I bought a Arisaka Type 99 Japanese military rifle this past weekend. I have never owned a Japanese World War II era rifle before. My collecting interests have always been Colt 1911's and K98 Mausers. So I am new to the collecting field when it comes to Type 99 rifles. Here's my question. The rifle I bought is completely matching, including the bolt. It comes with a monopod, the airplane sights, and a dust cover. The problem I have is the feeding of the 7.7 Jap cartridge. I can load one or an entire magazine and while the bolt will strip off the top round the cartridge, no matter what, will not go into the chamber. I have slid a loose cartridge right in by hand, but the bolt will not shove one into the chamber no matter how hard I try. It only gets lodged near the top of the chamber and then needs to be pried out with a screwdriver. I have taken the bolt out, cleaned it, and the chamber itself seems to be free of rust or any debris. I am attempting to load the chamber with the dust cover on. Does it need to be removed or something? Am I doing anything incorrect because the round simply will not go in. I am using authentic, World War II-era Japanese military 7.7 ammunition. Any ideas what is wrong?
I'm wondering if you have a weak magazine spring. When you release the magazine plate, does the spring look compressed? I believe it should load just fine with the dust cover on, but removing it might allow you to better see what is going on. Also, just like a Mauser, these guns are controlled feed--you can't just lay a bullet in front of the bolt and get it to feed. The extractor must grip the casing.
+1 on the extractor, if the round is not "controlled" it will not feed well. Clean the bolt and work the extractor or disassemble and clean, alternately, remove the dust cover and observe the feed of the rounds; they must snap in against the bolt face with the extractor in the groove of the case.
Any chance that the rifle had any "improvements" done? Commonly they were sportered and had the barrel set back or rechambered for 30-06. It does not sound likely for your gun, just asking.
Try to find new production ammo, WW2 jap ammo is corrosive primed and was war production that may not be usable; as in slightly out of shape or damaged over the years.
Your WW2 era Japanese ammunition might be the Type 92 7.7x58mmSR., a semi-rimmed cartridge intended for machine guns. The Type 99 7.7x58mm Arisaka cartridge is rimless. If your rounds are the Type 92, there's no way they'll feed or single load/chamber in your rifle.
From what I can tell, the Arisaka Type 99 I have is untouched, and still chambered for the original 7.7 Jap cartridge. The magazine spring is plenty strong judging from the difficulty I had prying the round out of the chamber without releasing the bottom of the magazine catch. The only thing I can think of is the ammunition I have might be semi-rimmed, but frankly I doubt it. The 7.7 rounds I have look very similar to a standard 8mm Mauser round and I have seen photos of rimmed 7.7 on the internet and I do not believe I have any rimmed cartridges. I did notice one particular thing however. The face of the bolt is extremely clean. It almost looks like white plastic, it's so clean. This surprised me when I first took it apart and cleaned it, although I did not completely disassemble the entire bolt. I merely gave it a casual cleaning and re-inserted it into the rifle. The bolt seems to grip the base of the cartridge well and strips it from the magazine, but once it starts to feed into the actual chamber, that is when the problem arises.
Not sure if this is it but one time I put the follower spring in backwards in my Ruger M77 and it malfunctioned. You may want to verify. Also, you are able to insert the round "completely" in the chamber? And does the bolt grab and extract it normally? Maybe a picture of the bolt face would help.
From what I can tell, the Arisaka Type 99 I have is untouched, and still chambered for the original 7.7 Jap cartridge. The magazine spring is plenty strong judging from the difficulty I had prying the round out of the chamber without releasing the bottom of the magazine catch. The only thing I can think of is the ammunition I have might be semi-rimmed, but frankly I doubt it. The 7.7 rounds I have look very similar to a standard 8mm Mauser round and I have seen photos of rimmed 7.7 on the internet and I do not believe I have any rimmed cartridges. I did notice one particular thing however. The face of the bolt is extremely clean. It almost looks like white plastic, it's so clean. This surprised me when I first took it apart and cleaned it, although I did not completely disassemble the entire bolt. I merely gave it a casual cleaning and re-inserted it into the rifle. The bolt seems to grip the base of the cartridge well and strips it from the magazine, but once it starts to feed into the actual chamber, that is when the problem arises.
As to the bolt face, up until 1944 or so the Arisaka's bolt face was chrome plated. As to the feed glitch, I can't help but wonder if the problem is with the follower, perhaps incorrectly angled, which would have an effect on the feed angle of the top round, or perhaps an incorrect follower - with the same result.
Do you feel confident in being able to remove the extractor and extractor collar from the bolt? If so, try feeding the rounds from the magazine without the extractor mounted. If they feed freely and effortlessly, the glitch may lie in the shape and/or thickness of the extractor claw. Getting the extractor off isn't too big a deal, but getting it back in can be tricky without the right tool to squeeze the collar while sliding the extractor back into place.
" Also, you are able to insert the round "completely" in the chamber? And does the bolt grab and extract it normally? Maybe a picture of the bolt face would help."
I've dropped a cartridge into the chamber and it slides right in, but I haven't tried ramming the bolt up onto it in order to see if it will then grip it if that is what you are asking. I will very likely never fire this weapon, and I did not want to risk breaking a hard to find part in the event this 70 plus year old rifle failed in some way, but it is annoying to see it not feed correctly. The only thing I can think of that might possibly be the cause is whatever is gripping the base of the cartridge is not rotating correctly or is frozen somehow and this is preventing the bolt from doing it's job. But just from looking at it seems to grip it all right at the start. The problem arises once the round is heading towards the chamber and it basically impacts the top of the chamber and wedges there until I can remove it by hand.
If the bolt face was indeed chromed, then this one is indeed CHROMED. And looks surprising new, although I have no doubt it dates to the time of production. The bore is MINT. Like a mirror. The overall finish on the gun is worn, but compared to many I've seen, not too bad at all.
It sounds like you have a really nice Type 99; all matching, with monopod, anti-aircraft sights, and even the dust cover. With the bolt removed from the rifle, and just to be on the safe side the firing pin removed from the bolt, can you easily slide the base of a cartridge up along the face of the bolt, with the extractor riding in the cartridge's extractor groove? If so, and the rifle as you say seems to have a mint bore, the problem may simply be too hard an edge at 6 o'clock on the chamber mouth - not allowing the round being fed to slide smoothly into the chamber.
It sounds like you have a really nice Type 99; all matching, with monopod, anti-aircraft sights, and even the dust cover. With the bolt removed from the rifle, and just to be on the safe side the firing pin removed from the bolt, can you easily slide the base of a cartridge up along the face of the bolt, with the extractor riding in the cartridge's extractor groove? If so, and the rifle as you say seems to have a mint bore, the problem may simply be too hard an edge at 6 o'clock on the chamber mouth - not allowing the round being fed to slide smoothly into the chamber.
I'll try that later today. Thanks to everyone for their advice by the way. There's an interesting story behind the Arisaka Type 99 I picked up and we are talking about here. It wasn't my first choice. I bought it because the one I really wanted was sold moments before I went back to the dealers table to get it. The one I really wanted I had seen at a show late last year. What made it so appealing is the fact it had the words "BIAK 1944" carved into the stock with what looked like a pocket knife. I, at the time, had no idea what or where "Biak" was, but I quickly learned via wikipedia it was a battlefield on a island near New Guinea where American forces fought the Japanese in mid-1944 and where the Japanese fought to annihilation costing them some 6000 lives. I asked the seller where he had picked up that rifle. He said a friend of his found it at a flea market in Northern Kentucky where some, as he put it, "hillbilly" was selling it. He paid $100 to his friend to get it and was selling it for $140. The magazine spring and follower were missing and he was selling it as a relic. I didn't care. The "BIAK 1944" alone was worth the price of admission to me. I told the seller I would be back after going through the rest of the show and would buy it if he still had it. I hurried through the rest of the show, thinking only of that Japanses rifle and how it would add so much to my collection of World War II military items. I finished the show and raced back to the table where he was at only to find some old man in his 80's in a wheelchair peeling off two $100 bills and getting his change and the rifle. I was speechless. That seller might have had that particular rifle to dozens of shows since the last time I saw it, and now, I was standing there about a minute too late to buy it for myself. I wandered around the remainder of the day until I found the Arisake Type 99 I have posted about here. I would have gladly paid twice as much for that relic "BIAK 1944" but it wasn't in the cards I suppose. That, my friends, is the back story to all of this. My conclusion? Never, ever pass up something you really like at a gun show expecting it to still be there when you return. Chances are, if you want it really, really bad, it'll be GONE.
As to the bolt face, up until 1944 or so the Arisaka's bolt face was chrome plated. As to the feed glitch, I can't help but wonder if the problem is with the follower, perhaps incorrectly angled, which would have an effect on the feed angle of the top round, or perhaps an incorrect follower - with the same result.
Do you feel confident in being able to remove the extractor and extractor collar from the bolt? If so, try feeding the rounds from the magazine without the extractor mounted. If they feed freely and effortlessly, the glitch may lie in the shape and/or thickness of the extractor claw. Getting the extractor off isn't too big a deal, but getting it back in can be tricky without the right tool to squeeze the collar while sliding the extractor back into place.
i have a bring back ( duffle bag / cut stock )and it was missing a follower, someone had made a flat one out of 1/8" it fed weird, but the last round would NOT strip and feed. sarco got me a follower for it.
Have you looked at the feed ramp? I bought a Yugo model 1924 Mauser a few months ago. Chambering a round out of the mag takes more force than my other Mauser. It appeared at first that the cartridge was hitting the rails but upon closer inspection, the ramp is high and kind of wavy compared to my VZ22.
OK. I think I have discovered the problem. Either I have the wrong ammunition, or the chrome plating on the face of the bolt is so thick it is preventing the cartridge from seating properly. The round, what I have been told by two people is a 7.7 Jap, and it looks rimless to me, will not full seat on the face of the bolt. I cleaned it very well, removed even the slightest hint of rust or debris until it virtually shines, and still the base of the cartridge will not fit into the two machined grooves on the bolt face. It will only seat about half way in, therefore no matter what I do the bolt cannot be fully closed. The bolt will grip the cartridge enough to shove it forward towards the chamber, but at a certain point everything hangs up because the base of the round simply will not fit onto the face of the bolt next to the firing pin. So, do I have the wrong ammunition? Or what????? Other than that, the insides of the Type 99 looks remarkably well preserved for a 70 year old weapon.
These actions are modeled after the "controlled feed" German mauser and you can't close the bolt when you load a round into the breech by hand-- try feeding a round with the bullet seated against the bolt face while gripped by the extractor and I bet it will feed. Google "controlled feed" and you'll see what I mean.
I still think you may have 7.7x58SR cartridges - the Type 92 round. Rim dimension of the 7.7x58mm Arisaka rifle round is .470, while that of the semi-rimmed Type 92 machine gun cartridge is .500. Base dimensions of both rounds are the same. If you have a caliper or micrometer, check the rim dimension the cartridge.
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