Author Topic: T38 Jap moving up the list!! (Read 573 times)

S.S. · « **on:** October 28, 2004, 06:40:53 AM »

The T38 I recently aquired is steadily moving up the list
of my favorite milsurp!!!!!
This thing is an absolute pleasure to shoot.
Accuracy is great, hardly no recoil, and it isn't even very loud!
I have just gotten a substantial supply of brass from GRAF
so ammo should no longer be a problem. loading is a 120
gr. .264 Speer psp at 2500 fps. Now if I can just get Bambi
to stay still for just a second longer..........."Stay tuned"

1911crazy · « **Reply #1 on:** October 28, 2004, 10:38:25 AM »

Sounds great your having some fun with your new toy?? Does this mean i'm going to find one too? Another new caliber for me to get too. Eveytime you mention a new gun I seem to find one sooner or later. I passed on so many JAP rifles in the past year in both small bore and the larger bores too. I'll check the show here in December I remember a guy having some 6,5's in the rack and when i first looked at them(bore) I thought they were swedes. BigBill

Oldtimer · « **Reply #2 on:** October 28, 2004, 02:54:54 PM »

The early-war Japanese rifles were some tough guns. I recall reading a sotry about a man who complained about the recoil of the Japanese rifle he had rechambered to .30-06. He forgot to open up the bore, and the bolt had to be hammered open. He had managed to fire several rounds of .30-06 down a .254 bore before the gun locked up. When the action was checked, no damage was found. I have a 7.7 that my father-in-law brought back from the South Pacific. It has adjustable sights, a chrome bore, and even the dust cover, which makes me think that it was unissued. Unfortunately, the chrysanthemum is ground, so it is not in perfect condition. I have shot it enough to know that it is one accurate piece. Col. Askins was right: the only interesting gun is an accurate one.

kevin.303 · « **Reply #3 on:** October 28, 2004, 06:38:47 PM »

i passed on one for $40 last year and have kicked my self ever since. buddy of mine bought it for $20 and found a dust cover and full wood stock for $50. so in total it cost $70 for a an original looking rifle.

1911crazy · « **Reply #4 on:** October 29, 2004, 03:37:30 AM »

Lastyear there was a guy at a gunshow who had a table full of JAP 7.7 rifles at $50 each!!! I wasn't interested back then. BigBill

Oldtimer · « **Reply #5 on:** October 30, 2004, 10:26:27 AM »

The very early 7.7's had a commercial blue finish, and adjustable sights, but a plain bore. When the Japanese took New Guinea, they discovered that the dampness made the bores rust out in no tome, so they began to chrome the bores. Later in the war, they made some really dangerous guns, and they are marked by the nonadjustable sights. I understand that there were some training rifles that had smooth bores and cast receivers. Needless to say, firing a round through them would be like holding a grenade to your ear so you could be sure to hear if it went off.

alpini · « **Reply #6 on:** October 31, 2004, 05:41:30 AM »

Some of the last ditch rifles are the ones that are commanding the highest prices. The later series 7.7s are some of the hardest to find because of their crude construction. A lot of them never made it over here because of that. I'm trying to get this picture of my uncle standing on top of a pile of arisakas 6 ft high that are ready to be dumped in Tokyo Harbor 1947 or so. He said tons of them were dumped and he could have his pick.
I kinda like the chunky crude look of these things. Chatter marks and rough lathe work and welds to me show the historical desparity Japan was in during the last years. I think Old Timer is correct in it could be dangerous to fire the cast action arisakas and for sure in trainers. Don't overlook the last ditch rifles, they are for collecting not shooting in my opinion and can bring in high prices.
My favorite arisaka is a mid-war 7.7, it's my shooter. Matching numbers and ground mum, it's my example of the WW2 Japanese arisaka for shooting.

S.S. · « **Reply #7 on:** November 01, 2004, 07:21:35 AM »

If I would have known how accurate these things were,
I would have bought one long ago! I loaded some 120 gr.
Speer PSP's over 31 grains IMR 3031 in GRAF brass.
(If any of you ever load this cartridge, Magnum Primers will not
seat flush and thus cause the case to stick in your shell-holder ?
STANDARD PRIMERS ONLY)
I only had time to load a few and get outside to test them
before it got dark. I fired a few just to make sure they
would shoot ok, Then I fired the last 3 rounds to see what kind of group
I could get. I was shooting at a little less than 100 yards in low light
with the standard sights that came on the rifle. The last 3 bullet holes
could have easily been covered with a quarter. I was very impressed.
The "VERY EXPENSIVE" 156 Gr. Norma ammo that I had shot previously
Didn't do anywhere near that well.
Needless to say,
I Likes it !!!
I Likes it a LOT !!!

ajj · « **Reply #8 on:** November 01, 2004, 10:29:20 AM »

Hmmmm. For a guy who just had to be different and knew how to scare up a reamer, this would make a pretty nice highpower silhouette cartridge!

kombi1976 · « **Reply #9 on:** November 01, 2004, 11:59:16 AM »

I'm not surprised that the Norma load wasn't that effective. Chuck Hawks writes that the 156gn bullet limits the trajectory and hitting power in a pretty negative way.
Out of interest, where is GRAF brass made?
I could only find Norma brass on the net and I'd imagine I'd be paying close to $1 per case for it.
Your thread is seriously making me consider getting a M38 carbine at some point.

S.S. · « **Reply #10 on:** November 02, 2004, 02:52:58 AM »

I actually bought the brass off of e-bay,
but here is the website.
http://www.grafs.com/bulkByBagQty.cfm/startItem/1
I am not sure who actually makes the brass for them.