Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice example of a Japanese Late WWII Ammo pouch for Arisaka Rifles, made from laminated rubberized canvas. As the war progressed and materials like leather became scarce, Japan turned to rubberized canvas to make items such as slings, bayonet frogs, belts, and ammo pouches. The rubberized items were especially more feasible for use in tropical jungle environments, where the heat and humidity would result in the previously issued leather items having a very high attrition rate. These were worn 2 to 3 on a belt, and all types are hard to find.

This pouch shows signs of honest period use, and storage wear that has accumulated from decades of storage and handling. It has all components, including the original leather closure tab. However, as with almost all Japanese rubberized canvas items, the rubber has become nearly rock hard, so we have made no attempts to fully open the pouch, as it would most likely destroy the rubberized canvas "hinge" and cl

Original Item: Only One Available. WWII Japanese Sling for the Japanese Type 99 Arisaka Service Rifle. The Japanese began looking for a solution for the deterioration of their leather equipment used by their soldiers in the Tropics. The Japanese developed Rubberized equipment, which was to replace the earlier leather gear which would rot away in the jungles of the Pacific. In addition, these rubber coated canvas items would also assist the Japanese with conserving leather, which was becoming increasingly scarce as the war went on.

The rubberized items were an improvement, but, like most military issued items, they are not intended to last forever. Eventually the rubber dries out, and the sling simply falls apart, making existing versions of Japanese issue rubberized “jungle” gear incredibly scarce today.

This sling is remarkably in one piece. The large black-painted steel buckle is intact and retains most of its paint with heavy oxidation. The keeper is gone, but the iron securing stud is present. The exterior finish is hard and splitting horizontally in places, and the sling is now very stiff. We did not try to straighten it out at all, we will leave that to the buyer if they decide to put it onto a rifle. It could perhaps be treated, but it’s best left alone.

An item for the serious Imperial Japanese Army Collector or Japanese Firearms collector. Comes ready for further research and display.

osure strap. However, the inside features very faint kanji ink stamps on the inside of the lid, as well as the original internal dividers. This example has a different design than we’ve had in the past, with the closure strap on the front instead of two on the sides.

Japanese WWII Field Equipment is getting quite rare to find on the market currently. This would make a great addition to display with your Arisaka rifle!