Japanese Trials Gas-Operated Pedersen Rifle

Sold at auction for $8,625. The Japanese semiauto rifle trials of the early 1930s had a total of four entrants - Kijiro Nambu and his company, Tokyo Gas & Electric, the Tokyo Army Arsenal, and Nippon Special Steel. This rifle is one of the third iteration of the design from Nippon Special Steel. It is a design based originally on the Pedersen, but with substantial changes. It is a toggle-locked and gas-operated action with a gas piston that moves forward upon firing.