[Rusty Shackleford]

The gun that got me into collecting milsurps. My great grandfather served in the Navy during World War Two on the USS Gazelle. When he got back home in 1946 he brought this rifle and bayonet home with him. My grandma gave it to me when I was 16 and I’ve had the bug ever since. Included is a thanksgiving day menu from 1945 and a picture of the crew of the gazelle.

 

[Rusty Shackleford]

Priceless!

Yes sir!

 

[Rusty Shackleford]

I had to google recipes for "Snowflake Potatoes" and "Sunshine Cake". I'd never heard of either. Both actually sound really good. Snowflake Potatoes are just mashed potatoes, with sour cream and cream cheese beat into the potatoes along with the butter and milk. Sunshine Cake has crushed pineapple & juice mixed into the standard yellow cake batter, and the frosting is made from whipped topping mixed with more crushed pineapple & juice and also some vanilla pudding mix.

I’ve had this menu for several years and never even noticed the sunshine cake. Thanks for looking that up now I’m going to have to convince my wife to make it for me 😂

 

[Rusty Shackleford]

Good to see that you've kept it original. My granddad was out there too for the last year of the war on a minesweeper (USS Swift AM-122) and got back in 46 after they stayed past the surrender to sweep mines in the area. He had an Arisaka and either a bayonet or an officer's short sword hanging up on the wall, as well as an 03. I seldom got to actually handle either as a kid, and they were apparently taken or gifted after he passed. No clue where they ended up.
The bolt handle on yours looks like a "last-ditch" late war issue. Does it have a steel or wooden buttplate? Last-ditch are a little less common if I remember right. Polishing the internals makes for a much better shooting experience if so. And a recoil pad. They pack a punch. Enjoy.

This one is a Jinsen Arsenal Arisaka. Built by slave labor in Korea. It’s a “transitional” model it has some of the features of the standard model but not full last ditch configuration. They are somewhat rare because the majority of rifles produced at Jinsen were last ditch.

40th Series

type99arisakas.weebly.com

The link above shows the differences between the Jinsen arisakas

 

[Rusty Shackleford]

Wonderful rifle with a wonderful story!

It sure is