I need a little advise

I am primarily a collector (some might say an accumulator) of US military firearms for a long time and am aware of what the going prices are for '03's, Carbines, Garands, etc..

However lately I have become interested in other firearms. My local gun store got a a type 38 carbine in on consignment. It is a 5th series Nagoya in what I consider to be very good condition. The bluing is about 95-98% and there is just a few handling marks on the stock. The only issue is that it has a partially ground mum.

What I am trying to figure out is what it's worth. I know that there is a premium for matching number guns, but a hit on the value for those that have had the mum defaced or ground off. so the question is, what's it worth?

I have been thinking of offering him $400 OTD, but I don't know if that is too much, or in line with what the going rate for them is. Bear in mind that I am in the Peoples Republic of California and guns seem to be a bit more expensive out here.

Since I know that this thread is useless without pictures, here is what it looks like.

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...MG1426XL-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...MG1428XL-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...MG1429XL-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...MG1431XL-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...MG1430XL-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...MG1416XL-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...MG1432XL-1.jpg

Nice looking rifle overall. Partially defaced mum detracts a bit but that is offset to some degree by the condition of the blue and the wood and having a cleaning rod. Lots of west coasters about who can chip in on the PROC price diffrential.

Good looking piece and nice to see that cleaning rod in place. What does that bore look like ?

Up here in the northeast, a carbine like that would go between $350 and $425 depending on

the condition of the bore.

Bore is excellent, possibly even unfired. I forgot to look at the bolt face to see if if a cartridge was ever even chambered.

I expect it's been fired, quite a bit. The Japanese weren't likely to let a rifle sit around unused. Early versions of these have chrome bores so they generally all look pretty good. As for exterior condition, not bad but fairly typical. The mum is defaced/ground, doesn't really matter that you can still see the outline. Matching numbers are a plus.

There is no way I would offer $400 for a rifle in that condition with a ground mum. That's a $200-$300 rifle where I live and one very similar is sitting on the rack at a local gun shop unsold for $299. I have seen similar condition rifles with mums for $300-$400 and rifles with dust covers and monopods for $400-$450.

it is a matching bolt, but at 400 is a tad high

Well, it may have been shot, but I can't see any evidence of it having been carried very much. I didn't take any pictures of the magazine floor plate (where it would have been grasped when carrying it), but the bluing is very close to 100%. There are no wear marks on the stock. I think that most of the dings in the wood are a combination of the soft wood these have and careless handling. I have seen many of these that are true battlefield captures and there is always darkening around the raw spots in the wood. The ding below the serial number just looks too fresh to have been done nearly seventy years ago.

I do value everyone's input on the value of this rifle. As I said, I know the US military market fairly well, but what a type 38 carbine is worth is somewhat of a mystery to me. I feel that the price is probably inflated somewhat since it is on consignment in a gun shop. People tend to think they have to get more for their guns to offset the commission they have to pay. The $400 OTD I was going to offer is considerably less than what someone would pay if they were to give them the asking price.

I was only interested in it because I see very few carbines compared to the number of rifles I run into, and it is complete with the cleaning rod.

Remember I am in the PRC and EVERYTHING is a bit more expensive on the left coast.

I say go for it, they do not come along every day.

Figured I'd look it up since I have the price guide. Peterson's price for a type 38 carbine in Very Good condition, which this may be, is $300 assuming matching numbers and intact mum. No rifle with a ground mum meets the excellent standard. Good condition is $175 assuming again, matching numbers and intact mum. A rifle can meet very good standards with a ground mum but must be near perfect in all other areas. Now he says there is no set percentage deduction for a ground mum or mismatched numbers but from personal experience at auctions, that ground mum knocks $60-$100 off that rifle.

I'm not trying to discourage you at all, just letting you know that you can probably, with a bit of patience, get a much better rifle for that price. I know what the bug feels like, been there and it's taken me a while to get over it and it's been paying off for me. I'm finding good rifles at good to excellent prices.

I once found a real nice T-99 at the LGS and he wanted just to much. It was on consignment and I told the shop salesman to give the owner a call and see if he would take the price I felt it's worth. He called and I walked out with a much better deal. That won't happen every time but worth a try.