This is a very rare example of a late WWII Japanese Type 5 semi-automatic rifle. In July of 1932, an order was given to the Nippon Special Steel Company and the Tokyo Gas and Electric company to submit designs for Japan's semi-automatic rifle project. At that time several rifle designs were developed (or copied from other rifles) and tested by the Japanese. Two of them as we know were based on the British Pedersen design (submitted by the Nippon Special Steel company) and the Czech ZH-29 semi-auto rifles, submitted by the Tokyo Gas and Electric Company (TGE). Shortly after completing the military test, Japan invaded Mainland China in 1935/36, and testing was halted. Later in 1943/44 Japan decided to resurrect the search for a successful semi-automatic rifle, however they chose to just copy the US M1 Garand design. This example is one of those produced at the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal. It is a close copy of the U.S. M1 only chambered in the Japanese 7.7 mm cartridge. It is estimated that approximately 200 sets of parts were actually manufactured, and only 125 rifles actually assembled due to the end of WWII. Very few examples were brought to the U.S. These rifles were not serial numbered as is this case, with all of them having just assembly numbers (this example bears assembly number 47) on various internal parts. This rifle is all original and certainly has an all matching original blackened finish on all the parts. The bolt, operating rod and gas cylinder are all direct copies of the original U.S. M1 Rifle with a slightly different configuration of receiver, close but not exact. The rear bridge of the receiver has a standard Japanese tangent rear sight that is graduated from 100-1200 meters, and the front sight is an inverted "v" with protective wing on the sides; both almost identical to the sights on the Japanese Type 99 rifles. The wood components are also similar in configuration to the M1 Garand in that it includes two handguards and a short M1 Garand type buttstock with finger grooves on the sides. It is also fitted with side mounted (left side) sling swivels, same as on the Type 99, and a cupped sheet metal buttplate.