Japanese Arisaka stock markings

[Screamin Scott]

Just found this thread....I also have an old Arisaka rifle my Father sent home from the Philippines. Supposedly he shot the soldier who used it (he was a BAR shooter during WW2)...Here are links to a couple of images of it...Any other info would be appreciated...It's stock looks in better shape than the one that started this thread...I know it was common practice for the Japanese to use 2 pieces in their stocks...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/5791595...otolist-dwrjdB

http://www.flickr.com/photos/screaminscott/8221792550/

I was told it was unusual to get samples that didn't have the Chrysanthemum ground off

[Josh Beckett]

It's not unusual, but intact mums usually bring the value up some (this always factors in at the high end of the spectrum though for me, a refinished gun or a mismatch the mum doesn't matter much to me), but give me a complete matching early 99, then I'll definitely pay a premium for a mummed example over a ground example. With my collection, half have mums and the other half are ground or otherwise defaced.

Your dad mailed home a very nice type 38 carbine. It's got the mum and original finish, which is a huge plus. Are the numbers matching? Also, do you know the arsenal?

[Screamin Scott]

It's not unusual, but intact mums usually bring the value up some (this always factors in at the high end of the spectrum though for me, a refinished gun or a mismatch the mum doesn't matter much to me), but give me a complete matching early 99, then I'll definitely pay a premium for a mummed example over a ground example. With my collection, half have mums and the other half are ground or otherwise defaced.

Your dad mailed home a very nice type 38 carbine. It's got the mum and original finish, which is a huge plus. Are the numbers matching? Also, do you know the arsenal?

If I'm looking in the correct place, the last 3 numbers up near where the cleaning rod is (bayonet lug?) are the same as the last 3 of the the number stamped on the breech... The arsenal is Nagoya...Oh, the story I was told was that my Dad shot a sniper out of a tree & this was the weapon he had used. I would have thought it would have been a longer rifle.

[Screamin Scott]

OK, now I've gone & done something stupid...I opened up the bolt & removed the bolt end/safety. Like an idiot, I closed the bolt without replacing the safety. Now I cannot get the bolt back out & can't put the bolt end/safety back on ....Help !!!

[Josh Beckett]

There is a way to unlock the bolt, but I've never done it so i wouldn't know how to describe it. It happens quite a bit, don't feel to bad about it. It's usually done by incorrectly reassembling the bolt.

Snipers had scoped weapons. I'd say this was just a regular joe snuffy (Japanese joe snuffy) in the tree. I have a rifle that was picked up on Iwo from a "sniper" during mop up after the battle, it's a regular 37th series type 99. The coolest part is, it's the only rifle I got while stationed in Kansas and I got it off the vet. His squad was mopping up late in the battle, and came under fire from a pill box by a single rifleman, it killed his squad leader, and wounded him enough to where he had to be evacuated. When he got home, his mother had a box that was addressed to him from one of his buddies, it had the rifle that had wounded him and killed his squad leader in it along with some other items that have gone missing with time. He told me his grandkids could care less about the rifle, so he wanted it to go to a collector who could appreciate it. I bought it as I was leaving the gun show and he was coming in.