Source: ATF P 5300.11 · Curios or Relics List · Jan 1972 – Apr 20253,573 entries · 4 sections
The C&R RegisterA finding aid to the ATF Curios or Relics List, for Type 03 collectors
C&R · IV · 146

Type 38 machinegun (Hotchkiss)

Section IV: still an NFA firearm, also a curio or relic

Official wording

ATF P 5300.11 · APRIL 2025 EDITION · SECTION IV · VERBATIM · PDF P. 85 ↗

Japanese, Type 38 (1905) machinegun (Hotchkiss) cal. 6.5mm.

ATF lists cal. 6.5mm; this is the 6.5×50mm Arisaka cartridge.

What this entry requires

  • INFOATF states no date; production was about 1907–1920.
  • INFOStill an NFA firearm; only registered examples transfer, with ATF approval (26 U.S.C. 5812, 5861).

Editorial facts · Our research

Country
Japan
Manufacturer
Tokyo Artillery Arsenal¹
Type
Machinegun
Action
Select-fire / auto
Caliber
6.5×50mm Arisaka
Made
c. 1907–1920production; ATF states no date²
Service
Military
Search listings ↗Check a specific gunReport an error ↗

Source

Official wording
ATF P 5300.11, April 2025 edition · Section IV · PDF p. 85 ↗ · ATF original ↗
Entries
1 line
Verbatim check
Checked against the PDF text before every release
Editorial facts
Confidence: Medium · Last revised 18 October 2026 (Evidence pass) · How we rate confidence
References
  1. Wikipedia, “三八式機関銃” ↗, maker: 設計: 南部麒次郎; 製造: 東京砲兵工廠 (Tokyo Artillery Arsenal)
  2. Wikipedia, “三八式機関銃” ↗, years (estimate: partly supports it): enacted June 1907 (Meiji 40) (en Type 3 heavy machine gun: 'adoption of the domestic Type 38 heavy machine gun in 1907'); end year 1920 is our estimate
Fact tags
  • ATF the ATF wording states it.
  • REF ¹ an outside reference supports it; the number points to the list of references.
  • ESTIMATE an approximate or indirect reading, for example the production range of the base model.
  • NO CITATION we haven’t attached a reference for this fact; it’s our editorial reading, not ATF’s.
Source checked
20 October 2026: ATF’s page still lists the April 2025 edition
Corrections
2 changes · see below

Correction history

  1. Evidence passYears: 1905–1920 → 1907–1920. Wikipedia (ja, en): adopted 1907 (1905 = Meiji 38 designation year)
  2. Evidence passMaker: Japanese Army arsenals → Tokyo Artillery Arsenal. Japanese Wikipedia (三八式機関銃)

All corrections · How corrections work

Historical context

NO VERIFIED IMAGE AVAILABLEWe show only freely licensed images verified to depict this model. None has been found yet.

Summary: Wikipedia, “Hotchkiss machine gun”. Text CC BY-SA 4.0. Retrieved October 2026.

FROM WIKIPEDIA

The Hotchkiss machine gun was any of a line of products developed and sold by Hotchkiss et Cie,, established by United States gunsmith Benjamin B. Hotchkiss. Hotchkiss moved to France and set up a factory, first at Viviez near Rodez in 1867, then at Saint-Denis near Paris in 1875, manufacturing arms used by the French in the Franco-Prussian War.