I need help to identify Japanese rifle.

[arado]

need identification. I acquired this rifle in 1966. I have found no info on the "M" on the receiver ring. Is anybody aware of it's meaning? Thanks, gary

Information

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[Aragorn243]

It's a school rifle so the symbol is probably the symbol of the school.

[NRA]

I have never seen a school rifle marked were the mum was?

"These were used by reserve units made up of former/retired soldiers"

[Patrick Chadwick]

From the "M" going towards the breech, the symbols mean 3 8 type = Type 38.
The splayed out "M" does not appear to be one of the standard kanji symbols.
The rifle was made at Nagoya Arsenal (symbol after the 5-figure number).

[Aragorn243]

It has the double 0 in front of the serial denoting school use. I saw on another post that the splayed out M is a reserve symbol.

[vintage hunter]

The 00 or 000 in front of the s/n doesn't necessarily denote school use. It simply indicates the rifle was at some point removed from service use. Some were transferred to schools and some were sold to other countries. This one looks to be a Nagoya series 28 as far as I can tell. I have read that rifles in this series have been observed with the mum removed and either an elongated M or school mark substituted or mum overstamped with the Nagoya symbol, elongated M or other characters. The elongated M denotes reserve use.

[arado]

This has one more element pointed out to me. There was never a Mum. This rifle was apparently never in Hirohito"s service. That would have included schools and retirees...It was never surrendered, How did the Japanese in Manchuria go home when the war ended?

[seabot2]

This has one more element pointed out to me. There was never a Mum. This rifle was apparently never in Hirohito"s service. That would have included schools and retirees...It was never surrendered, How did the Japanese in Manchuria go home when the war ended?

I agree with the above. Could be at some point during production, this receiver failed an inspection test. Rather than destroy it, it was stamped for reserve use. Just guessing.

[NRA]

to me it looks like the mum has been scrubbed

[arado]

The rifle never had a MUM. It was manufactured and supplied to Puyi's army. The emperor of Manchukuo. A puppet country created by Japan. The "M" was his "mum". Long live the Internet. I did not have it in 1966 when I first researched this rifle. Gary.....