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last ditch jap gun safe to shoot?
- Thread starter rbf420
- Start date
kilimanjaro
New member
Some 'last ditch' rifles have merely cosmetic flaws and lack of finish work, but definitely take it to a gunsmith and have it headspaced and function-tested. Until then, keep it to conversation piece status.
young mosin
New member
they should be safe to shoot. just very rushed and ugly looking
Last edited:
Hi, tater134,
I have never seen any Japanese rifle marked "Emergency Use." Could you draw or describe the Japanese characters that were used on those.
Perhaps there is some confusion with training rifles, which were not "for emergency" but were never intended for firing live ammunition.
A Japanese rifle that appears to be a Type 38 or a Type 99 and does not have the normal model markings and either a "mum" or a ground area might be a training rifle. These were meant for training in the equivalent of our High School ROTC and were made for firing only blanks. Some are marked "Blank cartridges only" in Japanese, but none of mine are marked at all. The barrels are normally bored so large that they are not dangerous with live ammo, but use is certainly NOT recommended. The receivers are cast iron, the barrels are made in two pieces, and the bolts often have small or no locking lugs.
Jim
I have never seen any Japanese rifle marked "Emergency Use." Could you draw or describe the Japanese characters that were used on those.
Perhaps there is some confusion with training rifles, which were not "for emergency" but were never intended for firing live ammunition.
A Japanese rifle that appears to be a Type 38 or a Type 99 and does not have the normal model markings and either a "mum" or a ground area might be a training rifle. These were meant for training in the equivalent of our High School ROTC and were made for firing only blanks. Some are marked "Blank cartridges only" in Japanese, but none of mine are marked at all. The barrels are normally bored so large that they are not dangerous with live ammo, but use is certainly NOT recommended. The receivers are cast iron, the barrels are made in two pieces, and the bolts often have small or no locking lugs.
Jim
Heres a link to photos of one I found through a quick google search.
http://www.japanesecollector.com/apps/photos/photo/prev?photoid=32860671
This is only the second one Ive seen in photos.I believe the pictured rifle belongs to a collector in PA and according to what Ive read about these there are fewer than 20 known examples.I didnt even know they existed until recently.
http://www.japanesecollector.com/apps/photos/photo/prev?photoid=32860671
This is only the second one Ive seen in photos.I believe the pictured rifle belongs to a collector in PA and according to what Ive read about these there are fewer than 20 known examples.I didnt even know they existed until recently.
The word on the rifle is pronounced and written in English as OU.
It has several meanings in this Kanji but I think, in this case,
"Respond" would be a good translation for this word.
If there's problem; if other people felt strange, just let me know.
I think there's something lost in the translation and I'll write her for the other meanings of OU.
I would be sure the bolt matches the gun before any kind of firing, if the bolt is the correct one for the gun, you can maybe assume to some degree that the headspace is correct, but still you might want to check that aspect. Just be sure of what you have there. IMO the best ones to shoot would be earlier production rifles with the chromed bores(type99). I know there were issues with surrendered Mausers having mixed matched bolts, but that might not even matter if the headspace is fine. The same might have happened with Japanese rifles, gun in this pile, bolts in this pile, grab one of each and move on.....
For what it's worth
Here's her reply.
Here's her reply.
OU's other meaning is that accept, agree, answer, similar to, and so on. It depends on how it is used in the sentence.
That rifle is interesting, and I have never seen one before. It appears to be a combination of old parts and newly made crude parts. The bolt handle seems to indicate an earlier bolt, and the stock is decent, better than the barrel or bands. The Germans did much the same thing, factories throwing together previously rejected and trash heap parts with new production. The ejector/bolt stop is neat; crude, but probably effective.
I have no idea what the Japanese symbol means, but just a thought that the term "response" could mean response to an emergency (US invasion) so the "emergency" translation could be accurate enough. I don't think the meaning would be "use only in an emergency it might blow up" but more likely "our response to a national emergency". All of that is, of course, purest supposition.
Jim
I have no idea what the Japanese symbol means, but just a thought that the term "response" could mean response to an emergency (US invasion) so the "emergency" translation could be accurate enough. I don't think the meaning would be "use only in an emergency it might blow up" but more likely "our response to a national emergency". All of that is, of course, purest supposition.
Jim
Arisaka
I have an Arisaka that is supposed to be a last ditch rifle and a don't shoot warning. It has a peep sight in front of the receiver and no cleaning rod or place for a cleaning rod. The butt plate is wood and there is one hole in the receiver. The bore is shiny after i got the grease out of it. The bolt cover is still there and the bolt handle is plum shaped. The mum was ground off before i got it. I tracked the rifle to the factory but don't remember what it was. I have not tried to fire this rifle since the warning of blown up receivers. Does any body have any ideas about firing safety?
I have an Arisaka that is supposed to be a last ditch rifle and a don't shoot warning. It has a peep sight in front of the receiver and no cleaning rod or place for a cleaning rod. The butt plate is wood and there is one hole in the receiver. The bore is shiny after i got the grease out of it. The bolt cover is still there and the bolt handle is plum shaped. The mum was ground off before i got it. I tracked the rifle to the factory but don't remember what it was. I have not tried to fire this rifle since the warning of blown up receivers. Does any body have any ideas about firing safety?
young mosin
New member
all i have to say is get it checked by a gun smith. it may be a EMERGENCY ONLY model or just a very late last ditch.
I have a so-called "last ditch" just as Alaska describes, and have fired it. Not only didn't it blow up, it shot 2" groups at 100 yds. Hardly a piece of junk or worthless, just a rifle pared down to the bare bones minimum. I am glad Americans did not have to invade Japan and face those "junk" rifles.
Jim
Jim
Gunplummer
New member
Last ditch
I never saw a picture of that before either. I have seen one that had a cast receiver and was a really late design. It had an oversize receiver ring and the bolt locked into the barrel. It was not a school gun, but a real last of the ditches gun. It was quite a while back and I don't remember if it had markings on it or not. As for firing last ditch rifles, stay away from Korean and Chinese made models. Some of the machining on them is really sad looking.
I never saw a picture of that before either. I have seen one that had a cast receiver and was a really late design. It had an oversize receiver ring and the bolt locked into the barrel. It was not a school gun, but a real last of the ditches gun. It was quite a while back and I don't remember if it had markings on it or not. As for firing last ditch rifles, stay away from Korean and Chinese made models. Some of the machining on them is really sad looking.