FIX BAYONETS

A Union soldier holds his musket with fixed bayonet. (Gettysburg National Military Park image)

He acknowledged me approaching and said hi. I returned his greeting and asked him if he did not think he had killed the animal enough. He said it was his first hunt and he thought the bayonet would be a good knife for the task, but the edge had not been sharpened. All he could do was stick holes with it and he was unable to open the belly to field dress the animal. I asked if he could use a little help and he said, “Please!” Using one of my knives it was pretty easy going. I let him finish the job with my knife and he handed it back to me and stated he would buy a different knife for hunt-

opinion that field hospitals probably did not treat many bayonet wounds—not necessarily because bayonets were ineffective as modern weapons, but because those stabbed with bayonets rarely lived to make it to field hospitals. Thus, the interpretation of field hospital wound reports was not necessarily the whole story. Wounds by bayonet may have been

According to the author,

“The sheath for the Ames 1849 Rifleman’s Knife at top has ‘ used in the Civil War’ on the leather. It appears to originally have been harness leather and was all the maker had available. The blade was made to be used hard, probably by teamsters in the Southwest. An ossified War Department unknowingly approved the purchase of 1,000 of them, and only a few were issued in the Southwest. Most were stored and later sold for around $1 each. The bottom knife and sheath are copies of the original. You can buy them today for around $100 each from at least four different outfits. ”

The author stated this is a genuine World War II German K98 bayonet with matching scabbard.

rare, but deaths from those wounds were not!

Another aspect came into play when I read that the sawback bayonet some German troops carried was initially issued to engineers who needed a saw at times when one was not readily available. In one book I read some World War II GIs considered the sawback bayonet an unusually cruel weapon and a violation of the Geneva Convention. If they captured a German soldier with a sawback bayonet, the book maintained, they would shoot him on the spot rather than take him prisoner. When German soldiers who carried sawback bayonets learned of the fate awaiting them if captured, they ground off the sawteeth. It was another misrepresentation of a tool one country designed as a useful implement, though some of our GIs and writers felt differently. It was easy at the time to believe Germany had devised a cruel and illicit weapon. I find it interesting that the Allies also had developed and used some sawback bayonets!

Many sawback bayonets were made in Sheffield, England. The first mention of sawback bayonets I can find was around 1871. Soon after they were determined to be absolutely worthless and abandoned for a time, waiting to be “discovered again. ” Incidentally, 180 pages of The Bayonetwith its many drawings failed to reveal one knife or sword bayonet exhibiting one of my pet peeves: the recessed ricasso. The book' s discussions of the 19 various countries and their weapons are

This is the knife from the author’s youth that taught him the folly of the recessed ricasso—shown here as the gap between the guard and the beginning of the blade edge. “I still have a scar on my middle finger from it and wondered why the recessed ricasso was there, ” he wrote. “You can see why I placed my finger there—to avoid the blade hanging up in use. ”

well worth the read for those who would like to know the facts.

BLADES of WAR

The bayonet may not have quite the significance it once did when, in 1863, Union Col. Joshua Chamberlain ordered his men to “fix bayonets!” and charge the Confederate soldiers challenging the 20th Maine for control of Little Round Top. The Confederates were subsequently routed and the 20th Maine ’ s bayonet charge completely changed the entire course of the Battle of Gettysburg, perhaps even of the Civil War itself.

The bayonet can be a very respected weapon by the opposing side. It can be a significant contribution to the confidence of the man using it. All you must do is a little reading about men who were actually in combat to provide some insight to the bayonet’ s value. The psychology of “fix bayonets!” is a very real deterrent to the opposition, and can have a psychological boost to those who have their bayonets fixed.

The above discussion is not meant to detract from the significance of the side knife for the soldier at war. The side knife differs from the bayonet in that it does not easily conform to be fixed to a rifle barrel. And, if designed and developed into a functional and safe knife, the handle fits the hand comfortably.

In my opinion, the best description of a military or field knife was stated in the requirements for the 1849 Ames Rifleman ’ s knife: “It must be able to be used in hand-to-hand combat, but also be able to dig in the dirt and chop brush. ” While only 1,000 were produced, they remain a fine example of a knife made to fit the time and place for which it was

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“This is one of my favorite weapons of our military, originally designed by our only ‘Master of the Sword, ’ General George Patton, ” the author wrote. “It’s a real handful and designed all for function at the time. ” Overall length: 42.25 inches. In his talks with World War II and other military veterans, the author said they praised the USMC fighting/utility knife not only as a combat/side knife but also its handle butt for use as a hammer. He also likes the design for its lack of a recessed ricasso.

A vintage German military sword, model Seitengewehr 98 aA Rheinische Metallwaaren-und Maschinenfabrik, 1900, 1902 Jäger Battalion-Regiment, with sheath. “This is probably my favorite of all bayonet swords—shear beauty!” the author noted. Overall length: 25.75 inches.

developed.

Today the selections of side knives of the American soldier are many times made by the individual decisions of the officer, with the knives often used daily. Sometimes, but not always, the soldier is in the position to know best what he needs.

In talking with veterans of previous wars, I hear many times they are very satisfied with the USMC fighting/utility knife by KA-BAR and like models available from other companies. The metal pommel of the KA-BAR and similar knives was often mentioned in my

“THE ONLY FRIEND HE HAD WAS HIS KNIFE. ”

conversations with World War II vets. Talk to men who used the KA-BAR and many will mention the usefulness of the handle butt for driving tent stakes and other things that needed pounding, while others are very proud of the different knives they chose as their weapon/edged tool for the war of their time.

I talked with a World War II veteran who fought in the Battle of the Bulge. His thoughts remain very significant in my mind. His buddy was killed that day and lay dead in a foxhole with him that night. He was alone, artillery shells were hitting all around, bullets sang overhead and he was out of ammunition. The only friend he had was his knife. For those who have shared his experience, the knife you had will remain your friend for life.

As learned by many, a knife is best when designed and used as a knife. I have never seen a KA-BAR, bayonet or similar knives supplied by other companies with a recessed ricasso. I’ ve found that any time you add or take something away from a knife without a very good reason, you only lessen its effectiveness.

Thank you for sharing time with me about knives. I have known many good times with BLADE® readers and thank you for your support. Should you have any thoughts you would like to share about my stories, please feel free to write or contact me at any time.

Yours truly, Ed Fowler, HEPK Mastersmith Knifetalkonline Edfowler.com

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Tim Britton buffs a blade in his shop. For more on his go-to knifemaking tools—and those of Allen Elishewitz, too—see page 32.

BULLETS, BOMBS AND BLADES P. 12

Oleksii Nesterenko, c/o Steel Addiction Custom Knives, steeladdictioniknives.com; Spartan Blades, attn: C. Iovito, Dept. BL8, 625 S.E. Service Rd., Southern Pines, NC 28387 910-757-0035, contact@spartanblades.com, www.spartanbladesusa.com; Michael Zieba, Dept. BL8, 95 Commercial St. #4, Brooklyn, NY 11222 347-335-9944 ziebametal@gmail.com ziebaknives.com

SHOP DUMP P. 32

Tim Britton, Dept. BL8, 5645 Murray Rd., Winston Salem, NC 27106 tim@timbritton. com/336-923-2062 timbritton.com; Allen Elishewitz, Dept. BL8, 1659 West State Hwy. 46, Ste. 115 #610, New Braunfels, TX 78132 830-885-3099 elishewitzknives. com

BAD & BEAUTIFUL P. 48

Joe Israel, Flat Rock Forge: Web- www.flatrockforge.com. Ph- (828) 484-1892; Matt Roberts: Ph- (540) 808-6767. Instagram- @MattRobertsKnives. EmailMbuswellroberts@yahoo.com; Julian Sacco Knives: Web- www.saccoknives.com. Instagram- @saccoknives; Sam Lurquin Knives: Instagram- @wardog2079. Dave Ellis: www.exquisiteknives.com

EAST BEASTS P. 54

APOC Survival Tools, c/o CAS Iberia, attn: P. Shipley, Dept. BL8, 650 Industrial Blvd., Sale Creek, TN 37373-9797 423.332.4700 bpogue@casiberia.com, www.casiberia. com; Condor Tool & Knife, attn: R. Jones, Dept. BL8, 9924 Universal Blvd. #224106, Orlando, FL 32819 407-458-9396 fax 407-458-9397 rtj@att.net, condortk. com; DPx Gear, attn: Robert Young Pelton, Dept. BL8, 1041 Market St #619., San Diego, CA 92101 619-780-2600 888-233-3924 fax 619-780-2605 info@dpxgear. com, dpxgear.com; Fox Cutlery, attn.: Massimo Centazzo, Dept. BL8, Oreste Frati SRL, Via La Mola, 4, 33085 Maniago (PN), Italy 39-0427-730376 foxcutlery.com, fkmdknives.com and/or duecignicutlery.it

READY AND DEPENDABLE P. 60

Benchmade USA, Dept. BL8, 300 Beavercreek Rd., Oregon City, OR 97045 503.655.6004 or 800-800-7427 www.benchmade.com, info@benchmade.com; Case, attn: F. Feightner, Dept. BL8, 50 Owens Way, Bradford, PA 16701 800-5236350 CR@caseknives.com, www.wrcase.com; Condor Tool & Knife, attn: R. Jones, Dept. BL8, 9924 Universal Blvd. #224-106, Orlando, FL 32819 407-458-9396 fax 407-458-9397 rtj@att.net, condortk.com; KA-BAR, attn: J. Bradley, Dept. BL8, 200 Homer St., Olean, NY 14760 800.282.0130 fax 716-790-7188 www.ka-bar.com, info@ka-bar.com; TOPS Knives, attn: Craig Powell, Dept. BL8, 3415 E. 109 N., Idaho Falls, ID 83401 208-542-0113 info@topsknives.com, www.topsknives.com; Winkler Knives, attn: Daniel Winkler, Dept. BL8, POB 2166, Blowing Rock, NC 28605 828295-9156 danielwinkler@bellsouth.net, www.winklerknives.com