Item Description
Original Item: Only one Available. This is a very nice example of the Japanese 35mm Type 10 Flare Signal pistol, the mainstay of the Imperial Japanese Army during WWII. The designation comes from the year it was introduced, 1921, which the Japanese called Taisho 10 (the tenth year of the Taisho Emperor's reign, Hirohito's father). It is a single-shot, single-barrel, double-action-only unit that fires a 35mm flare. This was the second-most common of the Japanese flare pistols. Around 8,300 were produced by the end of the war in 1945.
The left side is marked with the "cloverleaf" logo used by Tokyo and then Kokura Arsenals, and represents four stacked cannon balls viewed from above. After this are the Japanese characters 十 年 式 (Juu Nen Shiki), meaning Type of the Tenth Year, or Type 10. Below that is the serial number, 6854, which matches the 854 on the bottom of the barrel. Production was moved from Tokyo to Kokura Arsenal's second factory in 1935 around serial number 1400. That factory averaged about 700 pistols a year until production was moved to another part of Kokura Arsenal in 1944. That means this specimen was probably made around five years after the move to Kokura, or about 1943, give or take a year.
The design of the Type 10 takes many design cues from the Type 26 Nambu Pistol, particularly in the grip frame and trigger era. Towards the end of the war it was thought that some parts were used interchangeably.
This example is in very nice condition, with a nicely patinated finish on all of the metal components, and light wear on the ribbed grips. It is fully functional and complete, as far as we can tell, and would make a great part of any signal pistol collection.
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