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Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Fri Oct 04, 2019 8:03 pm
by Eustace
My friend send me a pictures of some army knife with interesting tang stamps. Can anyone help?

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Sat Oct 05, 2019 5:00 pm
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Sat Oct 05, 2019 6:50 pm
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!

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Fri May 29, 2020 12:27 pm
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....

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Sat May 30, 2020 11:13 am
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Mon Jun 08, 2020 5:01 am
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!

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2020 2:38 pm
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

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2020 12:45 am
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2020 1:00 am
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.
20200616_165233 (2).jpg
20200616_165252 (2).jpg
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2020 12:56 pm
by cottage hill bill
The cross and star is the Rodgers trademark.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2020 8:57 pm
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2020 11:27 pm
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Tue Aug 25, 2020 7:48 pm
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2020 9:20 pm
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2020 9:35 am
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Fri Nov 20, 2020 4:34 am
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Sun Nov 22, 2020 11:28 pm
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2020 2:42 am
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).

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2020 12:47 pm
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Fri Dec 25, 2020 8:00 pm
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"

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2021 12:16 am
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
MT-Vessel

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2021 2:15 am
by 1967redrider
Ray, that looks like the great-grandfather of today's Leatherman. ::tu::

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2021 2:25 am
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?

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Tue Feb 02, 2021 12:20 am
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.

Re: British and Commonwealth Military Knives

Posted: Tue Feb 09, 2021 12:43 am
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....