"Never issued, only a handful actually completed" Soon to be featured in the next call of duty where you find one on every other dead Japanese soldier

watching this made me remember about my grandfather's experience in the coastal defense forces during the last few month of war. He was fifteen at the time and decided to volunteer for the coastal defense unit after his house was destroyed during one of numerous air raids. He told me that when he first joined he thought he was going to get standard issue rifle just like any other IJA units. but he was instead given bamboo stick and two anti tank mines and was told to charge and stab the enemy soldier then blow himself up against enemy tank using the mines. Every time he was drunk he told me that it was at that moment he knew japan lost the war and is glad that he never needed to pay for the stupid decision he made to join the coastal defense unit

A Garasaka ?

That rear sight gives a whole new meaning to pin point accuracy.

Once, Arashiyama museum in Kyoto, Japan, had a type 4 rifle. However, the museum was shut down in 1991. So, no one knows where the rifle is gone. But, I heard an unconfirmed rumor that a retired JSDF personnel has the rifle now.

"Mom, can we have an M1 Garand?" "No, we have the M1 Garand at home" M1 Garand at home:

Fascinating that the Japanese used joinery on their rifle stocks, clearly influenced by the carpentry in their architecture. They certainly know their woodwork...

I'd bet the pin hole rear sight was just a locating hole that never got drilled out to the final diameter. I'm sure it was rushed through and someone thought they would get back to that step and it never happened.

If you ever played Battlefield 1942 back in 2003 this was the rifle they gave the Japanese to "balance out" the combat on all the pacific maps vs the US's M1 Garand. I remember being 14 and reading about these way back then. Thanks for sharing!

A garand that does not go *ping* after ejecting the clip is not a real garand

Had to pass one of these up at a big gun show back around 1987. I knew what it was, but was un-employed at the time. Price: $700. Now worth $15K - $20K. Maybe more. Sniff Sniff.

It's astonishing the Japanese military authorities waited so long until the middle of 1944 to commence re-engineering of the M1 Garand. The Japanese wasted two-and-a-half years. You can see the Type 4 shows considerable promise. Had the Japanese initiated re-engineering and production in late 1942 given the possibility of better quality control, materials, and uninterrupted manufacturing before the B-29 Superfortresses, a good Type 4 would have been in the hands of Japanese troops by late summer 1943 at the earliest and no doubt in general issue by winter of 1943. Can you imagine the shock and surprise of U.S. Army G.I.s and Marines in 1944 to be on the receiving end of new Japanese rifles that spit out ten, consecutive rounds. And when G.I.s and Marines finally capture a few Type 4 rifles, imagine their greater surprise to be holding a near-copy of the Garand in their hands. The Type 4 fixed box magazine proves to military gun enthusiasts that John Garand would have needed to incorporate a similar box attachment had the U.S. Army insisted on a ten-round capacity. Supposedly the proposed .276 cartridge was smaller and so ten could fit in the rifle stock without an external box magazine. The Japanese 7.7mm cartridge was based on the German 7.92mm Mauser round and so was larger than the standard 6.5mm Japanese cartridge. One can see how the M1 Garand would have turned out looking with a fixed permanent box magazine. Whether one believes the Japanese way of using two, 5-round stripper clips would have been more convenient than the 8-round en bloc clip, is up for debate. But it made logical sense for the Japanese who were already using 5-round stripper clips for their Arisaka bolt-action rifles. Eventually a ten-round stripper clip would have made its appearance. It wasn't difficult to design one. This is one gold opportunity the Japanese military authorities let slip through their fingers.

American Garand could ping. Japanese could not. Guess who won the war?

My day is never complete without a Forgotten Weapons video! I binge watched every vid on your channel during recovery from my recent total hip replacement surgery. It really helped me keep my mind off of the misery. Thanks a million Ian!

08:05 "Meep"

"These were never issues" Battlefield 1943 thinks otherwise

I'm surprised they didn't just slap slightly modified type 99 sights onto it. Certainly better than that literal pinhole and giant wedge. Thank you for the video though, I've been curious about this rifle ever since I saw it in Battlefield since I thought it was just a way for the developers to be lazy and reskin a Garand rather than it actually existing.

This explains the first mission in bad company 2. I always was so confused when I picked up what I thought was an M1 Garand in the middle of japan

The M1 Garands were issued to the Philippine Scouts during WWII and used in the defense of Bataan, probably some were those mentioned as captured early in the war.

It's interesting that they decided to completely reverse-engineer the rifles instead of reverse-engineering the 30-06 cartridge so they could use captured guns, and reproduce the Garand much more easily. It seems like the cartridge would be a much easier thing to reverse engineer than an entire rifle, especially considering how much they would need to modify to make the Garand work in a different caliber, rather than just copying the existing design.

excellent video as always

It was probably called the "type 5" rifle because "4" is an unlucky number in japan so no one would like to use a gun that would have an unlucku number in it' name.

It’s kinda cool how this is featured in Battlefield Bad Company's first mission, which is a specialty ops WW2 mission

I had no idea Japan produced, late in the war, their own copy of the U.S. M1 Garand. You are the first person I've ever heard say this, nor have I ever seen it before in writing. And I've long been a WWII Pacific war history buff. At seventy-three, the old saying applies with the three videos of yours I've seen tonight: We learn something new every day! Thank you very much!

Japanese Navy: "Emperor, can I have an M1 Garand?" Emperor: "No, we have M1 Garand at home." M1 Garand at home:

This is a really cool rifle with a very interesting history!

I have been interested in these rifles for years! Thank you for finally letting me see one! :)

I love how the Imperial Japanese Navy had their own army and the Imperial Japanese Army had their own navy. If nothing else, their sheer dedication to not collaborate with each other unless it's an express imperial order is something to behold.

I can imagine the poor Japanese guy who was told to make a new rifle like the one americans are using to win the war lol .

This channel is fantastic. I like to think I know WW2 but Ian constantly shows me there's so much more. Absolutely love the channel

One of the 125 now sits in the Marine Corps museum. It blows me away some of the stuff you find in that museum!

America: (cant put a mag on a M1) Japan: Fine, I'll do it myself.

Imagine the damage this could have caused if it was put into the field and a few years before 1944. Great video, thank you.

Yes, the stock is very typical Japanese woodwork. It would had been made with the strongest, tightest-grained wood, which comes from the trunk of the tree. Also, it would had used no screws or nails, as wood fastened with wood is more durable.

Been watching your reviews for a long time. Like all of them. I think you deserve a tv show or some broader type of exposure because you have an amazing amount of knowledge. Thanks for all the videos.

"Can I copy your homework?" "Yeah. Just change it up a bit so the teacher doesn't notice."

In a earlier episode you mentioned that the Japanese Navy had warehouses full of type 99's so it seems like kind of a waste to pursue this project so late in the war.

The Japanese Garand is something ive wanted to see from the venerable ForgottenWeapons for a long time. Thanks Ian! Fascinating piece of history, especially for me because my interest in history and guns goes hand in hand. The obvious Japanese flourishes are interesting and reinforces how solid the American M1 was. And not enough is spoken about the true *benefits* of the en-bloc/Mannlicher clip... If you cant do a magazine its the next best thing imo. If I had the money this is the first thing id buy. But thats the catch isnt it? ;)

I have a type 99 that is chambered in 30-06. My grandfather was the souvenir officer in Okinawa and brought it back. He said one of the Japanese pow's said they had planned on raiding the US armory when they invaded so they would not have to worry about ammo. After we took Okinawa my grandfather said they found this stash of guns that were crated up for transport and had never been issued. I've had multiple gun smith's verify that it is indeed chambered in 30-06.

Would love to see a take on the Japanese Type Ko, which was their copy of a pedersen rifle from '33. However, considering only 24 were ever build. Getting one would be a very very rare occasion indeed.

I am have always thought why Gerand himself never used the Springfield 1903 5 round stripper clips for the M-1

Bummer you couldn't disassemble it! Great videos!

Okay, this is purely my theory and is most likely completely wrong. I'm thinking that the aperture sight was intended to be manufactured in two steps by first drilling a smaller hole, and then using that as a guide for a larger drill bit to make the actual aperture, and they just haven't got around to that second step because of the war situation.

Reminds me of the intro to Battlefield: Bad Company 2. When I picked this thing up I felt so terribly confused. At first glance I was like, "Ooo! Captured Garand!" And then I realized it was a Japanese box-sighted bastard child. The disappointment when it didn't ping on empty was real...

how can we know whether it's really a Japanese rifle if it doesn't even have anti-aircraft rear sights...

If only someone made reproductions of these, that’d be beautiful

That rear stock is some classic Japanese woodworking. So simple but brilliant.

I would have loved to show this video to my dad. He carried an M1 when he joined the marines in 1953, and then carried the M1D in Vietnam. I'd bet that he'd never knew that these existed. But if he did know about them, I wouldn't be surprised because of his history with foreign weapons.

If any of these surviving guns are in the condition for it I'd love to actually see one get fired some day, get the feeling they won't be all that accurate with that sight picture though. Probably not worth risking such a valuable piece anyway but it'd certainly be an interesting sight.

You gotta love when video games like battlefield try to represent weapons like these as reasonably encountered /standard issue

Great video, never thought I would see one in detail! There's a reason you got my Patreon support this week!

from what I have heard (not saying it's accurate) is that the rear sight aperture "pin hole" is only a representation of that hump and where its center point is; it is drilled through to expedite manufacturing and lessen the chance of machining bits from snapping. So, it's a quick reference hole when adjusting left/right

a truly amazing and rare piece of history.

The issue was that the Japanese Army and Navy were not that interested in a semi-auto battle rifle, despite thousands of M1 Garands falling into Japanese hands with the fall of the Philippines. For the Japn High Command, the bolt action Arisaka with its five-round internal magazine was perfectly fine. If you watch the 1998 movie, The Thin Line, which takes place in the Pacific, there's a scene that clearly demonstrates the superiority of the 8-round semi-auto M1 over the tried-and-true bolt action rifle. Japanese soldiers are appearing over the crest of a tall hill and just a few GIs below are dropping each Japn soldier with a pull of the trigger. The 8 round en bloc clip of the M1 was not great but enough rounds to put out a modicum of firepower. Military firearms historians perpetually debate why John Garand insisted on not installing a larger magazine which would have held a better 10 rounds clip. One source states U.S. Army requirements dictated a magazine that was flush with the stock. Others claim it was John Garand's desire. Either way, the fine M1 Garand started its operational career with an obsolescent magazine and clip feeding system that was only elsewhere used by the Italian Army in one of their main battle rifles dating back to WW1. The Japanese Type 4 or 5? shows what the M1 Garand would have looked like had John Garand installed a ten-round capacity magazine. It would not have detracted that much from the usual Garand's fine outline and would have given American GIs a ten round shot capacity versus only eight.

This is the video I've been waiting all this time for! The Japanese Garand is my favorite gun from WW2.

I happen to be lucky enough to own both a M1 Garand and Arisaka 7.7 and it was a fun for me to get them side by side and compare them with this video. Thanks

The don’t make the “Ping” sound , the sound this one made was “Crwing “

That's a really fascinating piece of history. I'm sure that if they had begun work on this gun, or another like it, earlier, we would have high-quality examples to buy from antique weapon dealers. Now, it is a fascinating and obscure piece of history, that will probably only survive in museums. Japanese weapons are kind of fascinating. Their aircraft were very advanced in WWII, and in many respects, superior to American aircraft. The quality of their battle rifles was very good, but I have always felt like they lacked the technical advancement that was achieved by the Germans or by Allied forces. While much attention is given to the aircraft and ships, a lot of people forget about the weapons used in ground battles. The Japanese fought very fiercely, especially when it became clear they were defending their home. Just imagine if they had issued a fully-developed version of this gun to their Marines in 1943, or even something like the STG-44!

According to Battlefield 1942 and its sequel 1943, tens of thousands of Type 4s were standard issue for all IJA troops, even as early as December 1941 in the invasion of wake island.

Imagine being the unfortunate japanese soldier trying to reload the m1 and gets the famous m1 thumb.

Amazing that the Japanese made a M14 over a decade before the US /s

10:46 The Japanese had bayonet lug for pretty much everything.

Saw a piece of one years ago in a display case at SARCO in New Jersey - I believe it was only the metal parts - no wood.

M1-Garand: Who are you? Type 4: I'm you... but Japanese.

looks like it would be a solid rifle. Other than that small peep sight.

The IJN was more interested in boosting firepower of their individual troopers because they could not feild them in nearly as substantial numbers.

Could the tiny aperture perhaps be because that was simply a guide hole for future drilling of the sight which was never completed?

4:17 i don't see neko ears or bright colored paint...oh wait, old japanese ie over complex and brittle :I

Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery! Very interesting video about a weapon I did not know existed.

Great piece. FYI Youkoska is pronounced yoh-KOOS-ka.

3:44 Good thing they saved weight by skeletonizing the front sight protection wings..... lol

That’s quite the historical piece of art And the story you told behind it was fascinating. Thanks for sharing your knowledge. 👍

Meanwhile in WW2 Japan: I need a new rifle, hey America, may I borrow your homework? America: Sure, but make sure don't bastardize it.

battlefield 1943 is what i remember this from

I've been hearing about this model of rifle for years but this is the first time to come across a video that described it in such details, Thank You.

Japan: Hey, can I copy your homework? America: No. Japan: how bout i do anyway?

This rifle was featured in Battlefield 1942, and again in Battlefield Vietnam's WW2 free expansion. The only games where I have seen it.

8:05 What?

America: my first own semi-automatic rifle i'll call m1 garand Japan empire: this is my first own semi-automatic rifle than you!!! Me: ( died at brain damage and stroke )

As soon as I saw this video, my eye brow raised high than the roof

Fun fact: it's pronounced yokohska, not yoko-suka. There's an American naval base there as well as a JMSDF one.

Somehow I knew you'd start with the Japanese Garand Also, in some ways I think the Type 4 looks better than the Garand

Great video, I love when there is history to be learned. I'm glad I watched the video where you introduce the background because even so I got so distracted by it that I had to restart the video several time.

This is one of the wildest things I've seen on your channel, really really cool.

"Mom can I have a Garand?" "No. We have a Garand at home." The Garand at home:

I bet your dad would have loved to have one of these in his collection :)

The aperture was there temporarily before they made it larger. This rifle was a prototype, and were still experimenting and finishing them up. There is still the possibility that the creator of that aperture did fire a rifle.

That rear sight aperture gives me a headache just thinking about trying to use it... Incredible to actually see a vid on these though. I recall reading about them online while I was in highschool around a decade ago, so wanted to learn more but so little information was available. Fascinating to see one in such detail! While the rear aperture hole is obviously WAAAAAAY too small, I don't blame the Japanese for going with a tangent rear sight. Doesn't LOOK at pretty, but seems far cheaper to produce. If only they made that friggin hole bigger. As for stripper/charger clips with a 10 round mag vs en bloc clips with an 8 round mag, that's tough. Actually wait, maybe not... is it just me, or is there no bolt hold-open except the one connected to the follower that locked the bolt open when the mag is empty? There's not even the clip-release latch on the left side of the receiver! If it were me tinkering with the M1 to make my own, and had to get rid of the en bloc clip system, I'd have DEFINITELY tried to figure out how to make that clip release latch a bolt hold-open. That way if, say, you fired 5 rounds and want to strip a 5-rnd clip of 7.7 off into it, I'd just use the back of my right palm to bring the bolt back while my right thumb is over the action, trapping the round that's attempted to be ejected. Engage the clip-release with the tip of said right thumb. Push that previously-chambered round in the mag so there's all 5 rounds remaining instead of just 4, grab a clip, ram it in, and assuming that the clip ejects automatically upon the bolt closing, I'd pull the bolt back thereby disengaging the bolt hold-open, then let it fly home to chamber the top round of the now fully loaded internal magazine. Since there seems to be no bolt hold-open, coupled with the fact that it's swifter to load a single 8-rnd en bloc clip rather than 2 5-rnd stripper/charger clips, I think I prefer the en bloc clip system. I've also figured out a way to use the clip itself as a bolt hold-open, allowing me to load rounds in one at a time by hand. With this Type 4, it looks like if you want to load in a 5-rnd clip on a partial mag, or load in loose ammo, you'd need one hand constantly holding the bolt back while also handling the weight of the rifle itself as the other works one-handed to get the ammo and feed it in. Definitely sounds like something you'd want 3 hands to do. So while people have the incorrect misconception that you cannot reload the M1 Rifle unless it's empty, it would seem like having that impression with the Type 4 wouldn't be all that 'mis' of a 'conception. A bolt hold-open would REALLY help that design out, and if it got past the prototype stage, I definitely think they'd have incorporated one. Then again... the SVT-40 suffered from the same issue. No bolt hold-open except for the hidden one in the mag well that is acted upon by a follower in a mag that's empty. So maybe they WOULDN'T add one. If you want to load a partial 10-rnd mag with a 5-rnd clip in the SVT-40, in order to lock the bolt, you'd basically have to remove the detachable magazine, finger the mag well from underneath, and push up the bolt hold-open while pulling back the bolt. Then with the bolt locked, rock the mag back in, and go about loading in a clip of ammo before pulling the bolt back and letting it fly home. Quite a process... oddly enough, the M1 Carbine DOES have a bolt hold-open, but it has no capability of being fed by clips, partly due I think to there BEING no .30 Carbine clips. Not to my knowledge anyways. As for the time necessary to reload an empty 10-rnd capacity rifle with 2 5-rnd clips, I can do so with my Lee Enfields within 5 seconds if the ammo is readily available, meaning out in the open before me. If it's in a bandolier or ammo pouch, that would add a second or two. For my M1 Rifle, I never really timed myself, but I'd wager it to be about 2-3 seconds with the ammo readily available, or 4-5 seconds from a bandolier. So the slowest time for an M1 Rifle is about on par with the fastest time with a Lee Enfield, or a Type 4 for that matter. With the lack of bolt hold-open on the Type 4 however, coupled with that HORRIBLE rear sight aperture, I'd DEFINITELY prefer either a No.4 Lee Enfield or an M1 Rifle over it. Or even a Mk.III* or No.5. Hell, considering my 1896 No.1 has clearer sights than the Type 4, I'd probably take that sooner, even with it's massive barrel and only able to be reloaded with loose rounds.

Why all the Battlefield players here say 1943 while all I could first thought of was 1942... T_T

That was hands down the best standard infantry rifle in Battlefield 1942

I wonder if the literal pinhole sight was merely a placeholder (since they were prototypes) and perhaps another sight or arisaka sights would've been added if these were put into service?

Amazing. One of the few things that you can say is a definitive Japanese copy of a western gun. And even then it's got distinctly Japanese flare, and was done when there was absolutely no chance of changing the outcome of the war.

The Japanese Army was ultimately let down by decreasing arms quality, coupled with poor supply and a catastrophic number of different designs and variants. Type 38s, Type 99s, rimmed, rimless and semi-rimmed rounds, etc. Many of their weapons had unique features, which were often useless in combat, like anti-aircraft sights, dust covers, bayonet mounts on machine guns and so on. They spent too much time diddling around with prototypes when they couldn't really afford to do so. They also failed to understand the advantages of SMGs in close-quarters combat, like in jungles. They did produce the Type 100 SMG, which never saw wide use.

Hey, what's with the deer heads? JK, but you said in the video where you explained them that someone would ask so I complied.

Also, unlike the US M1, the trigger mechanism is locked into the Stock, and only the Top receiver part pivots upward to dis-assemble ( screws in Trigger Plate extension into Wrist of stock, and screw forward of mag. Box, locks whole Trigger mechanism into wood. Trigger guard only unlocks from main receiver. ( Not drop out like M1) I agree, the rear sight aperture unfinished; pilot hole for pin reamer ( clock makers) to adjust to accurate shooting diameter for Japanese Eyesight.. The Navy was always more forward looking than the Army....all the Army's Pederson and CZ ZH29 copies were in the early 30s, and soon discounted. ( Pedersen because He did not inform the Japanese of the Lubricated Shells.)

I actually got to hold one of these rifles when my Dad was the showroom manager at Sarco....very interesting and rare rifle

I bet that's gonna go for a mint

All of a sudden, I've got the old Vapors song from the 80's going through my head... "I think I'm turning Japanese..."

the video games never made the type 5 be reloaded with the mentioned stripper clips because in battlefield 1942, it had a detachable magazine and in call of duty ww2, battlefield 1943 and battlefield bad company 2, it used en bloc clips like an M1 Garand

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