Arisaka Type 38 Rifle (Japanese), SN 72246. The Type 38 rifle Arisaka was a bolt-action rifle that supplemented the Type 99 Japanese standard infantry rifle during the Second World War. The design was adopted by the Imperial Japanese Army in 1905 (the 38th year of the Meiji period, hence "Type 38") and served from then until the end of 1945. By 1940 more than three million Type 38s had been issued to the Imperial Japanese Army. However, shortcomings in the Type 38 design during the Second Sino-Japanese War led to the introduction of a further generation of rifles, designated the Type 99 rifle from 1939. This new rifle used the more powerful 7.7×58mm Arisaka cartridge already in use with the Type 92 heavy machine gun and the Type 97 light machine gun. However, not all units received the new weapon, and the mixture of types with incompatible cartridges led to considerable logistics issues during World War II. FROM 1991 FIREARMS LIST: PARTS HAD BEEN REMOVED FOR SECURITY.