ARISAKA question: Decommissioned & Thai-converted rifles...

[Teppo87]

I am on the hunt for a nice Type 38 Arisaka with the mum intact and unaltered and I am having a hard time. It seems that every time I see one posted for sale in Canada "with mum intact", it ends up being either a Thai-converted rifle in 30.06 or a decommissioned rifle in original 6.5x50 JAP with the mum altered by little circle stamps on eight corners of the imperial chrysanthemum stamp on the receiver. I've been told this was done on rifles sent back to Japan to be used in training schools during the war. I wonder if this was also done as part of the post war effort to deface the symbol before handing them over to non-Japanese hands. Can anyone tell me more about these and how they ended up in Canada; particularly on how and when they got here?

 

[Morc]

Ellwood Epps has a Type 38 for sale right now. I'm not sure if it's in the kind of condition you are looking for though but the mum is intact.

 

[Teppo87]

Thanks for the heads up. I saw it and its a decommissioned rifle in rough shape with yet again small circle stamps on the mum. It seems like there are more of those in Canada than there are rifles with unaltered mums. Be interesting to know the story behind why that is.

 

[eos]

Small circles indicate removed from Imperial Army service. There are a large batch of 27 series Nagoyas around which were allegedly supplied to the Thais so defaced.

 

[JP]

Majority of Japanese rifles in Canada came from two sources:

- Ex Thailand rifles originally purchase from Japan

- Communist Chinese People Militia's rifles taken from surrendering Japnase troops mostly defaced and in beat to death condition, those came in about 20-25 years ago.