Whelp, I had a lot written but it all disappeared when I opened a new tab:mad:

I know civilians donated/sold swords to the IJA, but the requirements were a blade of at least 21.5".

I recently aquired a Wakizashi in full civilian mounts including the Saya(mounts Edo period, blade around 14th-15th century if legit Mei) Wrapped in jabara-maki with white Ito(not suitable for combat IMO) I got the usual story with it "My father brought it back from WWII" but was very vague. I bought the sword and not the story so to speak(and it was pretty cheap) It wasn’t until I got the sword that I noticed the Tsuka had a hole drilled through it about 1/2" under the kashira. Typical of civilian mounted katana with a Sarute installed or makeshift lanyard. The Saya also had a hole drilled through towards the tip for a lanyard.

After I saw all of this it definitely peaked my interest. I contacted the seller asking if I could please have more info about his father/where he got it. A few days later I got a reply of "He was in the 77th infantry division and got the sword on Okinawa. That’s all I know and all he would tell me about the sword or the war"

So, back to my question. Are civilian mounted Wakizashi typically seen? I would think it would be "embarrassing" for a soldier to carry a Wakizashi as they were known as being merchant swords.
Thanks.