IJA Type 95 NCO Shin Gunto opinions please

**Rescue190** · 10-20-2018, 05:42 PM

Thank you Bruce. This might be a better pic.
John

IJA Type 95 NCO Shin Gunto opinions please

**Bruce Pennington** · 10-20-2018, 06:23 PM

Boy, that’s got some unique markings!

**Shamsy** · 10-20-2018, 10:51 PM

Ah, very interesting! I'd better go over a few of my own 95s now and see if I can find stamps under the latch or on the seppa. That's certainly not something I've noticed. I can't really see what the stamps are I'm afraid. They're awfully small...

Since you also asked for opinions about the sword... We'll it's a nice example? I mean, not much more to say?

Date range is probably 1942 give or take a year.

**Bruce Pennington** · 10-20-2018, 11:30 PM

by Shamsy

Ah, very interesting! I'd better go over a few of my. I can't really see what the stamps are I'm afraid. They're awfully small...

Steve, I enlarged the stamps for you:

**ghp95134** · 10-21-2018, 01:08 AM

by Bruce Pennington

Steve, I enlarged the stamps for you:

That one on the seppa looks like an upside-down “a” katakana:
ア

— Guy

**Shamsy** · 10-21-2018, 04:29 AM

Cheers Bruce. The saya stamp is 'mei', or the Nagoya arsenal stamp. I found one on my Seki sword, which also has a drag stamp. It was a female dog to photograph, but in hand it's a little clearer. See attached.

Not sure about seppa. I only had a look at my iron tsuba 95s, but I don't think they are stamped. Some have too much paint or grease or mud or all three to tell!

Guy could be right. Might be assembly related. The 95s basically have so many combinations of what is and isn't stamped... Little consistency I can find! Some saya drags for example are stamped, some not.

Anyway, it definitely looks like a stamp, not a ding. Makes it a better sword to have than one without the stamp.

**Rescue190** · 10-21-2018, 05:26 AM

Thank you for all the information and efforts. Great info.
John

**Stu W** · 10-22-2018, 03:46 AM

I'm a little late to the party but have no hesitation in saying you have a fine example of the top latch iron tsuba version of a Type 95. As to date of manufacture, I'd say mid 1941 to late 1942 but probably no later. As others have said dating these is an inexact science.

Easiest way to get more is to store them away for several months in a dark locker. Each time I open mine there seem to be more than I recalling having put away and certainly more than I told my wife were in there.

Regards,
Stu