World War II Database

Country of Origin	Japan
Type	Rifle
Caliber	6.500 mm
Capacity	5 rounds
Length	1.280 m
Barrel Length	800.000 mm
Weight	4.300 kg
Rate of Fire	30 rounds/min
Muzzle Velocity	765 m/s

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe Arisaka Type 38 bolt-action rifles, also known as Meiji 38th Year (1905) rifles, were the standard infantry rifles of the pre-WW2 Japanese Army. They were the longest rifles among their contemporaries even before the 400-mm Type 30 bayonets were attached, making them rather unwieldy; the length of the rifles reflected the emphasis of bayonet fighting in Japanese Army doctrine during that era. A shorter carbine version of the rifle was also manufactured, used mainly by cavalry units and non-frontline troops; the carbines were only 966-mm in length. In addition to being the standard rifles in pre-WW2 Japan, they were also exported; the Czech Legion that fought in the Russian Revolution, for example, carried Arisaka Type 38 rifles, among other weapons. They were also used in the British Royal Navy, the Russian Army, and in Finland.

By the mid-1930s, however, it was clear that the design was becoming outdated, and resources were invested to create that would become the Arisaka Type 99 rifles, which entered production in 1939. The two models served concurrently in the Japanese Army. Many captured Arisaka Type 38 rifles were also used in neighboring countries as they become captured. Many Chinese troops, both Nationalist and Communist, used captured Arisaka Type 38 rifles against the Japanese during the Second Sino-Japanese War.

Manufacturing of Arisaka Type 38 rifles did not cease until the end of WW2, but existing models remained in service. After WW2, they saw action during the Chinese Civil War with both sides and the Korean War with the Communist Chinese forces. In all, 3,400,000 Arisaka Type 38 rifles were built.

Source: Wikipedia. ww2dbase

Last Major Revision: Nov 2007

Arisaka Type 38 Rifle Interactive Map

Photographs

See all 30 photographs of Arisaka Type 38 Rifle

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