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What do I have here?


rams2050
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After being so careful, as I have added to my WWII display, I now find that I lost my mind, momentarily at least, and purchased this supposed WWII 'theatre-made knife" from an online site. I was told it was made for an infantryman, in Europe, by the motor pool guys.

 

What do you think?

 

It has no markings whatsoever.

 

Thank you!

 

 

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Actual "theatre made" knives are few and far between: as with "trench art" items most were not made by GI's during their wartime service, but usually were made after the war from items, incuding enemy bayonets, they brought home. Others were fabricated from scratch by some guy who a good shop in his garage.

 

Now the motor pool part of the story holds some credence since they could have had access to the tools needed to make a knife or, more likely, to modify an enemy knife. The grip on that one looks familiar, but I can't place it right now.

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I didn't pay a whole lot for it, but I might have paid more than it is actually worth.

 

I have learned my lesson, though. I will never again buy anything without first 'vetting' it through the members of this site.

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I didn't pay a whole lot for it, but I might have paid more than it is actually worth.

 

I have learned my lesson, though. I will never again buy anything without first 'vetting' it through the members of this site.

 

If the price is low enough, then cool: I know guys who will buy pretty much every handmade knife I find, even without provenance. And once in a while you get lucky with these oddballs. I once bought a grouping of 10 footlockers full of stuff from one WWII/Korea officer. I paid about $650 to buy it and rent a truck to get it home. The people I bought it from at the estate sale joked about a rusty knife that came with the grouping and how they'd "throw it in for free." Well, after I cleaned the blade and did some research I sold the knife alone for $650!

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I paid $50 for it.

 

If you ever figure out where you have seen the grip before, please let me know. Perhaps, I can at least salvage some self-respect out of this, after having purchased first and thought about it later! :unsure:

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What you paid is reasonable, esp with what looks like a period sheath. Can't tell from the pics, but does knife fit sheath well? Are there any marks above the mouth of the sheath that would indicate the knife has been in the sheath a long time?

 

The grip looks familiar to me also. What is handle material? Looks like metal but can't tell.

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The knife fits in the sheath extremely well, and there are wear marks in the leather which seem to indicate that the knife has been in it for a long, long time.

 

I am not sure what the hilt is made of. It looks like it is some type of metal underneath and then wrapped with, perhaps, leather? That is very, very worn because the wraps almost merge with one another. Again, I am no expert so I am not sure. Here is a photo:

 

 

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If you look at the sheath in the very top photo you can see the indentations in the leather which have been made by the knife's hilt.

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I love theater made knives but you have to be really careful buying them. Saw a group at a recent show in Virginia that all looked the same and apparently we're new production made to look old and sold as WW 2 theater made knives. Matty

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So, the knives you saw in Virginia looked like the knife in the photos which I've posted above?

 

I will email my guy and find out where he got this knife. Maybe that will help me out, at least a little bit.

 

Thanks.

 

In the meantime, I've looked on ebay and can find nothing similar to this knife, although I know that in itself doesn't make it 'authentic.'

 

Here is a close-up of the hilt cap, in case anyone can tell anything from that:

 

 

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No they didn't look like your knife. Was just making a point that theater knives are being faked allot now that there is a market for these knives. Matty

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I wish I had taken a picture of the ones at the show. The reason they concerned me is that I have seen allot of these over the past two years. I will try to describe them. Leather handle made from leather rings with brass inserts spaced in the handle. Brass end cap and cross guards. Have heavy thick blade . Scabbards are made from pieces of leather with cuts for belt attachment and usually no strap to hold knife handle to scabbard. They are very similar in construction and appearance. Possible they could have been made in some shop during the war but in my 40 years of collecting have only seen these over the past couple of years. They are just suspicious to me. Matty

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Yes, that is the knife. (shown in the above photo alongside the ruler).

 

John has said that he bought it in the Fort Campbell (KY) area, and that it had been made for an infantryman by motor pool guys while they all were in Europe. At least, that is what he was told.

 

I have asked John where, exactly, he purchased it but so far have not heard back from him (not surprising, though; I just asked this morning). I'd like to know if he bought it from an individual, an estate sale, a garage sale, a pawn shop, gun show, wherever. Not that that will be indicative of its true provenance, but it would be interesting to know.

 

I don't know much about these things but after poring over other sites I'm inclined to think that it is more than likely authentic. (Maybe that is just wishful thinking).

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I heard back from John and he told me that he purchased it from a guy who travels to all the veteran estate sales within Tennessee and Kentucky. He said he feels very comfortable with this guy's judgment, as well as another collector's opinion that this is, indeed, a WWII theater-made knife.

 

he offered to refund my money, which is so nice of him, but I am going to keep it. I think it almost certainly is authentic.

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I totally agree that it looks authentic. The ones I have concern with I sent a picture of. Just have a suspicion that someone is producing these and passing them off as theater knives. Matty

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Found a photo of the style I am concerned about. Have seen allot of these showing up. Nit saying it is bad but I have my suspicious. Mattyattachicon.gifimage.jpg

 

Matty,

That's a picture of a knife I bought a couple of years ago out of a box of old knives that a dealer I know had been carrying around with him for several years. I still have the knife and I paid $15.00 for it back then. Don't know if it's a real theater knife or not, but the price was right.

t6

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I bought one identical to it about a year ago and have seen several since. I am just suspicious about them being theater knives because I have seen several just like this just with different blades. Matty

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