Ha go, the Chi nu was a medium tank with a 75mm cannon, I want to know what could have happened if the chi nu saw combat
The chi nu was a comparatively lightweight medium tank, less than 20 tons, which means it wasn't all that heavily armoured, which would count against it in a fight, especially when it wouldn't be that much faster or more mobile than the M4 thanks to its rather gutless engine.
 
Someone's been playing World of Tanks. :p

Anywaym the Chi-Nu wouldn't last long against the Sherman due to its large profile and incredibly thin armour.
 
The Chi Nu was a lighter and simplified version of the 30t Chi To, produced as a 'stopgap' whilst the Japanese trid to figure out how they could build the Chi To with what little resources and industry they had.
As it was this was a doomd effort as they barely had enough to make the Chi Nu let alone anything more complex.

In combat the Chi Nu would likely have proved a capable tank for infantry support, its 75mm gun providing good HE blast effect. However considering it low numbers it would have been better to cheaply refit some Chi Ha with howitzers for that role.

Against the Sherman it would have fared better than the previous models thanks to better AP, but it would still have been a poor match.

Just about the only area I could see it making much of a diference was in Burma where the IJA would have finally had a tank capable of taking on the Matilda. But again the low production volume would probably mean it would make little impact.
 
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