[Nyles]

I picked up a Kokura T-38 at a local gunshow a couple of weeks, ground mum and missing the dust cover but otherwise in great shape. It has, as far as I can tell, all early features, but the receiver markings seem out of the ordinary to me - strange marking before the serial that I don't recognise as a series marking, and the serial itself seems a little long. Also the barrel shank has a small circle in triangle and an S on the left side I couldn't get a good picture of. Anyone able to elighten me?

I got some ammo at the same show so I hope to shoot it once the cold snap starts. It's pictured with a Turked Gewehr 88 I got at the same show.

 

[Vicasoto]

Hello Nyles :

What you have is a nice Tokyo Arsenal Type - 38 rifle in the 1.6 million range. You are right it has all early 38 features and was probably made around 1918.
Besides the ground mum you don't say if there are other markings on top of the receiver so am assuming it is not a school or reserve marked rifle. Some attempt at marking in front of the serial number is there but looks more like an error or multiple strikes, never seen that before; it is not a series marking, Tokyo went over 2 million rifles before the manufacture was moved to Kokura in the mid-1920s.
Once the series marking was established in the 1930s no serial number would be higher than 99,999.
Hope that explains what you have, the original parts to this rifle were all numbered to a Kanji and two digit number stamped on the receiver under the stock.
Vicasoto

 

[Bushido101]

Thats a Neat T-38 And Like Vic said its a early one. Congratulations on a good snag. By the way that is a nice looking 88 also.

 

[JarrodM]

nice snag! thats a great 38 for your first one!

 

[arisakadogs]

Hello Nyles :
the original parts to this rifle were all numbered to a Kanji and two digit number stamped on the receiver under the stock.
Vicasoto

Actually that would be a 1-3 digit number with a Hiragana character preceding it
Looks like a nice pair of rifles!

 

[Nyles]

Thanks for the help and the kind words - as soon as I saw it I knew it had to have it, it's the first T-38 I've seen up here that wasn't in awful condition.

 

[arisakadogs]

Thanks for the help and the kind words - as soon as I saw it I knew it had to have it, it's the first T-38 I've seen up here that wasn't in awful condition.

Most have had a long, hard life.
Is there anything stamped between the mum & the T-38 markings?

 

[03man]

Nice start, now you need Frank Allan's T 38 book!

 

[Nyles]

Just the T-38 markings - it does have a pretty big split in the butt which was repaired using wood inserts (very well done work) right above where the two pieces join together.

Arisakas are actually really hard to find in Canada - I've only seen a handful of T-38s and as I said, they were all beaters. And come to think of it, the only T-99 I've ever seen up here is mine.