I had a look again last night a Graham's book and he does mention that there is or sometimes is a number "1" stamped on the actual blade of the genuine Sten bayonet. The thing is that although Grahams book is an excellent very informative book and well researched, on this matter, you really need to read the chapters on the No4 mk3 bayonet, the chapter on SMG spike bayonets and the chapter on fake spike bayonets. You then need to digest the information and then cross reference the info in your mind before drawing any conclusions. So far I haven't fathomed out if there was always a number "1" or sometimes a number "1" stamped on the actual blade of a genuine Sten bayonet. I'm not even sure that Graham makes it 100% clear. Can any-one tell us who has actually purchased one of the bayonets mentioned at the start of this post if there is a number "1" stamped on the actual blade, please.

If my understanding is correct the ex sten blades used on some No4 mk3 pig stickers were simply spare/surplus blades used up for economy reasons and had never actually been on a completed sten bayonet? In other words they were not hacked off a sten bayonet and re-welded onto a No4 mk3.