WTS Japanese Militaria Books

Kiipu · November 19

Most book dust jackets are in Brodart protective covers.
If a book has a flaw, it is noted. If not, then it is in very good or better condition.
Payment can be made by personal check, money order, or PayPal.
Shipping to United States: Shipping is included in the price of the book via media mail. If another shipping option is preferred, contact me and advise which one. I normally ship books in a cardboard box. It costs me about $8 to $12 to ship a book when everything is factored in.
International Shipping: Most books can be mailed internationally via USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate Envelope. If it fits within the envelope, it can be mailed. This will normally raise the cost of a book about US$40 to US$50 depending upon the country.
Contact me by “private message” if additional information or pictures is needed.

Kiipu · November 19

Dictionaries & Economics

Kenkyusha’s New Japanese-English Dictionary. Edited by Koh Masuda. 4th ed. Tōkyō, Japan: Kenkyusha, 1974.

Boxed, dust jacket, hardcover, 7 x 10 inches, 2114 pages, text only. Weight 5 lb 11 oz including box; printed in Japan. US$80.

Kobayashi, Ushisaburo. Military Industries of Japan. Japanese Monographs. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, 1922.

Hardcover, 6.5 x 9.75 inches, 272 pages, text & tables. Weight 1 lb 9 oz, printed in USA. US$50.

A really good book about the establishment of military industries in Japan, both army and navy. The coverage ends with World War I. It was a mandatory Japanese militaria collectors book back in the 1980s. One will not be disappointed.

Kiipu · November 23

Periodicals

Found this German language magazine in storage. It has several articles on historic firearms besides modern ones. Take a look at the content page as there might be an article of interest.

Visier: Das internationale Waffen-Magazin. August 2005.

Softcover, 8.25 x 11 inches, 148 pages, color illustrations. Weight 0 lb 11 oz, printed in Germany. Very good plus condition. US$20.

I also have an example of the Japanese magazine call GUN. This is the May 2008 issue.

Softcover, 7.25 x 10.25 inches, 204 pages, color illustrations, includes a DVD. Weight 1 lb 1 oz, printed in Japan. US$25.

Selling two Banzai DVDs that cover the years 1982–2007. US$130 for both including shipping to the States.

1. Lodestone Publications. Banzai: The Bulletin for the Collector of Japanese Militaria. 22 Years 1982–2003. DVD-R.

2. Lodestone Publications. Banzai. 2000–2007.

Kiipu · November 23

Small Arms Overview

Markham, George [John Walter]. Japanese Infantry Weapons of World War Two. London, United Kingdom: Arms & Armour Press, 1976.

Dust jacket, hardcover, 7.25 x 9.75 pages, 96 pages, B&W illustrations. Weight 1 lb 2 oz, printed in Great Britain. Almost new condition and still a useful book after all these years. US$50.

Sugawa Shigeo. Japanese Soldiers at the China Front, 1930’s. Tuscaloosa, Ala.: Banzai, 1994.

Softcover, 8.5 x 11 inches, 167 pages, B&W illustrations. Weight 1 lb 8 oz, printed in USA. No missing pages, tears, or writing. A really interesting book with much information about uniforms, personal equipment, and such. Each picture is captioned with information about what is seen. The pictures in the book date from 1932 to 1941. US$125.

Sugawa Shigeo 須川薫雄. Nihon no gun’yōjū to sōgu 日本の軍用銃と装具 [Japanese Military Small Arms and Equipment]. Tōkyō, JP: Kokusho Kankō Kai, 1995.

Dust jacket, hardcover, 8.25 x 11.75 inches (A4), 210 pages, color illustrations. Japanese text with English captions, autographed by author. Weight 2 lb 11 oz, printed in Japan. US$225.

Kiipu · December 3

Edged Weapons

Dawson, Jim. Swords of Imperial Japan, 1868–1945. Stenger-Scott Publishing, 1996.

Softcover, 8.5 x 11 inches, 160 pages, B&W illustrations. Weight 1 lb 6 oz, printed in USA. Some pages started falling out so converted it into a 3-ring binder format. No writing, no missing pages, no tears, etc. This was the first edition that came out. US$49.

Fuller, Richard, and Ron Gregory. Japanese Military and Civil Swords and Dirks. Howell Press, 1997.

Dust jacket, hardcover, 7.5 x 9.75 inches, 288 pages, B&W illustrations with 8 page color insert. Weight 2 lb 6 oz, printed in Hong Kong. US$220.

LaBar, Raymond C. Bayonets of Japan: A Comprehensive Reference on Japanese Bayonets. Tunnel Hill, GA: RAYMAR, Inc., 2008.

Used, hardcover, 8.5 x 11 inches, 472 pages, color illustrations. Weight 4 lb 7 oz, printed in USA. The most recent book on Japanese bayonets. It it almost entirely in color. No missing pages or tears. Previous owner wrote his name on the endcovers, there is no other writing. Autographed by author. Sales for $250 to $560 online! US$210.

Kiipu · December 7

On 11/19/2024 at 12:05 PM, Kiipu said:

1. Kenkyusha’s New Japanese-English Dictionary. Edited by Koh Masuda. 4th ed. Tōkyō, Japan: Kenkyusha, 1974.

2. Kobayashi, Ushisaburo. Military Industries of Japan. Japanese Monographs. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, 1922.

Both Sold

Kiipu · December 18

United States. War Department. Ordnance Office. Annual Report of the Chief of Ordnance to the Secretary of War for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1892. Government Printing Office, 1892.

This report includes appendix 9: "Report of the Board of Officers Constituted by General Order No. 136, Headquarters of the Army, Adjutant-General’s Office, November 24, 1890, to Select Magazine Arms for the U. S. Military Service." Pages 110–308. The Murata rifle was one of the rifles tested by the board.

17 sheets of microfiche, two pages on each frame, over 1,000 pages long. I just figured somebody would have a microfiche reader at home. US$12 or free with any book purchase.

Kiipu · December 18

Ammunition

United States. Departments of the Army and the Air Force. Japanese Explosive Ordnance: Bombs, Bomb Fuzes, Land Mines, Grenades, Firing Devices, and Sabatage Devices. Army TM 9-1985-4. Air Force TO 39B-1A-11. March 1953.

Beige softcover, 7.75 x 10.25 inches, pages 1–264, grayscale illustrations. Weight 1 lb 3 oz, printed in USA. Condition is excellent except the cover has separated from the text. The glue hardened with age and I have l left it as is. No writing or highlighting, no tears or missing pages. Not a reprint. US$125.

United States. Departments of the Army and the Air Force. Japanese Explosive Ordnance. Army TM 9-1985-5. Air Force TO 39B-1A-12. March 1953. Reprinted in 1993 by Julin Books.

White softcover, 7 x 9.5 inches, iv/265–548 pages, grayscale illustrations, autographed by author. Has a crease in the back cover. Weight 1 lb 2 oz, printed in USA. US$49.

Elks, Ken. Chinese Ammunition: 1870 to the Present Day. Solo Publications, 2012.

Softcover, Wire C-bound, 8.25 x 11.75, 142 pages, color illustrations. No missing pages, no tears, no writing or highlighting. US$120.

Kiipu · December 20

I am selling the final two books in the "trilogy" of Imperial Japanese economic history. The first one, since sold, was Military Industries of Japan.

Barnhart, Michael A. Japan Prepares for Total War: The Search for Economic Security, 1919–1941. Cornell University Press, 1987.

Dust jacket, hardcover, 6.25 x 9.5 inches, 296 pages, tables, maps. Weight 1 lb 6 oz, printed in USA. US$55.

This is a fascinating book about Japanese preparations for total war. One thing that I found interesting was that Japan was already in a hopeless situation in China even before the war with the West.

Cohen, Jerome B. Japan’s Economy in War and Reconstruction. Minneapolis, Minn.: University of Minnesota Press, 1949; issued under the auspices of the International Secretariat, Institute of Pacific Relations.

Green hardcover, 7 x 10.25 inches, xx/548 pages, tables, charts. Ex-library book. Weight 3 lb 1 oz, printed in USA. This is a reading copy as it is ex-library that came out of a U. S. military base in Japan. US$40.

Kiipu · Monday at 12:00 AM

Handguns

Brunner, John W. The Colt Pocket Hammerless Automatic Pistols. Phillips Publications, 1996.

Dust jacket, hardcover, 8.5 x 11 inches, 224 pages, B&W illustrations, first edition, excellent condition. Bought new back in 1998. No missing pages, no tears, no highlighting or writing. US$350.

Brown, James D. Collector’s Guide to Imperial Japanese Handguns, 1893–1945. Schiffer Military History, 2007.

Softcover, 8.5 x 11 inches, 64 pages, B&W illustrations. Weight 0 lb 13 oz, printed in China. US$20. This is a useful book for sword collectors as it has information on inspection marks.

Brian · Monday at 07:41 AM

Off topic, but since I can't afford that Colt book Thomas...
Any chance you can take a look if there is a section on 1903 .32's that were sold through the Colt London Agency? Particularly interested in any info/pics of leather cased ones (looks like a small leather suitcase) with the Colt London Agency trade label inside the lid.
Never managed to get the book, and have a nice example of the pistol in my collection, early 1900's.
If you get a chance. Thanks.

Kiipu · Monday at 06:21 PM

I corresponded with Mr. Brunner back in the day. He was in the OSS in World War II. From experience, I found that some of his published articles were more informative than what is in the book, the book being heavily American orientated.

I looked through and only found two pages that touched upon London or England. See attached. I only recently learned that a 2nd edition or 2nd volume came out in 2009? There could be more information in that volume. Will post here and see if anyone might have the 2nd version of the book and can look.

1996-brunner-pp098-099.pdf