Arisaka Type 38 Serial Number Dates
Firearm Technical Trivia, September 2000 CRUFFLER.COM presents Firearms Technical Trivia, September 2000: Arisaka Rifle Collector's Guide by In the late 19th Century, Imperial Japan joined other industrial nations in equipping its military forces a repeating bolt-action rifle that fired smokeless powder cartridges. This rifle became known as the Arisaka rifle, after the man in charge of selecting them, Lieutenant Colonel Nariakira Arisaka. From its adoption in the 30th year of the Meiji emperor (that's 1895 to those of you who don't speak Imperial Japanese dates) to the end of the World War Two (1945), the Arisaka served as Imperial Japan's main longarm in one form or another for fifty years. Although many were brought back by American GI's during and immediately after World War Two as souvenirs, they have never achieved the same degree of collectability as the German K98 Mauser rifles. This is due in part to the relative scarcity of ammunition chambered for these rifles, and the unearned reputation for poor quality resulting from the very dangerous practice of firing standard ammunition through training rifles. Times have changed, however, and there is a growing interest in Arisaka rifles by historians, crufflers, and people who wonder just what kind of rifle they found in their grandfather's attic. This is a primer for those wishing to know more about the Arisaka rifles and should be enough to help someone identify rifles of interest.