Rifle Type 38

were being produced it was mid-1944 and the invasion of Europe had taken place.
With the Allies safely ashore there was far less need for a silenced commando weapon and the order was cancelled. By then about 130 had been completed and issued, but as they lacked a role in Europe most were sent to the Far East, where they were used
JAPAN
by specialist units in Burma and elsewhere. Many were retained in the area after the war to see action once more during the Malayan Emergency. Some of these weapons did not have the solid butt of the earlier weapons, having instead a metal butt that folded under the weapon, This version had originally been produced for para-
chute troops, but only a small number was ever made. Very few De Lisle carbines now exist, even in the most comprehensive small-arms collections. Most of them appear to have been destroyed during the post-war years, probably as the result of their potential as assassination weapons.
Specification
De Lisle carbine Calibre: 11.43 mm (0.45 in) Length: 895 mm(35.25 in) Length of barrel: 184 mm (7.25 in) Weight: 3.74 kg (8.25 lb) Muzzle velocity: 253 m (830 ft) per second Magazine: 7-round box
Riue Type 38
The Rifle Type 38 was adopted for Imperial Japanese service in 1905 and was a development of two earlier rifles selected by a commission headed by one Colonel Arisaka, who gave his name to a whole family of Japanese service rifles, The Type 38 used a mixture of design points and principles taken from contemporary Mauser and Mannlicher designs, mixed with a few Japanese innovations. The result was a sound enough rifle that had a calibre of 6.5 mm (0.256 in). This relatively small calibre, coupled with a rather lowpowered cartridge, produced a rifle with a small recoil that exactly suited the slight Japanese stature. This fact was further aided by the Type 38 being a rather long rifle. When the rifle was used with a bayonet, as it usually was in action, this gave the Japanese soldier a considerable reach advantage for close-in warfare, but it also made the Type 38 a rather awkward rifle to handle. As well as being used by all the Japanese armed forces, the Type 38 was exported to such nations as Thailand, and was also used by several of the warring factions then prevalent in China. At one point during World War I the Type 38 was even purchased as a training weapon by the British army. A shorter version, the Carbine Type 38 was widely used, and there was a version with a folding butt for use by airborne troops. There was also a version of the Type 38 known as the Sniper's Rifle Type 97 which, apart from provision for a telescopic sight, had a revised bolt handle. During the 1930s the Japanese gradually adopted a new service cartridge of 7.7-mm (0.303-in) calibre, and the Type 38 was revised as the Rifle Type 99. The Type 99 had several new features, including a sight that was supposed to be effective for firing at aircraft, and a folding monopod to assist accuracy. A special paratroop model that could be broken down into two halves was devised but proved to be unreliable so it was replaced by a 'taken down' version known as the Parachutist's Rifle Type 2. Not many of these were made. Once the Pacific war was under way in 1942 the production standards of Japanese rifles and carbines deteriorated rapidly; any items that could be left off were so, and simplifications were introduced onto the lines. But overall standards went down to the point where some of the late production examples were virtually lethal to the user, many of them being constructed from very low-quality raw materials, both wood and metal, for the simple reason that the Allied blockade and air raids prevented the use of anything better. By the end the arsenals were reduced to producing very simple single-shot weapons firing 8-mm (0.315-in) pistol cartridges, or even
black-powder weapons. There was even a proposal to use long bows and crossbows firing explosive arrows. It was all a long way from the days when the Type 38 was one of the most widely used service rifles in the Orient.
Specification
Rifle Type 38 Calibre: 6.5 mm (0.256 in) Length: 1.275 m (50.2 in) Length of barrel: 797.5 mm (31 , 4 in) Weight: 4.2 kg (9.25 lb) Muzzle velocity: 731 m (2,400 ft) per second Magazine: 5-round box
The Type 99 was a m'onopod fitted version of the Type 38 employing the new 7.7-mm (0.303-in) calibre cartridge. The Japanese design utilized contemporary Mauser and Mannlicher features, and first appeared in 1905.
Japanese infantry assault the Yenanyaung oilfields in Burma. The great length of the Arisaka type rifle, especially with bayonet a ttached, is obvious. This made the weapon awkward to handle but gave the generally short-statured Japanese soldier an effective reach in close combat.
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Rifle Type 38

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were being produced it was mid-1944 and the invasion of Europe had taken place.

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