Japanese Type 14

The Japanese Type 14 came about from an effort to simply the "Papa" Nambu Pistol. The "14" in the name comes from the 14th year of Taisho's reign (1925). The Type 14 is often referred to as a "Nambu" pistol, but the actual involvement of Kijiro Nambu is dubious. This is similar to how the Type 38 rifle is often referred to as "Arisaka" but Arisaka Nariakira had little to no involvement (in fact, the Type 38 rifle design is credited to Nambu). Japanese firearms and their nomenclature is full of misconceptions in the USA.

Despite the passing resemblance to the Luger pistol, the Type 14 has no mechanical similarities to the pistol past a few possible aesthetical inspirations.

The Type 14 was much cheaper, faster, and easier to manufacture than the previous Nambu pistols. It was also easier for soldiers to maintain in the field.

On the left side of the Type 14 is are the pistols classification The 十 (10) and 四 (4) symbols are Japanese numerals meaning 14 when used together. The next two symbols mean "year" and "type".

Above the safety lever on the left side of the pistol, are the kanji symbols fire and safe. Roughly translated as "fire/flame" and "secure/peace". The safety level requires a 180 degree throw in order to engage or disengage, something that is neither quick or convenient. This safety movement cases scoring on the frame similar to a Kalashnikov safety.

The markings on the right side of the Type 14 will be different on each pistol. From left to right on this example are the manufacturers markings, series, and serial number.

Below the serial numbers are the acceptance markings (all will have these except vary late war examples) and the year and month the pistol was manufactured in the format of YY.MM. A simple conversion is needed to determine the year by simply add 25 to the first two numbers, in this example 18 plus 25 equals 43 (1943). The 12 is for the 12th month of the year, therefore this pistol was made December 1943.

When the last round of the magazine is fired, or the bolt is pulled back on an empty magazine, the bolt will lock rearward thanks to it engaging on a catch built into the magazine follower. The problem with this hold-open method is that as soon as the empty magazine is removed, the bolt will slam forward. This is not a unique feature to the Type 14 as other pistols such as the Mauser 1914/1934, CZ27, CZ38, and Beretta 1934 function similarly. Overall, the Type 14 is an interesting pistol with lots of unique features and variations that make the pistol very collectible.

If you'd like to learn more I'd recommend this video.