Just came across a WW2 Japanese rifle I bought from a friend who had gun passed down to him whose fallen on hard times.

Will post pics when I get home of the gun, from what little I've read it's rather rare to find them with the mums not filed off and serial numbers, this one has all of them.

Can anyone provide any additional info on pricing/collectibility, etc.

A link below to a identical gun without the mums:

https://www.gunsamerica.com/949474612/JAPANESE-ARISAKA-TYPE-99-7-7-JAP-WWII-RIFLE.htm

I've got one and I've entertained thoughts of firing it fire several times, but it's such a POS that it makes me nervous.

The action and everything on this one look functional but I'm not trying it either.

If he is really a "friend" I would say keep it in the safe and sell it back or pass it on to his kids one day. Guns are worth $300-600 depending on quality and how long you are willing to wait for a buyer. Story and history are worth more than the gun IMO.

JH06 said:

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If he is really a "friend" I would say keep it in the safe and sell it back or pass it on to his kids one day. Guns are worth $300-600 depending on quality and how long you are willing to wait for a buyer. Story and history are worth more than the gun IMO.

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Not necessarily trying to sell, I'm trying to get info on it. I planned to hang on to it for a little while to give him a chance to get it right, I gave him way more for it than his typical crowd would.

I've had several Arisakas over the years. The fact that yours has the mum intact on the front receiver ring means that it was a war trophy brought home by some GI. The ones surrendered by the Japs at the end of the war all had the mum crudely ground off. Several variants exist, some with wire monopods, some with crude side swinging sights for shooting at airplanes, etc.

Generally they appear very crudely made. Especially the late war "Last Ditch" models. VERY roughly made and with bamboo laminated stocks that are now de-laminating and giving the appearance of being junk rifles.

These rifles are actually about the strongest Mauser military actions ever built. Lots have been rebuilt into sporters but their lack of a convenient safety has always been a hindrance. The safety on these is that big knurled knob at the rear of the action. You pressed on it with the heel of your hand and then rotated it off and on. The cock on closing feature was also disliked by some,

Back when I was shooting NRA Highpower I had an old Arisaka beater with an original chrome lined bore. It looked like hell but shot extremely well. It was a 7.7 and I formed cases from .30/06 and reloaded it with bullets I had on hand for a .303 British. It was long and heavy and made a great offhand practice rifle.

Prices on these are subjective and for a long time they were worthless, you couldn't give one away. But over the years they, and all military rifles, have become very collectable. Its value depends on its condition and the arsenal it was made at, I would guess $200.00 for a good shooter grade with ground mum to $600-$700 for a truly pristine model.

https://imgur.com/a/g4IRV0t

Back in the late 80s I was on a deer lease with a cantankerous old coot that shot a restocked, 6.5 Arisaka. Shot dime sized groups all day long.

Are the actions pretty good on these? If I hang on to it I'd love to convert it over. I've read conflicting opinions.

A story I read years ago about fail tests for WWII bolt actions said that the Arisaka beat them all. This includes the US Springfield and the German 98 Mauser. From this standpoint and what I mentioned earlier it would be a good conversion. The lack of aftermarket parts would be a downside. Grain of salt, I have been out of the conversion game for several years now.

"Ackley also tested the ultimate yield strength of various military bolt-action rifle actions by blowing them up with incremental blue-pill loads. Because cheap military suprplus bolt actions were popular for sporting conversions, Ackley thought it germane to see which ones were safe for expected handloads. He did them allMosins, Lee-Enfields, M1917 Enfields, Mausers, Springfields and the Japanese Arisaka. The winner, hands down, was the Japanese Type 99 Arisaka."

More at P.O. Ackley

My Dad (Navy) picked one up from a pile they had to choose from, when they landed in Japan. I have two copies of the Navy papers (choice of 3: handgun/sword/rifle) stating what he was allowed to bring home. He "semi" sporterized it, and it was his primary deer rifle (Norma ammo) for 20 yrs until he acquired a Sears (Marlin) 30-30. As mentioned, the safety is a beast. I recently bought some Hornady ammo (special run for Graf's) for it, just to have in inventory.

GSS said:

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"Ackley also tested the ultimate yield strength of various military bolt-action rifle actions by blowing them up with incremental blue-pill loads. Because cheap military suprplus bolt actions were popular for sporting conversions, Ackley thought it germane to see which ones were safe for expected handloads. He did them allMosins, Lee-Enfields, M1917 Enfields, Mausers, Springfields and the Japanese Arisaka. The winner, hands down, was the Japanese Type 99 Arisaka."

More at P.O. Ackley

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That's exactly what I was referring to. Glad to know my memory is still somewhat functional.

Will someone post a link to ammo for these things? Where's a good place to buy?

https://www.midwayusa.com/77x58mm-japanese-arisaka/br?cid=10465

https://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item/0001320177202/7point7-japanese-sp-174-grain-american-ph-20-rounds?Tk=DFAM

https://redriverreloading.com/ammo/centerfire-rifle-ammo/product/209659-steinel-77-japanese-arisaka-150gr-spitzer-sp-ammunition-20.html

AggieFabricator said:

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Are the actions pretty good on these? If I hang on to it I'd love to convert it over. I've read conflicting opinions.

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For the love of all that is pure and holy, don't sporterize an intact-mum T99. There are plenty of basic stripped surplus Mauser actions and bolts out there to play around with.

Thank you