what the heck is it?

[hillbill]

got this from a friend. possible korean war trophy, possible jap manufacture. he says its a 9x18 cal. there is some what looks like jap writeing  on one side of the frame plus a serial number.feels like a extremely solid gun and looks well built.i would appreciate any info and a possible ballpark value.thanks guys!

[Mikey]

Upon immediate viewing it appears to be either a British Webley or Enfield in 38/200 and as such could quite easily be a Korean war trophy as the British deployed troops to Korea during the conflict there. 

It may also be something Japanese from WWII but I'm not certain and would have to see the gun up close and personal to make that decision.  The Japanese fielded a Model 26 revolver in 9mm rimmed during WWII - this 9mm is identified as a one-of-a-kind caliber and I doubt it is a 9x18mm case, although those may well be the dimentions but the round is not interchangeable with any modern loadings. 

I will take another look at the pictures.  Mikey.

[Mikey]

That big thumb sized hammer on that revolver sure looks like the one on the Model 26 from my Small Arms of the World, so it could easily be Japanese manufacture and a Korean war trophy.  But even if it is a 9x18 chambering, those revolvers were not made after the 1920s (I believe) and should not be used with any modern or current ammo.  HTH.  Mikey.

[Lee N. Fielder]

I think you're right, Mikey.  I'm pretty sure that's a Type 26 9mm Japanese revolver.  Of course, it shoots a RIMMED cartridge and is not designed at all for the 9x18 rimlesss cartridge.  In addition, these are fairly weak breaktop revolvers and the original 9mm Jap revolver cartridge may well have been less powerful than today's 9x18 round.

GAD Custom Cartridges makes new 9mm Jap ammunition.  That would be a much better place to start than trying to adapt 9x18 ammo.  Here's a link.  Look under the "Obsolete Pistol Ammo" heading.  -Lee

http://www.gadcustomcartridges.com/

[hillbill]

i looked at it closer today and i think yu guys are correct. the way the cylinder is set up counterbored for the rim to set down in and then the extractor catches the rim and shoves the shells out just like a smith 38 or 357 does, it would have to be a rimmed cartridge.any chance a guy could cut down some 38's to fit?the counter bore for the rim looks pretty narrow so might have to turn the rim down too.thanks for all the info guys!!!

[Mikey]

hillbill - I don't think a cut down 38 Spl case would suffice for that strange 9mm round.  You may have better luck with a 38 S&W case.  In the British revolvers this case held a 200 gn .360-.361 diameter bullet; the Japanese may have used this design with a 9mm bullet.  I would make a kerosafe cast of the chamber and see what it looks like and go from there.

Of course, you can always follow Lee N. Fielder's suggestion to contact the company that makes Japanese 9mm ammo and get the correct stuff..................Mikey.

[Lee N. Fielder]

What little reference material I have on the 9mm Jap revolver cartridge is sparse.  It appears that this cartridge requires a bullet of .350" diameter.  I suppose that you could resize 90 grain .380 ACP cast bullets down if someone makes a bullet sizer in that diameter.  It will obviously require a heavy roll crimp to keep the undersize bullet from moving inside the case during recoil.

A .38 Special case is about .010" longer than than the Japanese case, so case trimming is minimal.  Conversely, a .38 Long Colt case would require no trimming at all.  The rim diameters are the same as .38 Special/.38 Long Colt, but I don't know if there is any difference in the rim thicknesses.  I guess if the Type 26 action will close and allow rotation without dragging then you're probably good to go.

Using .38 Special or .38 Long Colt cases will be a bit undersized in the Type 26 revolver so you will be likely to experience bulged or split cases as well as hard extraction effort unless you keep the cartridge reloads on the mild side.

Unfortunately, I have no reloading data.  I would think that 3.0 grains of Unique powder behind a properly resized 90 grain cast bullet would be mild enough to start with.  Trail Boss would probably be a better choice, but I have no intuitive feel for how much to use as I have no working experince with it.

In any event, proceed slowly and be careful.

-Lee

[Gerry N.]

Lee Precision will make up one of their push-through sizing die set-ups in any diameter you want for $25.   There will likely be somewhat of a wait, though. 

Gerry N.

[kwells2006]

yes, it is a Type 26, and im pretty sure they were made up into WWII, but I could be wrong.

[hillbill]

i looked at some of these on gunbroker and dang they are high dollar for some reason.must have some collector interest in them. im taking it to the big tulsa show tomorrow to trade it for something id get more use out of. thanks for all the input guys!

[S.S.]

japanese brought the type 26 into service in 1893.
the cartridge (9mm type 26) was pretty anemic and
only managed about 750 fps. The left side plate is hinged
and is released by pulling down on the trigger guard.
This allows easy access to the lockwork for cleaning.
Loosely based on the Roth-Gasser revolvers.

[hillbill]

ss, thanks, i had no idea the side opened like that. very impressive engineering.