Type 74 Tank Machine Gun
- Category
- Machine Gun
- Barrel
- 625 mm
- Weight, empty
- 20.40 kg
- Introduced
- 1974
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Type 74 is a 7.62x51mm NATO coaxial/vehicle machine gun developed in Japan as a replacement for the licence-built Browning M1919A4. A heavily modified derivative of the earlier Type 62 general-purpose machine gun, it is gas-operated with a long-stroke piston and rotating bolt, fires from a belt, and uses an electric solenoid trigger for remote actuation. Fielded since 1974, it serves as the coaxial armament on a wide range of Japanese armoured vehicles including the Type 74, Type 87, Type 89, Type 90, Type 10 main battle tanks and the Type 16 combat vehicle.
Because Japan's post-war arms-export ban kept the Type 74 entirely domestic, it is one of the few modern coaxial machine guns that has never been sold abroad or seen foreign combat, quietly riding inside nearly every Japanese tank turret for half a century.
Manufactured by Sumitomo Heavy Industries (the small-arms successor to the Type 62 programme). Features dual cyclic rates (approximately 700 rpm low / 1000 rpm high). Barrel quoted at 625 mm bare, 702 mm with flash hider.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Sumitomo Heavy Industries
- Category
- Machine Gun
- Country
- Japan
- Status
- In service
- Produced
- 1974
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 625 mm
- Overall length
- 1085 mm
- Weight, empty
- 20.40 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Gas operated long stroke
- Firing mechanism
- Solenoid fired
- Magazine
- Belt
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Finish
- Phosphate
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 855 m/s
- Muzzle energy
- 3410 J
- Effective range
- 1000 m
- Maximum range
- 1500 m
- Rate of fire
- 1000 rpm
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Coaxial vehicle mount
Solenoid electric trigger
Quick change barrel- Dual rate of fire
Heavy profile barrel
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 32 7.62x51mm NATO machine guns | 20.40 kg | 10.51 kg | Among the heaviest tenth |
| Overall lengthAmong 32 7.62x51mm NATO machine guns | 1085 mm | 1149 mm | Shorter than about 70% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 32 7.62x51mm NATO machine guns | 625 mm | 559 mm | Longer than about 80% |
Its place in the rankings
Answers
Questions about the Type 74 Tank Machine Gun
How much does the Type 74 Tank Machine Gun weigh?
The Type 74 Tank Machine Gun weighs 20.40 kg (44.97 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Type 74 Tank Machine Gun?
The Type 74 Tank Machine Gun is chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO.
How long is the Type 74 Tank Machine Gun?
The Type 74 Tank Machine Gun is 1085 mm (42.7 in) long overall, with a 625 mm (24.6 in) barrel.
Who makes the Type 74 Tank Machine Gun?
The Type 74 Tank Machine Gun is made by Sumitomo Heavy Industries (Japan).
When was the Type 74 Tank Machine Gun introduced?
The Type 74 Tank Machine Gun was introduced in 1974.
How does the Type 74 Tank Machine Gun operate?
The Type 74 Tank Machine Gun uses a gas operated long stroke action, and its firing mechanism is solenoid fired.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- Japan Ground Self-Defense Force
- 1974
Provenance
Confidence in this record
66%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/howa-type-74' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "howa-type-74", "name": "Type 74 Tank Machine Gun", "manufacturer": { "id": "sumitomo-heavy-industries", "name": "Sumitomo Heavy Industries", "countryCode": "JP", "foundedYear": 1888, "website": "https://www.shi.co.jp", "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "updatedAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "version": "ecb32dc7aec184e05b4d2d78fb881ac375881dbc4bab94f12b28b509a9774b63" }, "category": { "id": "machine-gun", "name": "Machine Gun", "description": "Fully automatic firearms for sustained fire" }, "country_of_origin": "JP", "year_introduced": 1974, "barrel_length_mm": 625, "weight_empty_g": 20400, "action_type": "gas_operated_long_stroke"}