29. The Awful Japanese Pistol
The Japanese pistol used during the war, the Type 94 Nambu, was one of the worst sidearms ever issued to the military. Basic maintenance was difficult because it was overly complex and had too many parts, rendering disassembly and reassembly awkward. It tended to fire off unintentionally if jarred. On top of the design, defects were manufacturing defects caused by poor workmanship and inadequate quality control in the production plants.
Among the Type 94’s myriad problems was that it did not have a hammer, but used a firing pin instead – and a weak firing pin at that, which broke easily when firing. When firing, accurate aiming with the sights could be impossible because the front blade atop the muzzle and the rear ‘v’ were often misaligned.
