Type 44 carbine

Type 44 Cavalry Rifle
Type 44
Type	Cavalry-Carbine
Place of origin	Empire of Japan
Service history
In service	1912–1945
Used by	Imperial Japanese Army
Wars	World War I Second Sino-Japanese War, World War II, Korean War, Chinese Civil War
Production history
Designer	Nariakira Arisaka
Designed	1911
Produced	1911–1942
Specifications
Mass	7.28 lb (3.3 kg)
Length	38.03 in (966 mm)
Barrel length	19.17 in (487 mm)
Cartridge	6.5×50mm Arisaka
Action	Bolt action
Muzzle velocity	685 m/s (2246.8 ft/s)
Feed system	5-round internal magazine

The Type 44 Cavalry Rifle (四四式騎銃Yonyon-shiki kijū or Yonjūyon-shiki kijū) is a Japanese bolt-action rifle. This rifle is also often referred to as a Type 44 Carbine. It was a development of the Arisaka Type 38 Cavalry Rifle, the main difference being the bayonet is a needle type and it can be folded backwards and locks underneath the barrel. A hook was located directly below the front sight on the right side of the rifle, replicating the hooked quillon of the Type 30 bayonet for use in the bayonet fencing techniques taught to Japanese soldiers of the period. The Type 44 also included a compartment in the buttstock for which to store a unique two-piece cleaning rod. The cleaning rod storage compartment was accessed via an ingenious rotating door.

It fired the 6.5×50mm Arisaka round, and capacity was an internal five-round box magazine, it was fed via five-round chargers.

It entered production in 1911 and entered service in 1912, and served on until the end of the Second World War in 1945, production of the rifle ran until three years prior to the end of the Second World War; 1942. Approximately 91,900 Type 44 rifles were produced by Japanese arsenals during these years.

The Type 44 was produced in three variations (referred to as First, Second, and Third variations). The major differences between variations was in the folding bayonet housing, which increased the length and durability with each variation.

A minor difference between variations may be found in the cleaning rod compartment found beneath the buttplate. First variation stocks had two holes drilled for each half of the cleaning rod, while second and third variations had a single larger hole to house both halves of the cleaning rod.

References

• Daugherty III, Leo J. Fighting Techniques of a Japanese Infantryman 1941–1945: Training, Techniques and Weapons. Staplehurst: Spellmount, 2002. ISBN 1-86227-162-3.

External links

• Type 44 carbine