Arisaka Type 99

moderate
Shop tier 2
medium confidence
Rifle
surplus
milsurp
corrosive ammo
historic
stripper clip
service rifle
collectible

field strip ~3 min · reassembly ~4 min · detail strip ~35 min

Before you begin Verify this firearm is unloaded. Remove the magazine or empty the cylinder or tube, lock the action open, and check the chamber both by sight and by touch. Keep the muzzle in a safe direction and remove all live ammunition from your work area.

Specifications

Manufacturer: Koishikawa / Kokura Arsenal
Origin: Japan
Category: Rifle
Action: Bolt action
Calibers: 7.7x58mm Arisaka
Capacity: 5 rounds in the internal magazine, stripper-clip loaded
Production: 1939–1945 (surplus)
Also known as: Type 99 short rifle, Arisaka 7.7mm

Model-specific safety

Trigger press: not confirmed either way This entry records that no trigger press is needed to disassemble, but that has not been checked against the manufacturer's manual — no manual is cited here yet. Several entries in this database were found asserting exactly this and turning out to be wrong. Treat the takedown as if a trigger press may be required: confirm the chamber is empty before you begin, and check your own manual.

These rifles are decades old and most have been arsenal rebuilt with mixed parts. Have headspace checked by a gunsmith before firing any rifle of unknown history.
Surplus ammunition of this era is frequently corrosively primed. Clean with a water-based solvent the same day you shoot.
Newly imported rifles are often packed in cosmoline throughout, including the bolt and firing pin channel. Clean it out before firing — a firing pin held forward by congealed grease causes slam fires.
The safety is the large knurled cap at the rear of the bolt. It is operated by pressing it in with the palm and rotating it — not by a lever. This is unlike almost any other bolt rifle and catches people out.
Arisaka actions are, by metallurgical testing, among the strongest bolt actions of their era. Late-war "last ditch" rifles, however, were built with degraded materials and simplified features and should be treated with real caution.
A rifle with an intact chrysanthemum marking on the receiver ring was not formally surrendered and is generally more collectible. Many were ground off at surrender. This affects value, not safety.
The dust cover, where fitted, slides on the bolt and rattles. It is original equipment, not a fault — many were discarded in service for exactly that reason.
Ammunition is scarce and 7.7x58mm must not be confused with .303 British or 7.92x57mm. Confirm the chambering.

Under spring tension

Mainspring inside the bolt
Magazine follower spring

Easily lost parts

Bolt components · Firing pin · Extractor · Floorplate components

Dry fireAvoid dry firing this firearm without snap caps. Firing pins and springs for surplus rifles are increasingly scarce. Use snap caps.

Tools

Tool	Required	Used for	Substitute
Bore guide	Yes	Cleaning from the breech without wearing the throat or the crown. On a surplus rifle the crown is often the difference between accuracy and none.

Shop difficulty

Shop tier 2 Tier 2 — moderate among rifles and carbines, for the full job: strip to the parts that get coated and put it back together working. A simple bolt action, but its bolt goes back together only if the safety knob is pressed against the mainspring and turned so the sear lug sits in the right notch. Fitted wrong into the 'snail' cut, it has to be pushed and turned back. The bands, hand guard and dust cover are routine. Ordnance reserved the further strip (bands, barrel, floor plate catch) for its own personnel.

No sourced part count yet.

Bench time: about 35 min to strip, 50 min to rebuild (estimate). Estimate: bolt (safety knob, firing pin and spring, extractor and collar), dust cover, bolt stop/ejector, trigger/sear, floor plate and follower, bands, handguard, butt plate, sights. Rebuild longer for the safety-knob compression and the band/guard screw sequence.

What comes off for coating

Bolt: safety knob, firing pin and firing pin spring, extractor and extractor collar, bolt cover (dust cover)
Receiver: bolt retainer (bolt stop) and spring, ejector, trigger, sear and pins, trigger guard and receiver screws — drift punch
Stock and furniture: floor plate, catch, follower and spring, front upper band and plate, lower band, hand guard, cleaning rod and catch, butt plate, sling swivels

Special tools

Gunsmith screwdrivers — Guard/receiver screws and band screws
Pin punches — Trigger/sear pins and bolt retainer pin

Fit or check on rebuild

Guard and receiver screws tightened evenly — The manual warns the trigger guard and stock can be damaged if the screws are not run in evenly
Bolt reassembly check — The bolt is rechecked when it goes back in the receiver, and the cover catches must engage their grooves
Source: Technical Manual for Rifle, U.S., Type 99, Japanese Cal. .30 — U.S. Army (hosted by Forgotten Weapons) forgottenweapons.com [3] — “When the bolt is fitted into the receiver, the correctness of the bolt assembly is rechecked”

This is Pew-Takedown's rating, not the manufacturer's. How tiers are rated. Forum reports are owners' experience, not specifications.

Procedures

Clear and Make Safe

Clear & Make Safe

Point the muzzle in a safe direction and keep your finger off the trigger.
Press the safety cap at the rear of the bolt inward and rotate it to the safe position.
TipPalm pressure and rotation, not a lever.
Lift the bolt handle and draw the bolt fully rearward, ejecting any chambered round.
Press the floorplate release and let the floorplate drop to release rounds from the magazine, or cycle the bolt repeatedly to feed and eject each round.
Removed at this step: Rounds in the magazine
Inspect the chamber and magazine well with a light and physically confirm the chamber is empty.
Close the floorplate and remove all live ammunition from the work area.

Field Strip — Bolt Removal

Field Strip

Bolt removal is the whole of routine maintenance. The bore cleans from the breech with the bolt out.

Complete the Clear and Make Safe procedure.
Move the safety to the fire position.
Lift the bolt handle and draw the bolt fully rearward.
Operate the bolt stop on the left side of the receiver and withdraw the bolt rearward out of the action.
Removed at this step: Bolt assembly
Clean the bore from the breech using a bore guide, and clean the bolt face, lugs, and chamber.
WarningAlways use a bore guide on a surplus rifle. Cleaning rod wear at the crown is a permanent accuracy loss and is very common on milsurp.
Stop here for routine maintenance. Bolt disassembly is a separate procedure and is not part of normal cleaning.

Reassembly

Align the bolt with the receiver raceway, with the dust cover fitted if your rifle has one.
Slide the bolt forward into the receiver and close the bolt handle.
Cycle the bolt several times to confirm smooth travel and correct cocking.
Perform the function check.

Torque specifications

No sourced torque values from the manufacturer are recorded for this firearm. Where a fastener has a specified torque — action screws, scope bases, muzzle devices, barrel nuts — get it from the manufacturer or a gunsmith rather than estimating it.

Function check

After every reassemblyPerform these checks on a verified-unloaded firearm. If any check fails, the firearm is not safe to fire — stop and see a licensed gunsmith.

Verify the rifle is unloaded — chamber and magazine — before each check.
Cycle the bolt and confirm it cocks and closes fully into battery.
With the action cocked, engage the safety and press the trigger. The striker must not release.
Disengage the safety without touching the trigger. The striker must not release.
Press the trigger and confirm the striker releases with a firm snap.
Load dummy rounds and confirm they feed and eject cleanly.
If you have any doubt about the rifle’s history, have headspace gauged by a gunsmith before firing live ammunition.
Confirm the bolt-cap safety engages and blocks the trigger when pressed in and rotated.

Maintenance

Lubrication points

Bolt lugs and raceways
Cocking cam surfaces
Extractor
Trigger and sear contact

Cleaning notes

Surplus ammunition of this era is frequently corrosively primed. After shooting it, flush the bore, bolt face, and gas system with hot soapy water or a water-based solvent the same day, dry completely, then oil. Keep the firing pin channel clean and dry — a pin held forward by congealed cosmoline causes slam fires.

Suggested inspection interval: roughly every 300 rounds. This is a general guideline, not a manufacturer specification.

Wear parts to inspect

Firing pin and its protrusion · Extractor · Bolt lugs · Crown (inspect for cleaning rod wear) · Magazine follower and spring

Common issues

Symptom	Likely cause	What to do
Light strikes or misfires	Cosmoline-packed firing pin channel or a weak mainspring	Strip the bolt, clean the firing pin channel completely, and reassemble dry.
Sticky bolt lift after firing	Dirty chamber, lacquered surplus ammunition, or excessive headspace	Clean the chamber thoroughly. If it persists, have headspace checked. see a gunsmith
Rust appearing days after shooting	Corrosive primer residue	Clean with a water-based solvent the same day, dry, and oil.
Cannot work out how the safety operates	The safety is the knurled bolt cap, pressed in and rotated	Not a fault. It is simply unlike other rifles.

Also covers

The procedures above are reported to apply to: Arisaka Type 38 in 6.5x50mm (same action family, different cartridge) · Late-war Type 99 "last ditch" rifles — with caution. Verify against the manual for your specific model.

Similar manual of arms

Sourcing

Confidence: medium — Drawn from reliable secondary sources and consistent across references, but not confirmed against a primary source.
Verification: Community reviewed only
Last updated: 2026-10-29

References

Every source this page draws on, with its web address so you can read it yourself. Numbers in brackets elsewhere on the page point here.

[1] Japanese Infantry Weapons (TM-E 30-480) — U.S. War Department military technical manual secondary source
[2] Military Rifles of Japan — Honeycutt & Anthony book secondary source
[3] Technical Manual for Rifle, U.S., Type 99, Japanese Cal. .30 — U.S. Army (hosted by Forgotten Weapons) military technical manual primary source
https://www.forgottenweapons.com/wp-content/uploads/manuals/US%20Arisaka%20manual.pdf (checked 2026-10-29)

Notes: Late-war production quality varies enormously and a "last ditch" rifle should be evaluated by a gunsmith before firing. Ammunition scarcity means many owners never shoot these; as a collectible the chrysanthemum marking matters, and as a shooter the chambering confirmation matters.

Found something wrong? Corrections are the most valuable contribution to this project. Open an issue with the model, the step, and a source.