I don’t have an La-5 to test and I don’t feel like grinding it. In any case it will be faster while less maneuverable, this is normal. It’s also far better armed.
t’s has to do with excess power and power to weight ratio gives a better, more full picture than absolute power. As I already said it’s not directly proportional, since if it was the P47 would have a better climb rate than the p51 at low alts but it doesn’t. But it’s much more genuine to use power to weight ratio. Again yet another person ignoring a key point I made.
Its not. You have 4 50 cals that do a lot of damage it has 2 20mms that also do a lot of damage but with less ammo.
ShVAKs have better range, better damage, higher velocity, the belt is 100% HE. They are somewhat comparable to Ho-5s (but better) and the difference between otherwise identical planes that trade a pair of Ho-103s for Ho-5s is at least one BR step, if not more.
See: Ki-61-I Otsu to Tei or Ki-84 Ko to Otsu
Climb rate charts like those I provided are superior to both since they display the actual performance achieved. By just looking at the p/w charts I don’t think anyone would have said the J2M5 outclimbs the Ki-44-II.
I was strictly talking about climb rate. The yak 3u has a less powerful engine than a p47 but the latter doesn’t outclimb or out run the former. For every case of an inconsistent narrative Power to Weight ratio presents, absolute power will present 10x more. You have to pair reserve planes with the best post war props as these guys have been doing (very unhonest) to finally find inconsistency. I could compare the yak3u to any US prop to debunk the claim that absolute power means anything in this discussion.
True. Climb rate charts are better, than both power to weight and absolute power. But absolute power is by far the least meaningful chart when it comes to climb rate. If I could use climb charts I would have but I don’t know how to, it’s as simple as that.
You have more ammo with the Japanese 50s, it’s up to personal preference but carrying in the K44 is easy to do with only one take off due to its plentiful ammo count. The 4 combined 50s from my experience regularly one-shot planes. They act more like 20mms than 50s tbh. Also, ki44s higher volume (like area) and higher ammo count makes it better at firing targets farther away since you can afford to waste ammo in head ons or making planes react so they bleed speed. At this point tho it’s personal taste but most of the buddies ik would prefer the Ki44s arms.
You have to keep it fast and the nose authority is okay so I find it way less ammo efficient than my darling Ki-43-1. The premium Ki-44-II with 12.7s only in the nose is even worse about this and it’s a pain to get kills quickly.
Way shorter ranged than 20mms, and they do way less damage too. Saved by volume of fire but it’s still not great. All the planes that traded these 12.7s for 20mms are much higher in BR than the original model.
I like them but they have their downsides and comparing BRs of planes with alternative armaments makes this obvious.
I dunno. I just can’t agree thet have worse range. From my experience that just isn’t the case. Shvaks are an absolute pain to use with targets beyond… Like 700m and I prefer the 50s at that range. And theyve changed the guns damaged. The brs don’t reflect how effective their guns are, Japanese 50s doing a lot of damage is a relatively new thing. Shvaks used to be bad, but now they are amazing, but none of the brs of Soviet planes changed to reflect that. Using BR isn’t a good argument, gun damage is as inconsistent as turbulent flow.
It’s been like this for a few years now and these are not exactly rare planes.
Even so, there was a time where they weren’t as busted was the point. Could be 2-3 years, the game has been out for a decade. To me real shatter is a new thing, I just remember a time when hispanos took 50 rounds to down a bf109, still engraved dispite it being years since that was the case.
Major Ho-103 fix happened in late 2021 or early 2022. After that Ki-44-II Hei went up from 2.7 to 3.7 very quickly. This was fully expected as it had amazing flight performance already, but with the salt and pepper spraying guns one needed hundreds of hits on average to down an enemy. Think I guessed 4.0 or 4.3 myself, while someone else was serious about 5.0.
In my view it’s only slightly worse than J2M2, which climbed up to 5.0, so 4.3 or 4.7 would make sense. That would also mean moving it up to rank III, which is probably holding it down.
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Flew this thing in 6.0 BR against Yak-3U squad and in inferior number. This plane is indeed broken in some extend.
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I’ve done like ~10 kills on Stalingrad with Ki-43-II against early jets
In SB battles it is more question of skill and just need a not shit plane to do it
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They got 2 ace players, squad up with La-9 and Yak-3U against me, but despite this I am able to gain so many kills. The Ki-44 just has so much climb that it out-climb yak-3u in some altitude, and could out-turn ki-84 with flaps been used, the guns were almost 4x20mm class except when they hit yaks. The speed of this thing was enough to catch anything with the altitude it had gained, and the elevator does not compress. The only thing to stop this monster is the poor stalling characterstic.
I don’t see any reason for this thing to stay at 3.0 BR while ki-84 been placed at 5.0-6.0. Thought BR in SB is quite broken anyway.
I remember you are professional pilot with who hard to fight on any plane. So I don’t know how much Ki-44 helped here but it is strong plane, hard to argue with it
It was my first match with ki-44 in air SB, I would say if I was piloting F6F-5, I could only gain half amount of kills while suffering a lot from Yak-3U.
And yes this plane was not popular in SB, I saw lot people just made themselves killed in a spin. It’s a monster long been forgot.
Yes because it starts spinning if pull the handle too much towards yourself that’s why non-experienced pilots can crash
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People throwing themselves at you doesn’t make the Ki-44-II a 6.0 plane. He had every advantage except instantaneous turn.
I was 1v2 even 1v3 yak3u and la9, flown by two ace players squad, but still this 3.0 plane held on. This thing is way better than N1K2 at 6.3 and possibly ki84 except for level flight speed.
When comparing with ki84:
Ki44 has better climb rate.
Better roll rate. Better dive speed limit.
Better elevator authority, doesn’t compress at high speed.
Better turn radius, with better flap effectiveness. With flap this thing outturn a ki100/ki61tei.
Speed about equal to the N1K2,J2M3 and ki61ii.