The March 8th rifle was officially installed by the Japanese army in the same year of the Russo-Japanese War (A.D. 1905) and was used by the Japanese until the end of World War II. The military and non-military forces of other countries even used 1955 all the time, and experienced the War of Liberation, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and so on. ?
Why is it called "March 8th Big Cover"? First of all, the Type 38 rifle was finalized and produced in 1905, the thirty-eighth year of Meiji in Japan. Therefore, according to the naming rules of Japanese weapons, weapons are generally named after the year of the emperor, so they are named "March 8 rifle". The prototype of this gun is Japan's "Type 30 Rifle". Later, in order to prevent dust from entering the bolt, resulting in poor operation, an arched dust cover was set on the bolt. This cover is the "big cover", so it is commonly known as the "March 8 big cover".
Rotary back-drawing bolt machine is adopted. The manufacturing tolerance of the bolt case is small, and the surface is treated with anti-corrosion. The bolt machine runs smoothly in the bolt case. There are two exhaust holes on the bolt case. There is an "N"-shaped dust cover with a cross section that can slide back and forth with the bolt case, and there is an opening for the handle of the straight bolt machine to extend out. There is a round hat-shaped rotary safety device at the tail of the bolt case.
The design of bolt assembly is less than its prototype Mao Se rifle by three parts, with only five parts, which is the simplest structure and quite high reliability in the rotary breech bolt rifle at that time. Long range, high precision, is the characteristics of the March 8th, and even can be used as a sniper rifle, but the lethality is small and the ammunition change is slow. In fact, this rifle is more suitable for hand-to-hand combat, and the muzzle is equipped with a three-zero bayonet, which makes the length of the whole gun reach 170 cm, which is very advantageous.
The Japanese army, which advocates Bushido, has always been proud of close combat. Therefore, the concept of one inch long and one inch strong makes the body of the 38-type gun very long, and there are few parts that get in the way on the surface, just for the convenience of stabbing! Type 38 gun barrel is longer, which is beneficial to improve muzzle velocity, range and shooting accuracy! Accurate and efficient long-range shooting is the characteristic of Japanese individual combat, and such March 8 can cooperate with Guizi soldiers to better improve their individual combat capability!
Structurally, the 38 rifle is also very suitable for the Asian battlefield. It is called 38 sets because there is a huge dust cover at the back, which is simpler and won't have too many bumps like a regular rifle and won't be caught. Moreover, the bolt design is simple, the disassembly is convenient and the service support performance is excellent. Considering the comprehensive knowledge level and quality of Asian soldiers at that time, it was indeed a good advantage.
During the Japanese invasion of China, the equipment of the Japanese invaders, the March 8th rifle captured by China's anti-Japanese soldiers and civilians, and many later literary and artistic works depicting War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression also made the March 8th cover famous in China. The East China Military Region concluded that the advantages of the 38-gun are high precision, good steel cylinder and proper maintenance, and it can shoot 10,000 rounds continuously.