Yesterday's Weapons Forums

This carbine has been in my collection longer than any other Japanese firearm I have. All of my stuff from the '60s & 70s went away over the years (most of it was mismatched crap anyway). I first saw this beauty at the Tulsa, OK show in about 1981 or 1982. A fella by the name of Blake Clore picked this up at that show. He later had it for sale at the Shawnee, OK Gun Show. He wanted $300 for it - an astronomical price at that time. I had to have it but, alas, was married & broke. A great guy that I barely knew, Harvey Zahler, had a table nearby & overheard me talking with Blake about this carbine. He called me aside & offered to loan me the money!!! I was amazed and honored with such trust. Thankfully, the wife wasn't too POed & he was promply repaid.
It's a Tokyo T-38 Carbine & is still the best condition one of these I've ever seen. It's fully matched by it's assembly number & has an untouched mum. I added the sling but it's Tokyo marked has the welted edges that early Japanese leather work had & I'm pretty sure it's correct for it.

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"A woman, a dog & a walnut tree. The more ya beat em, the better they be"
From the Red Badge of Courage
NRA Endowment (now Patron) Member

That is an absolute sweetheart!

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Mike

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin

"ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ" - King Leonidas I of Sparta

Visit "Smokeless Powder", my firearms and 2nd Amendment blog: http://fingolfen.blogspot.com

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"A woman, a dog & a walnut tree. The more ya beat em, the better they be"
From the Red Badge of Courage
NRA Endowment (now Patron) Member

That is one more nice one, I can see why its stayed with you so long. The first carbine I got I followed a fellow into the local hardware store, he was looking for ammo. Of course they had none but I talked to him and managed to make a trade for it. He wanted a 98 Mauser and I had one. Its not as nice as yours, but I've had it since the 60's. It' matching with a ground mum. Metal and wood in very good shape. I'll keep it. riceone.

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Mike

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin

"ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ" - King Leonidas I of Sparta

Visit "Smokeless Powder", my firearms and 2nd Amendment blog: http://fingolfen.blogspot.com

Mike, that is so true. Ever since I bought that carbine I've been looking for a worthy "big brother" to go with it. So, about 25 years later I found this guy & really had to slug it out on an auction site for it - I had to have it. It's apx. 1/4 of the way through Tokyo's production of over 2 million rifles. With it's 6 groove barrel, it was made before 1918. The thing is with these Tokyos is that condition is the rarity. Note the bruise in the stock above the trigger guard on the right side. It looks like this rifle was bundled up with wire. After capture or surrender??

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"A woman, a dog & a walnut tree. The more ya beat em, the better they be"
From the Red Badge of Courage
NRA Endowment (now Patron) Member

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Mike

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin

"ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ" - King Leonidas I of Sparta

Visit "Smokeless Powder", my firearms and 2nd Amendment blog: http://fingolfen.blogspot.com

fantastic rifles , you are so right - these are not seen often and those are keepers for sure

Thanks 10X10, you do see a lot of Tokyos - as you should - since they made so many of them. But you seldom see what they looked like when new. The same is true of the T-26 revolver. These guys lived hard lives.
Most T-38s have a soggy, rotten look to the wood. Hard to believe they all must have once looked like this one still does.

_________________
"A woman, a dog & a walnut tree. The more ya beat em, the better they be"
From the Red Badge of Courage
NRA Endowment (now Patron) Member