Nambu World: About Me

I am a 58 year-old retired university professor whose work related to Japan (the photo is rather old, but you can still recognize me by my unusual height and red hair). I have long had an interest in Japan, and have been shooting and collecting since I was a kid (my dad collected machine guns so I got to shoot lots of neat stuff). I speak, read and write Japanese at a reasonably good but not native level. My husband is not into guns, but rather vintage British sports cars (he has seven cars!). Fortunately he is very good at machining, so if I need a replacement part made he can probably do it. I don’t wish to glorify the war, Japan’s part in it, or violence in general. In my way of thinking, whatever a gun’s past, as long as I have it, I know it won’t be misused in the future. I tend not to restrict myself to buying museum pieces that are so pristine they can’t be shot. I also like a good, honest gun that is sound enough to shoot but not necessarily pretty any more. When I do displays I like to be interactive and demonstrate unusual features in person (for example, showing people the difference between a Type 14 and a Luger).

Here’s how I got into collecting Japanese handguns:

In April, 2003 I decided to combine my interests in Japan and guns and start a collection of Japanese handguns, prompted by seeing a beat-up Type 14 at a gun show in Calgary. The upper one in the photo is what got me started. It turned out that a dealer friend I mentioned my purchase to also had a beat-up Type 14, which I also bought. It’s the lower one in the photo below.

The upper one had many problems: the cocking knob was some homemade disaster, the threads on the rear of the bolt had been modified to “sort of” fit this new knob, the firing pin was broken, the firing pin extension was another homemade abomination, the recoil springs were shot (and are probably not even the right springs: one was too big in diameter), the sight was homemade, the mag was missing, there was a brazed repair in the right side of the barrel extension (above the serial number in the photo; probably shrapnel damage), the grips were homemade, the mag release spring was too short (either compressed or broken), one of the grip screws was missing and the barrel was shortened, thereby making it prohibited in Canada (I am grandfathered to own short-barreled handguns with barrels under 105mm=4.14”, but most Canadians can never purchase one). I believe all of the “repairs” were done after it reached North America. On the plus side, I only paid C$65, or about US$47. The numbers on the main parts matched except for the trigger guard. The barrel was very corroded and the rifling could barely be seen. I have since purchased all the parts needed and rebuilt it (see the 12.3 dated Type 14 in the Photo Gallery section).

The lower one was much better, though it was missing most of the finish (most of it seemed to have been removed for a planned-but-never-completed rebluing). It was mechanically tight and complete and except for the grips, safety and a broken magazine retention spring. I used some wood to make a pair of grips until I found an original pair on eBay. At C$100, or about US$73 at the time, it was a bargain. The numbers on all main parts match except for the magazine. The barrel is heavily pitted but serviceable. To read about how I rehabilitated this gun, including before and after photos, please click here: rehab.htm (also see the 15.11 dated Type 14 in the Photo Gallery section to see what it looks like now).

Here is a January, 2004 photo of me “mugging” with my custom-made Nambu World T-shirt and cup. I got them so that when I do gun shows people will remember me as the “Nambu Lady”. I have another, more humorous design shown below.

Here is a March, 2004 photo of the first item in my new line of Nambu maternity wear.

If you would like to read some of my ideas about collecting and displaying, you may be interested in an article I wrote entitled “Confessions of a Nambu Nut”. To read it, please click here: confessionsofanambunut.htm

Last updated: February 5, 2017. All contents are copyright Teri unless otherwise specified and may not be used elsewhere in any form without prior permission.

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