Origins: The Type 38 Rifle
The Meiji 38th Year rifle (Type 38) appeared in 1905 and was considered an improvement over the previous offerings of the 1897 and 1902 attempts. The bolt work followed more in line with the original Mauser design and featured a larger, easier-to-grab, bolt handle. A new cartridge with a pointed tip - the 38th Year Type, 6.5x50mm - was also introduced at the same time as the rifle. Some 3.4 million of the weapon were produced and included both a carbine and a cavalry form. The Type 38 went on to serve the Empire for thirty years as the army's rifle of choice. In fact, the Type 38 even served as the official primary service rifle of the British Army for a time. 1914 saw the British Army is a desperate search for quantitative service rifles for training to counter its growing wartime enlistment numbers. As such, the Arisaka rifle was selected for purchase and given British-applicable designations upon delivery: Rifle, Magazine, 256-caliber Pattern 1900; Rifle, Magazine, 256-caliber Pattern 1907; Carbine, Magazine, 256-caliber Pattern 1907.
Once Again, Combat Experience Forces Change
However, combat actions in the Sino-Japanese War between China and Japan of the late 1930's soon showcased the Japanese Army was, yet again, behind the technological curve. The Chinese 7.9mm cartridge proved superior to the 6.5mm and was notably better at range. As such, a new weapon would have to be devised for the Japanese Army to replace the outclassed Type 38 and put the Emperor's land army on equal footing with her adversaries.
The New 7.7x58mm Cartridge and the Type 99 Rifle
A new cartridge was soon under development and ultimately became the 7.7x58mm Arisaka round. After a short period of testing using modified Type 38 rifles and ironing out of teething issues, the Type 99 was born. The Type 99 appeared in 1939 and was similar to the Meiji 38th series with the major exception of it being chambered to fire the 7.7x58mm Arisaka cartridge. The type was meant to compete on the battlefield against similar 'Short Rifles' fielded by Japan's contemporaries but was also produced in an unwieldy 'Long Rifle' form. She was designed as a more affordable, easier-to-produce rifle system and proved the point particularly moreso towards the end of the World War 2 when resources across Japan proved quite scarce to come by.
Novel Features
Despite its intent to become the average infantryman rifle, the system maintained some rather interesting, albeit rather relatively useless, features that stood it apart from the rest. For one, the rifle was fitted with a rather fragile-looking monopod just under the foregrip body. The idea behind the addition was for a more accurized and stable firing platform when used against low-flying aircraft. The other similar addition inherent to the Type 99 design was in the form of an integrated sighting device ranged far enough to allow the rifleman to accurately sight these low-flying aircraft. While a novel concept, this was a rather optimistic attempt on the part of the designers. It did serve to show the concern of aerial attack by vulnerable infantry forces. The sighting mechanism was concentrated mostly to the rear sight implement and consisting of folding bars.
World At War
By the time full-scale war had broken out over the Pacific, the Type 99 was already in use by forces of the Imperial Japanese Army. However, production seemingly never caught up to full demand and forced the continued use of the older yet still reliable Type 38. Both were used concurrently while the Type 99 never fully replaced the Type 38 as it was intended to do.
The Mauser Rifle, Japanese Style
While the Type 99 was based on the original concepts brought forth by the Mauser design of Germany (most any bolt-action rifle of the time lent its history to the fabulous Mauser), it also showcased some indigenous ideas that tried to make for a better rifle. Rate-of-fire was slightly improved in the Type 99 by introducing a bolt action that would cock the rifle system on the close action rather than on the open motion. The bolt cover was rotatable and, while it was meant as an improvement, often led to Japanese soldiers simply discarding the feature for it tended to rattle during movement.
Nambu World: Arisaka Type 2 Paratroop Rifle
The Type 2 Paratroop rifle is basically a take-down version of the Type 99 Arisaka rifle. It fires the 7.7mm X 58 Arisaka cartridge. The Japanese experimented with several versions of paratroop rifles, including ones with folding stocks and an interrupted thread-style take-down before settling on this one, which has a screw-in wedge that holds the two halves together (the system will be described in great detail below with close-up photos). The Type 2 is the only paratroop rifle that was produced in any real quantity (i.e. more than a few hundred), and even it is rare, with only about 21,200 known to have been produced. The model designation comes from the year based on the Japanese system that counted from the date of the mythological founding of the Japanese Empire by Emperor Jimmu in 660 B.C. By this system, the Western year 1942 when the gun was adopted was 2602, with the 'two' becoming the model designation. Actual production began in late 1943. I was very lucky to acquire this rifle in late 2008 from the daughter of the U.S. veteran who brought it back. It came with the 'bring back' document and a few other items that he brought back. These are shown further down the page together with a brief summary of the soldier's story. The gun is all matching, and although the 'mum' has been ground, it appears to be in unissued condition. Immediately below is a view of the left side. Overall length is 1120mm(44-1/8'). The barrel is 649mm (25-1/16') when measured as required by Canadian law (rod down the barrel with the bolt closed).
The Japanese did not make very extensive use of paratroopers and development of specialized weapons for them also lagged. According to the Fred Honeycutt book Military Rifles of Japan, (pp. 134-135), the experiences of the airborne attack on Palembang in Sumatra, Dutch East Indies, February 13-15, 1942 may have provided the impetus for the Japanese to get serious about paratroop weapons. In that battle, the airborne troops were equipped with standard rifles that were dropped in separate canisters and ended up landing in swamps some distance from the men, who then had to fight with just pistols, bayonets and grenades. The exploits of this intrepid, if unlucky, unit were immortalized in a dramatic painting by Goro Tsuruta (1890-1969; Tsuruta is the surname). For more on Mr. Tsuruta, see Goro Tsuruta | IFPDA). This image appeared in a magazine and also on postcards. Here is the postcard version. The caption on the left says 'Paratroopers landing in Palembang. Army sent to Sumatra region. Goro Tsuruta. With the permission of the Ministry of the Army.' The back says 'Issued by the Army Museum Association'.
Now I know you are dying to see how the gun comes apart, so here is a teaser: right and left shots of the gun in two pieces. In the first one you will note a screw with a D-ring through it at the front of the bottom (rear) half. Turning that is what loosens the wedge so the gun can come apart. But more on that later..
Let's start our detailed tour with the markings. Here is the top of the receiver. As noted above, the Imperial chrysanthemum, usually shortened by collectors to the 'mum', has been ground off, but you can still see some around the edges. The grinding of the mums was reportedly done to spare the Emperor the embarrassment of having his symbol fall into enemy hands (actually the Japanese always either cancelled the mum or ground it off on weapons that were withdrawn from active service in the Imperial Army or Imperial Navy, even when they were sent to allies or to other departments of the Japanese government). Below that are two kanji characters, ni-shiki, or 'Type 2'. The hole below that is a vent hole for gases to escape in the event of a case rupture. All Japanese rifles had this feature. The earlier Type 38s had two holes; when the Type 99 was introduced, they decided one would do (the Type 2 is a derivative of the Type 99).
The serial number, 16776, is on the left side of the receiver. Since total production was a little over 22,000, this one was made about 3./4 of the way through the production run. The mark after the number is the Nagoya Arsenal logo. Nagoya was the only arsenal to make these rifles. The small square in the upper right of the photo is actually a partially struck kanji character na (as in Nagoya), which was used by Nagoya Arsenal as an inspection mark.
The two halves and the barrel are also marked on the left side with an assembly number, in this case 775. This number bears no relation to the serial number; it is only a coincidence that it is so close in this case.
OK, so how do you get it apart, and what holds it together? At the far right of this photo you can see a round knob with a D-ring through it. That is the knob that you have to undo to take it apart. A couple of turns counterclockwise will do it. Then the wedge that holds the two halves together slides out to the right. If it is stuck and WD-40 or something similar won't loosen it, then you may have to undertake drastic measures. This one was completely jammed when I got it, but I think I did more than necessary to get it apart. I removed the sheet metal protective guard and the D-ring and then wrapped the knob in cloth and used a pair of pliers to get enough torque on it to turn it. I probably could have just removed the D-ring and left the protective sheet metal guard in place. Live and learn.
Here is the connecting part of the front half. Note the indexing hole to the right of the photo (it's below the barrel when the gun is oriented normally instead of being on its side). There is a peg on the front part of the rear half that fits in that hole to line things up. Now, take a look at the bottom of the barrel. See that notch? That's what the wedge fits into to hold the two halves together. The next photo shows it from a better angle.