Cut Down Krag Bayo Query

[James.Bolton]

I have a cut down Krag bayonet dated 1898 which is in a home made leather scabbard. I have had this bayonet for about four years and was having a closer look at it a few days ago and noticed that the scabbard has been marked very roughly as follows 'PT BOAT DIV I' 'MIDWAY I.S.'1942'.

I've added some photos and hopefully you can see the markings on the scabbard. I'm
guessing that these markings mean that the bayonet saw service in WW2 in the Pacific; however being a Brit (living in the UK) does anyone have any info as to what these markings refer to. Also any comments on the bayo itself much appreciated (by the way it is absolutely razor sharp).

Many thanks - James

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Information

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[browningautorifle]

I think it speaks for it's self. I suspect it was procured by an individual and cut down, scabbard made and used as you suspect. If in doubt, enter PT Boats in Google and Wiki will fully describe them to you better than we can here. Cut down out of service or foreign bayonets have been made into fighting knives since the beginning of bayonets...Perhaps you can update your pics with a couple more. One or two of the complete scabbard and one with them side by side.

[Aragorn243]

A PT boat is what the British Navy would call a Motor Torpedo Boat and what the German's called E-boats.

The American PT boats were manufactured out of wood and plywood and were used to patrol the various Islands during WWII. They saw extensive use as patrol vessels, usually traveled in small groups and were assigned to specific groups or divisions.

The most famous PT boat commander is John F Kennedy whose boat was sunk in action. He received a medal for saving his crew and is the same JFK who later became President of the United States.

As for effectiveness.......hard to tell what by what standard you rate them. As patrol boats, they were very effective. They were cheap to make and fairly easy to maintain. In combat, I don't really know of any major successes that can be attributed to them. They attacked in many waves during the battles of Leyte in the Philippines without scoring a hit against the Japanese fleet. But they were disruptive in the process. They were also used for supply and transport to behind the lines groups and individuals. MacArthur used one to evacuate the Philippines early in the war.

Just look up the information on your scabbard and you should find plenty of info on that division. I'm surprised the number of the boat was not also marked. PT-109 was JFK's boat.

[WarPig1976]

Whoever made the scabbard was highly skilled in leather work. Another mystery, what piece of equipment did the leather come from? Wore out holster perhaps...

[browningautorifle]

Attachment 44999It looks like a picket pic case. You see them occasionally used for this sort of thing. If that's the case, it was made by a professional company.

[WarPig1976]

Oh yes, no doubt, pictures are identical.

[James.Bolton]

I must agree that the cut and style of the picket pin case is almost an exact match to the scabbard; many thanks for identifying this.

Thanks also for the info on PT Boats; I've been having a look through a few websites to find out more on info on this subject that I knew very little about. The site PT Boats, Inc.- A Nonprofit Historical/Educational Corporation seems one of the best I've found.

Now that I know that the markings on the scabbard have some element of historical relevance I guess I should stop using this bayo and scabbard as my general hunting / fishing knife (although it holds an edge like nothing else; must be made from very high quality steel). Getting a new scabbard made and splitting the krag and scabbard apart just doesn't seem right when you consider the number of years that they have gone through time together.

Thanks again

[browningautorifle]

This may have some value as is, you can buy a hunting knife fairly cheaply...yes they're made from top grade stuff.