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Could forum members please give some clarification as to the exact model of U.S. bayonet is shown in the pictures. It was sold to me as a Garrand bayonet but I understood it to fit a number of US service rifles. I don't own a Garrand and so am not able to try fitting it to the rifle. Thanks for any information.
Another picture:
It's a shortened version of the 1903 bayonet produced during WWII. They do indeed fit the Garand and that is what they were primarily produced for. They will also fit the 1903 and O3A3 Springfields.
It would be called the M1 bayonet, the designation of 1905 with additions were for the long 16" blade and cut down versions. This one has a scabbard modified by the Greeks I think with the metal drag. The bayonet was actually made by someone other than US I think, the maker isn't familiar to me. Likely made well after WW2. And yes as stated it fits 1903...A3...M1 rifle...
Jim, you say that you think that the bayonet and scabbard were made outside of the U.S. although both have the flaming bomb marking. There are 2 close up pictures of the marks but it is not easy to see the markings from the pictures. Does this mean that they were made outside of the U.S. but used by the U.S. military; not all of American kit is made in the U.S.? When I purchased it from the dealer it still had thick storage grease on and so I believe that I am the first collector to own this particular bayonet since it being released from storage.
It's a Greek used m-1 bayonet and scabbard and I believe that the prevailing theory is that they were made by EF Horster in Germany. Gary Cunningham's bayonet website has a lot of information on these and as I recall they may have been made on contract for the US to be supplied as military aide to the Greeks within the same time frame as they received the Garands an '03s that we lent them post war to help in their fight against the Greek communists.
There are several bayonet types that were made outside the US but still retain US markings even though they were never intended for US use. Danish M5 bayonets for example. I have one with the bomb and US along with the Danish Crown. This one is interesting and I'll have to keep my eyes open for one as I have a Greek return O3A3.
A large number of 1905, M1 and M4 bayonets were returned to the US by Greece a few years back. There was a wide range of bayonets; WWI dates 1905s, all imaginable cut down and made-short M1s, foreign made M1s (as shown above) and Norwegian manufactured M4 bayonets as well as some M4s made by an unknown manufacturer. Most, if not all, were marked with Greek serial numbers. The bayonets were all sold through the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP). They were smart enough to pull out all the better pieces and sold them for a premium.
None of the foreign manufactured bayonets were issued to or used by US forces.
Are we now going to have a running debate concerning which rifles these bayonets fit :lol:
twh has it correct, page 74 of Cunningham's book U.S. Knife Bayonets & Scabbards.
Here is a link to the article mentioned by twh above on just this bayonet made for Greek forces from Gary Cunningham's website "Bayonet Points":
Bayo_Points_36
Fits US M1, M1903 and for what it's worth US krag.
Thanks for the information chaps. The Greek connection does kind of "tie in" because some of the other items the dealer had I have reason to believe came from Greece. The dealer did have a number of these bayonets but I think he has sold them all now. I do also have another smaller "U.S." bayonet made in Japan which I will have to dig out and photograph at some point.
It can be a bit of a dog to get to fit the Krag though...Quote:
Originally Posted by green
As for this cosmoline thing, I've personally dipped weapons we reblued or parkerized in cosmoline in a civilian gunshop. I wouldn't take that as a sign it's not been issued.
It's definitely been issued as were all the other examples in the box but all were covered in thick Cosmolene and so I assumed that they had been in storage. The vendor was probably wondering if I was ever going to actually buy one because I spent a good half an hour going through all the examples available until I got to the bayonet and scabbard which I considered to be in the best combined condition.
I can only speak for my experience with the CMP returns from Greece, several of the bayonets and the HRA Correct Grade I purchased were covered in a thick "grease" not cosmoline, the grease was easier to clean so I thank them for that method.
It probably was thick grease rather than Cosmosline.
Allen Lever of Lever Arms got a few hundred bayonets with his Danish Garand rifles. They were mostly US
surplus with some Danish ones. We went through them all, covered in grease. I have a box of about 40 nice
ones to go with the guns I got.