type 14 Nambu #2
 

A friend of mine asked me to put this on the forum for revue.
This is a letter from the previous owner to my friend who owns the gun now.

I purchased this pistol many years ago, sometime in the 60's at a gun show. A young man, who's father was in WWII, as a US Army soldier, brought it back from Okinowa, as a war souvenir. He had passed away leaving it to his son. As the son came into the show trying to sell it, after asking all the dealers in the show for bids, before stopping at my table, the only offers he had were $60 and $75. I purchased it for $125 because after examination, I knew it had to be special, as there was no date of Mfg., arsenal markings or regular issue serial#, so I puchased it as an oddity. I've had it in my collection since then. Only about two years ago, after a new book on nambu pistols came out, I found them to be, "Familerization Pistols", used in factory training only.
The book's author only shows two others #3 and #6. This put my pistol #2 as one of the three known to this date. As their records listing Mfg. no longer exist, only time will tell how many were made, or survived the war. Because these were not listed as issue firearms, it can only be guessed at. They were gathered at wars end, to arm soldiers in the Japanese Army that were sent to the island of Okinawa. As this was their last airstrip, if the USA took this island they would be in range to bomb their homeland.
Hope this information helps you with your collection.

Hi Mike, As I recall, Ed Tinker and George Anderson are two folks who are pretty knowledgeable about the Nambu's... Ed is in Oregon this week and is only checking in occasionally... but George is usually on every day.

I can't help you at all here, because compared to German guns, Japanese guns have always looked to me like they were made by convicts with files inside a prison in secret... :D Not exactly high quality.

I have never had much of an interest in them...

I have never seen one with no markings on the left (date etc).

I have books at home and can look it up via other markings.

If it was later war looking, I'd think a USA GI put together.....

I disagree with John, they are well made, nice shooting guns; unless you are looking to sell, then I would double your money you paid. I would guess something like this, as a curiousity would sell for around $400, perhaps a bit mroe. HOWEVER, you get it shown or proven to be a "Familerization Pistols", used in factory training only and the value would go up a $1000 I would guess.

Nambu's have not risen in value compared to a Luger, or even a P38 over the last 25 years.

The Banzai forum could give the best answers to it. http://forums.gunboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=52


Ed

Mike,
I would agree with Ed, in that even though the late war Type 14s looked a little rough, the great majority of the Type 14s were very well made. From the quality of the finish on yours, I would guess it to have been made in the mid-1930s, as the strawing of small parts was not generally evident in wartime produced versions. I have both 1937 and 1938 versions of the Type 14s and the quality of the finish is very close to matching P-08s that I own of the same vinatage.
As John indicated, George Anderson is very knowlegable and would be able to tell you more about your pistol.
Lyn

Ed, I have heard that opinions are like elbows... everybody has them...:eek: I just never have liked them, OR japanese rifles either......:rolleyes:

Thank you very much for the replies,
Does anybody know the author or book the seller is refering to in his letter?

When I was a kid, Nambu, specificly Type 14 was my dream gun. The reason was simple, all other pistols in museums looked complex, "Isn't this one simple enough that I can make one at home?"

At that time, my biggest wonder was "How does the trigger control the firing pin? There was magazine blocking in the middle". I wrote a letter to a firearm magazine asking them to publish more articles on firearm details, "Please show more details, I want details" Of course I did not tell them my objective :)

They did not publish more details, but they replied. "If you choose firearm design as your major field of study in college, you will learn everything...." A good way to persuade kids, maybe?

I really wanted to take that advice, however, I could not because of family pressure. But Nambu Type 14 has a special place in my mind for many many years.

So I figured gun collecting is not regarding quality, it's culture and background related.

+100 --- and history related.

Charlie

Nambu Type 14
 

John:

I once shared your opinion, until I started collecting and shooting pre-war Type 14 Nambus.

They are of excellent fit and finish and, in my opinion, of generally better design than the Luger.

Really, they are a modified C-96 System Mauser with the Luger's frame and magazine (an over simplification).

The only thing I really don't find up to par is the safty device (sure, but placed way out of reach of the shooting hand for operation). Some complain regarding the 8mm cartridge, but I find it in the same "range" as the 7.65mm Parabellum.

The next time you get a chance to really take a look at a fine pre-war Type 14, you should.

Sieger

MFC:

It looks like the pistol may need a good cleaning for proper long-term storage and preservation.

Sieger

I also have coveted the Type 14 for many decades; but only the model with the "Winter" trigger guard...

I've always wondered why the Japanese, a smallish people, made such a huge pistol...

Nambu T-14
 

Hi:

There is always the 7mm model, if you want a smaller more compact pistol.

You are right, as the T-14 is a lot heavier than a Luger.

Why do you collect only the Winter Trigger Gard models?

Sieger

Nambu obviously had Parabellum 1900 as a contour reference gun. I feel it's not easy to build a very compact gun when there is a barrel extension mechnism, i.e. bolt and receiver are seperated, not integrated into a Browning style slide. But the situation was a little bit better in Parabellum style pistols -- at least the magazine is in the grip and that saves some length. Pistol with barrel extension is now obsolete, but it's very stylish.