British and Commonwealth Military Knives

A place to discuss & share pictures of military related knives and tools. Conversation relating to objects of war and peace from all eras welcome.
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Eustace
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Eustace »

My friend send me a pictures of some army knife with interesting tang stamps. Can anyone help?
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nif6969
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by nif6969 »

its a ww2 indian army jackknife.im not sure of the stamp on the marlin spike. but the stamp on the tin opener are ms is the maker and 45 is the date.it has hand cut scales instead of the british example you show in the last pic which has bexoid machine made scales.
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Eustace
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Eustace »

nif6969 wrote: Sat Oct 05, 2019 5:00 pm its a ww2 indian army jackknife.im not sure of the stamp on the marlin spike. but the stamp on the tin opener are ms is the maker and 45 is the date.it has hand cut scales instead of the british example you show in the last pic which has bexoid machine made scales.
Thank you very mach, nif6969, and welcome aboard!
Checkered past
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Checkered past »

Good day forum

Wonder if I can use the forum for some help. I picked up this knife recently and had assumed a Horsemans or Carriage knife. But doing some digging on the web has me now thinking military use? Cavalry knife?

I think it's the can opener that's throwing it off for me. I found a couple of examples the same but the were described as a Boer war era knife. Would a Boer era knife have stainless scales? Is it then WWI era?

Name on the blade is Humphreys Radiant.

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks for your time....
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cottage hill bill
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by cottage hill bill »

It is commercial not military. As you suspected a horseman or carriage knife. The tin opener is the style of the Boer War and WWI knives so I would date it to the first quarter of the 1900s. The two screws and nuts set in the scales are for doing a field repair on a broken rein or other leather strap. Use the awl blade to make two holes in each side of the broken strap, overlap the two and use the screws to hold them together until you get home and can fix it properly. Nice knife.
knife7knut
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by knife7knut »

Just to add that the scales are nickel silver;not stainless steel.The giveaway is the yellowish tint to the metal.Nice old knife!
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sksvlad
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by sksvlad »

I am a gun'n'ammo collector from US. I do not normally collect blades unless they attach to guns. I picked this folding knife at a garage sale. I think it is a post WWII British issue. It says "Harrison Bros.& Howson" and "9"or"6" on the marlin slike. It says "E.Perryman" on the scales which I think is the name of the sailor. Any way to tell its age and who E.Perryman was?
Grateful aforehand
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Nephilim
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Nephilim »

sksvlad wrote: Mon Jun 15, 2020 2:38 pm I am a gun'n'ammo collector from US. I do not normally collect blades unless they attach to guns. I picked this folding knife at a garage sale. I think it is a post WWII British issue. It says "Harrison Bros.& Howson" and "9"or"6" on the marlin slike. It says "E.Perryman" on the scales which I think is the name of the sailor. Any way to tell its age and who E.Perryman was?
Grateful aforehand
British Royal Navy issue. I think someone in this thread mentioned that that model was made from the late 1930s to the 1980s. The year should be marked on the tang, opposite side of the maker. Funny, I just logged in to post a picture of one of those I acquired personally.
Nephilim
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Nephilim »

I have two UK military knives, one navy and one army. The naval knife is a 1941 Joseph Rodgers and Sons, while the army knife is a 1945 Sheffield Steel Products.
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That model of army knife was only made in 1944-45 (correct me if I'm wrong) and issued to troops in the Far East, hence its' nickname of "Burma Knife". The cold war era British army knives made from the 1950s on were mostly based on that pattern. I was surprised to learn that the scales on the Burma Knife are made of aluminum (I checked with a magnet, and I'm fairly sure they're non-ferrous). I would have expected them to reserve all the aluminum for aircraft manufacture and not bother using it for jackknives. Then again, maybe chromium was even more scarce than aluminum? Also, if anyone knows why the navy knife is marked with a Maltese Cross and star, rather than a broad arrow, please chime in. (EDIT: Ah, I see someone addressed this on the last page) The springs in these are both quite strong; these are built like absolute tanks.
cottage hill bill
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by cottage hill bill »

The cross and star is the Rodgers trademark.
Nephilim
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Nephilim »

cottage hill bill wrote: Wed Jun 17, 2020 12:56 pm The cross and star is the Rodgers trademark.
Of course! Now that you mention it, I have seen that on commercial Joseph Rodgers knives before. I was assuming it was some sort of War Department stamp. Thanks for clearing that up.
Nephilim
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Nephilim »

Picked up a couple more British army knives and I thought I'd share them here.
On top is a 1943 dated army knife produced by Wilson. Decent condition, strong springs as always. On the bottom is a modern model army knife produced sometime in the early 2000s by Stephenson & Wilson Ltd. They went out of business in 2004.
On top is a 1943 dated army knife produced by Wilson. Decent condition, strong springs as always. On the bottom is a modern model army knife produced sometime in the early 2000s by Stephenson & Wilson Ltd. They went out of business in 2004.
I asked the seller about this knife and did a little research. The knife was produced as individual regiment memorabilia, never issued and then surplused. The insignia is of the Queen's Royal Lancers cavalry regiment. In 2015 it was amalgamated with 9th/12th Royal Lancers to form the Royal Lancers (Queen Elizabeths' Own). The death or glory insignia dates back to 1759 with the 17th Lancers.
I asked the seller about this knife and did a little research. The knife was produced as individual regiment memorabilia, never issued and then surplused. The insignia is of the Queen's Royal Lancers cavalry regiment. In 2015 it was amalgamated with 9th/12th Royal Lancers to form the Royal Lancers (Queen Elizabeths' Own). The death or glory insignia dates back to 1759 with the 17th Lancers.
Topfmine
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Topfmine »

I came across this pocket knife the other week, just a normal military jack knife dated 1941 made by Rodgers with military arrow but has unusual grips which i have never seen on such knifes. The grips look genuine and original to the knife and there seems to be no marks on he rivets and pins holding the grips, if they were a replacement which would have to be removed and re peened. Why replace grips in military use when you can take it back to stores for replacement for a new knife. Was this knife from a small experimental batch by the manufacture as a special for a particular unit that had a grip that was more useful to a particular operation of use. May be someone may recognise it.
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cottage hill bill
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by cottage hill bill »

I have a couple of the WWII clasp knives with that "waffle" style scale. I think it is just an alternative pattern. I believe the pattern or specification for the knife mandated the material for the scales but not the exact texture. So if the official requirement stated "scales will be made of textured plastic" both the style of your knife and the more commonly encountered checkered scales would be within the requirements of the specification. While the waffle style is in the minority I would call them uncommon rather than rare. Good solid example you have.
Topfmine
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Topfmine »

Thanks for the reply. I thought i have seen this pattern before. I suppose in 1941 material was getting a bit thin. Not bad for a carboot find of only £2. Anyone else have Waffle grip clasp knife in their collection, just wondered if the date on their knife was the same.
Nephilim
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Nephilim »

Regrettably, this is not from my personal collection, but I saw one of these advertised as a British military knife and I thought I'd ask if anyone here knows more.
Joseph Rodgers and Sons, early 20th century knife with wire cutters. Probably the earliest knife with a pseudo-multitool pattern I've seen.
Joseph Rodgers and Sons, early 20th century knife with wire cutters. Probably the earliest knife with a pseudo-multitool pattern I've seen.
cottage hill bill
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by cottage hill bill »

I've just spent about a half hour going through Flook's British and Commonwealth Military Knives and couldn't find it. Best guess is it is a private purchase item. It is possible it is marked Army & Navy CSL which was an organization that provided everything from uniforms and weapons to furniture and household items for British officers. Until IIRC early WWII British officers had to provide all of their own equipment out of their own pocket. From thr horse the cavalry officer rode to uniform to sidearms to cot and cooking gear it was all on his dime. the Army & Navy cooperative was like a Sears and Roebuck for the serving officer. It's not unusual for a seller to think the the Army & Navy stamp means it is issue gear. That's not the case. Any piece of British issued equipment will be stamped with a broad arrow. All that being said it is a neat knife and I'd love to have one in my collection.
Nephilim
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Nephilim »

Thanks for looking that up. Someday, maybe I'll get lucky and find one for a good price (or a copy of Flook's book for a good price, for that matter).
cottage hill bill
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by cottage hill bill »

I had some better info on those Rodgers multi-tool knives but can't seem to find it. Another of the joys of getting older. IIRC, and don't take this to the bank, they were early 1900s, I think pre WWI and possibly a bit earlier, maybe even Boer War era. I've always wanted one but they seem to go for stupid money.
knife7knut
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by knife7knut »

I thought these were listed as dynamite knives.The crimping tool was used for working with dynamite caps. Seems to me there were some that Bill Adams bought in England many years ago that were unmarked and supposedly used by the OSS. I thought I knew where the article was;I'll have to research it a bit
EDIT: Here is a pic I got off the 'net.This knife has additional saw blades and is referred to as an OSS Escape knife.Some of these were marked while others were "sterile"
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MT-Vessel
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by MT-Vessel »

How’re ya now?
Well, I was out scouring junk shops the other day... and found this military clasp knife. $5 got it out the door and a scrub with WD40 revealed the tang stamp. CASE XX over METAL STAMPINGS over LTD. This thread’s experts taught me it is a true WW2 product. Nice.
The Broad Arrow stamp is not accompanied by a letter or symbol. Am I correct in assuming it is legit and signifies Britain?
Thanks in advance for any information about these markings.
JV
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1967redrider
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by 1967redrider »

Ray, that looks like the great-grandfather of today's Leatherman. ::tu::
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cody6268
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by cody6268 »

MT-Vessel wrote: Sun Jan 31, 2021 12:16 am How’re ya now?
Well, I was out scouring junk shops the other day... and found this military clasp knife. $5 got it out the door and a scrub with WD40 revealed the tang stamp. CASE XX over METAL STAMPINGS over LTD. This thread’s experts taught me it is a true WW2 product. Nice.
The Broad Arrow stamp is not accompanied by a letter or symbol. Am I correct in assuming it is legit and signifies Britain?
Thanks in advance for any information about these markings.
JV
MT-Vessel
I have a pair of pliers that has 1940 and "C Broad Arrow" but is overstamped with 1952 and just the broad arrow down the middle of the number. So, I wonder if Canada used both?
cottage hill bill
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by cottage hill bill »

Your knife is a Case M346. Collectors recognize four variants of this knife. The first were made in the U.S. for the U.S. Navy and are marked Case XX on the blade. Made from 1940-1942 The second was made in the U.S. for Canada and marked Case XX Metal Stampings LTD. (your knife) made from 1942-1945. Third variation made by a Case subsidiary in Nova Scotia and marked M.S. Ltd. 1948-1949. From 1950 on made in U.S. by Case and marked Case XX Stainless. sold to Canadian government.

Hope this helps.
Checkered past
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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Post by Checkered past »

Good day Forum

I would like to tap into the collective knowledge of the Forum. I just received another George Wostenholm IXL 6353/1905 and while I was cleaning I noticed there was a number stamped on the inner scale, right behind the can opener.

I have 2 of them now that have an "L" stamped, and the one I just received has a "16". I assume inspection marks? Does anyone know for certain? Since these are not dated on the blade could it be a date code? What do we think....
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