Japanese 6.5 mm Taisho 11th Year (1922) machine gun, 1945 (c)

This light machine gun was designed by Kijiro Nambu but was based on a French Hotchkiss model.

This weapon went into service with Japanese forces in 1922 but production ceased in 1941, the year Japan entered World War Two (1939-1945). The Taisho Type 11 continued to be used throughout the conflict and captured weapons were still in use by North Korean forces in the 1950s.

It had a firing rate of 400 to 450 rounds a minute. Instead of belts or box magazines, the Type 11 was designed to hold the same ammunition clips used on the Type 38 rifle. This meant that any soldier could supply ammunition. Unfortunately the device that fed these clips allowed dust and grit to enter and jam the weapon, one of the reasons for its gradual replacement by the Type 96 machine gun.