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Hi All,

While in Tokyo, I made a trip to the JGSDF Information Center in Nerima City to see the collection of modern hardware on display.

Gallery Link:

www.vgbimages.com/AFV-...n/n-HXcfFC

Very unusual vehicles for most of us. Thanks for sharing

Yes, thanks! Especially the Type 74.

What is the smaller of the two artillery pieces? Looks a bit like an Abbot but clearly something different.

- TimRoyall

What is the smaller of the two artillery pieces? Looks a bit like an Abbot but clearly something different.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...d_howitzer

Thanks, I'd never heard of this before. Seeing when it was built, it really does seem to be a close copy of the Abbot. I wonder if the Japanese were given access to the project.

- TimRoyall

Thanks, I'd never heard of this before. Seeing when it was built, it really does seem to be a close copy of the Abbot. I wonder if the Japanese were given access to the project.

That's not necessarily the case. The Japanese along the years build plenty of AFVs that were "conceptually" based on design from other countries. So their Type 61 may look like an M47, the Type 74 like a Leopard 1, the Type 90 like a Leopard 2 and their anti-aircraft SPG looks like a stepson of a Gepard

I could say the same about the Swiss Pz 68 and the Leopard 1 or the Italian Ariete and Leopard 2 or Palmaria and AS90.

The concept is the same, even some components can be same or similar, yet you don't need access to the project to do that.

The most interesting/innovative design is, to my eyes, Type 10. They managed to reduce weight to comply with very specific requirements:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...sportation

When I saw the Japanese Type 61 at Camp Tsuchiura I thought it was a weird M-18 or M-36 or M-41 and realized I'd never seen this type before. Interesting stuff - now I'm looking into post-war Japanese tank development.