In a collecting environment filled with every concept of fixed and folding blade knives, many of which are works of art and others which are examples of the technical achievement of their makers, the question is often asked why anyone would want to collect military knives which are considered by many as ugly ducklings in a pond with so many swans?

History, as taught in my high school, was dry and dusty and held no interest whatsoever. I could not become excited over which dynasty built which palace in what year and what type of crops were being grown in province such-and-such. It was not until attending college in later years that it was realized that many if not most of the significant changes in the modern world have been the result of military action, not the potato yield of an European country, and that military history was in fact exciting!

As those who collect military firearms and accoutrements can attest, it is possible to trace the development and growth of the United States and many other nations through their military history. One may look back on the European heritage of our country and find both gunsmiths and cutlers among those who found their way here during those formative years. Both skills have made it possible to equip a military force sufficient to secure and maintain our free country for over 220 years.

Thirty four years ago, upon receiving orders to Vietnam, many Marines (this writer included) took the long gray military bus into Oceanside from Staging Battalion at Camp Pendleton to buy Marine combat knives which were reportedly hard to get overseas, or so we were told. We discovered later that we should also have purchased sharpening stones since they were much more scarce than were the knives.

There is an old adage that states that no one appreciates the value of a good knife until they really need one. That appreciation came in Vietnam where my Marine knife became an all around utility tool that served as knife, tool, hammer, and pry bar as well as a constant comfort knowing that if all else failed and the worst happened, I would always have a weapon at hand. Those Marine knives, the successors to the original KaBars of WW II, were made cheaply and had their flaws but they could be sharpened on a piece of wet concrete and were surprisingly useful.

The hands-on appreciation of a good knife under such conditions will make a believer out of most skeptics. Laos, Vietnam, and those other armed actions in Southeast Asia resulted from political instability lingering from a war which officially ended over a decade before. When countries have a disagreement, they fight with words first, weapons next. Those weapons, edged weapons included, may tell the observer much about the combatants and the nature of the conflict itself.

Although US military issue knives may have existed since around 1840, World War II may be considered as the golden era of US military knives. There were more military issue knives and edged weapons of all types manufactured

during the period 1941 through 1945 than at any time in the history of America. The War Production Board estimated in early 1943 that the need for fixed blade combat knives alone would be almost 4 million by the end of 1944. WW II production of knives for the Navy and Marine Corps was easily over 100,000 units per month.

The manufacture of WW II knives was fraught with changes in both fit and finish as production accelerated to meet increasing demand in late 1942. It took almost a year to get real production started. Sheaths also changed to meet the harsh conditions in the field. Special knives appeared for special units. At times, a certain version of a knife may have been in production for a few weeks or months before changes were made and the next version was produced. With the heavy use and high loss of knives in the field, relatively few early examples of some knives survive intact today.

The wartime availability and use of raw materials was limited and carefully allocated. Civilian knives were collected and issued for use to reduce the need for new production as the country established a war footing.

Along with its wartime participation, each military cutlery contractor had its own company history and many could be traced to old line family-owned businesses with immigrant roots. Former civilian production lines now produced military knives. The country came together in wartime.

This is American history in its true sense and a wonderful area for the historian/collector.

While the diversity of military cutlery provides a wide range of interest, special unit and special purpose knives & edged weapons from any era may be irresistible to the collector/historian. Specialized equipment for clandestine military combat units or for special combat tasks may draw great collector and historical attention since such units were generally developed and equipped for specific missions, many often quite hazardous. As the original Roger’s Rangers carried belt axes as a required part of their kit to fight the French and Indians, many small highly specialized units have and continue to undertake missions utilizing special edged weapons that fit their specific needs. Such knives may be US issue, foreign made, hand made, or off-the-shelf commercial items. Each circumstance brings about its own level of interest to the collector/historian.

Theater made knives of any era have their own collector following as do sword and bayonet conversions into fighting knives and other similar improvisations. World War II is known for thousands of different and unique hand made knives utilizing whatever was available in that geographic area at that time of the war including using bayonets, saw blades, and metal acquired from any source. Worn-out files and their fine steel have been used for a century to make edged weapons and are also found in theater made cutlery. These fighting knives manufactured by servicemen from scrap metal, plastic, leather, and wood have their own following and the observer can tell much from their construction and at times from the sheaths that may accompany them.

Private purchase combat knives and edged weapons tell another story. In the 20^th Century and before, we saw that in many instances the edged weapons issued to troops were either so specialized, such as were their bayonets, or so poorly suited for the mission that alternatives to such equipment were eagerly sought. Commonly, hunting knives were the first to go to war but special combat versions of some maker’s product lines gained swift acceptance with some models still popular today. In WW II, obsolete swords from WW I and before were sold as scrap metal to enterprising craftsmen in America who converted them into fighting knives and made them available for the ongoing war effort. Unlike most of the gaudy movie knives which would be somewhat worthless in the field, many fine handmade and commercial knives remain in use by American troops and units worldwide. The collector’s interest in such knives may be enhanced by their association with the original owner’s military activities, especially if they are significant.

Currently, the US military has standardized on the knife-bayonet concept for many of its troops. From the use of this concept during the original Gulf War until today, there have been a large number of variations and changes in the design of the weapon as well as a number of manufacturers. Knives purchased for use by the Navy and the SEAL teams have changed many times over the past decades and will likely change again in the future. Some knives made for such military units were tested and never adopted while others were purchased in very limited numbers.

As recently seen in Afghanistan, private purchase combat knives are popular but are at times being approved at the unit level to ensure that common sense prevails. After an absence of over 30 years, the Vietnam tomahawk has also re-appeared in Afghanistan in a modern hi-tech version used by US

Army parachute units, Rangers, and Marines. With new knives and edged weapons available incorporating blades based on ceramics and carbon fiber/metal laminate, it will be interesting to see if this new blade technology is used in a combat environment. History is in the making!

Remaining of great interest to military knife collectors are pattern knives, experimental and development models, arsenal and manufacturing records, contract documents, manuals, packing sheets, labels, catalogs, and patent information for military knives and edged weapons. Each item has the potential to open a new avenue of interest, investigation, and history to the collector/historian.

Military knife collecting can be a formidable task. New collectors are encouraged to collect by maker, by theme, by unit, or otherwise begin with some specific interest in mind and, as both interests and resources permit, expand into new and attractive areas. There remain areas of military knife collecting which are relatively unexplored even now which offer the opportunity to enjoy both the knives and the history of collecting . *****