Nambu
World: Type 14 Holster-JMCH Type III
The
Type III seems to be the most common of the Type 14 holsters with the solid
leather closure strap. I have two of these holsters, an early one dated 1936 (below
left) and a later one dated 1939 (below right).
Let’s
start with the earlier one. This holster is in good shape, though the lower portion is discoloured
(much darker), perhaps from being oiled at some point. It is dated 1936 inside
and has
This is the
back, showing the square rings.
This view of
the holster with the clamshell open shows the pouch for two 15-round boxes of
ammo and the pocket for the striker.
Here
are the markings that appear on the inside of the clamshell somewhere around
the middle. The character in the upper left is the sho in “Showa”. It is poorly struck and really only the top portion
of the character is visible. The next two characters that look like a plus sign
and a minus sign are “10” and “1”. Combined the three indicate “Showa 11”, or
1936. In the lower left is the symbol of
Here
you can see the end of the cleaning rod in its slot at the left of the photo (rear
of the holster when worn) and the spare firing pin/striker.
This
one shows the ammo pouch open. Original, sealed ammo boxes are scarce and valuable.
There is a guy who sells repro ammo boxes on eBay all the time.
Here
is a close-up of the closure. Note that the rivet heads on the left and right
are closer to the bottom than the top. Apparently most reproductions have the
rivets spaced half way between top and bottom. If you compare it to the earlier
types you will also notice that the brass plate is flat with no thin decorative
line around the edge like the Types I, IA and II had.
Here
is the other Type III holster I have. It has a more pleasing, even
reddish-brown colour all over. Both holsters are in very nice, solid shape,
though.
Here is the back. The strap rings are square and made of brass.
With the clamshell flap open you can see the inside with the ammo pouch and the pocket for the spare striker immediately to the right of it.
A close-up of the flap on the ammo pouch shows that the shape of the pouch is different from the earlier Type III shown above. On this later one the right side of the ammo pouch flap has now been extended to cover the spare striker pocket.
Here is a side-by-side comparison photo so you can see the difference. The left side shows the early holster with a narrow ammo pouch flap that covers only the ammo pouch. The right side shows the later holster with the wider ammo pouch flap that covers the spare striker pocket as well. I just learned how to combine two photos into one like this.
The markings in the centre of the inside of the clamshell flap are a bit faint, but can be read from right to left: Sho (short for Showa) 14. Showa 14, the 14th year of the reign of Emperor Hirohito, was 1939. Below that is an inspection mark.
On
the hinge that joins the clamshell flap to the body of the holster is a pen marking
that has been obscured with black ink. It is illegible but appears to have been
written in Roman letters (i.e. English). It was probably the name of the
The plate on the closure strap of this holster also lacks the decorative line around the edge.
Last updated: June 18, 2006. All contents are copyright Teri unless otherwise specified and may not
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