Type 96 Machine Gun

Country	Japan
Type	Machine Gun
Caliber	6.500 mm
Capacity	30 rounds
Length	1,070 mm
Barrel Length	550 mm
Weight	9.100 kg
Rate of Fire	550 rounds/min
Muzzle Velocity	735 m/s

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

Type 96 light machine guns were developed by Lieutenant General Kijiro Nambu, commanding officer of the Tokyo Artillery Arsenal, from the Type 11 light machine gun design. They were introduced into Japanese Army service in 1936. They were gas operated, air cooled, and fired only in full automatic mode. Private weapons manufacturer Chuo Kogyo KK in Japan began production in 1937, followed by the Japanese Army's Kokura Rikugun Zoheisho arsenal in 1938, and then in 1939 the private firm Hoten Zohei-sho KK in Manchukuo joined in. Detachable box magazines addressed reliability issues caused by Type 11 weapons' hopper design, but overall reliability was still questionable due to a new problem introduced: the type of grease Type 96 light machine guns used to lubricate the cartridges were prone to pick up dust, thus frequently jamming the weapons during field operations. After several rounds of changes, production of the Type 96 light machine guns ended in 1943 in favor of the Type 99 light machine guns that had been in production since Apr 1942. Type 99 light machine guns were almost identical to the Type 96 design, with the only major difference being that the Type 96 design used 6.5-mm rounds while the Type 99 design used 7.7-mm rounds.

Source: Wikipedia.

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