ViewfinderGyrene Posted September 10, 2014 Share #1 Posted September 10, 2014 Good Evening gentlemen, I have always been stumped at authenticating the pocket knife everyone sees somehow or another. I have found four links on Ebay. I would like to know if any or all are indeed WWII-issue/production. In order to avoid any confusion, please refer to each one as "first link", "second link" etc... http://www.ebay.com/itm/WWII-US-Marine-Corps-Military-Utility-Pocket-Knife-Personal-gear-weapon-/121431684609?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c45e47601#ht_120wt_865 http://www.ebay.com/itm/WW2-U-S-MARINE-CORPS-POCKET-KNIFE-2-BLADES-AND-2-CAN-OPENERS-/331311065963?pt=Collectible_Knives&hash=item4d23adab6b#ht_82wt_1103 http://www.ebay.com/itm/WWII-US-Marine-Corps-Kingston-Multi-Blade-Survival-Knife-/361020555558?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item540e808126#ht_559wt_1103 http://www.ebay.com/itm/WW2-USMC-MARINE-CORPS-POCKET-KNIFE-KINGSTON-/321259566906?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4acc8ff73a#ht_797wt_1103 To the ADMIN: I will also be posting the exact same thread in the "Field and Personal Gear" section. Many thanks! ViewfinderGyrene Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bellasilva Posted September 10, 2014 Share #2 Posted September 10, 2014 They all look good to me, I've owned a USMC WWII issue knife and have a 1993 dated one that I carry. Everything checks out IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViewfinderGyrene Posted September 10, 2014 Author Share #3 Posted September 10, 2014 They all look good to me, I've owned a USMC WWII issue knife and have a 1993 dated one that I carry. Everything checks out IMO. Great, finally I can purchase one with feedback confidence! Where did you find the modern production knife? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Misfit 45 Posted September 10, 2014 Share #4 Posted September 10, 2014 Each one of the knives shown are early WWII, first pattern utility knives. Marv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bayonetman Posted September 10, 2014 Share #5 Posted September 10, 2014 All are WW2. In my opinion, none are worth adding to your collection. Link,1, 3 and 4 are missing the shackle / bail / clevis (pick your name) Link two has a fairly roughly sharpened main blade. These are not rare enough to settle for any of these (IN MY OPINION). As fare as the newer ones go, Camillus did produce some marked USMC, they were not issue items but were sold commercially and in the PX. The one in my collection was brought back from WW2 by a local Marine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViewfinderGyrene Posted September 10, 2014 Author Share #6 Posted September 10, 2014 Thanks for letting me know. I had noticed the defects. I just wanted to sort out whether using the brass spacers as a measuring stick for the production time was actually true. For a time I wasn't sure whether it was a myth. With what I have been told here, I'll keep my eyes out for a minty one Thanks all! ViewfinderGyrene Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thorin6 Posted September 10, 2014 Share #7 Posted September 10, 2014 Here are my five WWII steel knives. The nearest two are 1944 (note that the screwdriver blade is on the same side as the knife blade), one U.S. MARINE CORPS, one unmarked. The rear three are 1945; one with U.S. MARINE CORPS, one unmarked on the scale, and one with the US. All have brass spacers, but there are some differences in how they sit in the knives. All have bails. Can openers have different markings or no markings. I just recently picked up a 1944 U.S. MARINE CORPS that has a different marking on the can opener than my other one. I don't know that anyone has documented all the differences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViewfinderGyrene Posted September 10, 2014 Author Share #8 Posted September 10, 2014 Great collection thorin6, thanks for sharing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViewfinderGyrene Posted September 10, 2014 Author Share #9 Posted September 10, 2014 Just noticed this one that I had missed initially in my search: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Estate-Found-WW-II-U-S-MARINE-CORPS-4-Blade-Pocket-Knife-/261589205716?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3ce7ee82d4#ht_31wt_1103 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Misfit 45 Posted September 10, 2014 Share #10 Posted September 10, 2014 Here's a picture of the two blade variations. The first variation has the main blade and the screw driver on the same side. The second variation has the main blade and the can opener on the same side. The two knives on top are US Marine Corps and Army version in the first variation. The company name of Kingston is on the bail. Sometimes the bail is unmarked. All knives marked US Marine Corps are WWII knives. The Army version may also have Kingston on the bail, but may also have Stevenson on the bail. Some say Kingston 45, some say Stevenson 45. The Kingston WWII army version does not have US marked on the scales, but the Stevenson WWII version does. The bottom knives are the second variation with the can opener on the side of the main blade. All four knives are Kingston. All have brass liners. Brass liners were used during most of the 1940s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bellasilva Posted September 10, 2014 Share #11 Posted September 10, 2014 Great, finally I can purchase one with feedback confidence! Where did you find the modern production knife? Hi just to clarify my modern production knife is just a plain jane US marked version, my WWII era knife was marked US Marine Corps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViewfinderGyrene Posted September 19, 2014 Author Share #12 Posted September 19, 2014 I'm stumped by this one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-WW-II-Kingston-US-Marine-Corps-Military-Utility-Pocket-Knife-/151415860266?pt=Collectible_Knives&hash=item234116ac2a#ht_308wt_1103 Is it a pristine 1st Pattern or a knockoff? ViewfinderGyrene Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thorin6 Posted September 19, 2014 Share #13 Posted September 19, 2014 While not pristine, it is a 1944 production U.S. MARINE CORPS steel utility knife. $23.00 shipped would be a good price if no one else bids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViewfinderGyrene Posted September 19, 2014 Author Share #14 Posted September 19, 2014 Would I be correct in saying the only thing that doesn't make it "pristine" is the fact that the main blade appears dull? Also, I don't believe I ever asked, what si the earliest year of production? '44 or did they make them earlier in the war? ViewfinderGyrene Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thorin6 Posted September 19, 2014 Share #15 Posted September 19, 2014 There's some small pockets of crude and possible corrosion on the underside, and there's not a good shot of the insides. Still a very nice example. The military steel knives were made in 1944 (the one shown) and 1945 (can opener and screwdriver blades reversed) in 1945. The companies that made them (Kinston and Stevenson) also continued to assemble them and sell them post-war for a couple of years. The next one appears in 1949 as a test assembly by Camillus to show the government it could make them, but they didn't get a contract. Camillus started making them under contract in 1957, and several other companies made/make them as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViewfinderGyrene Posted September 19, 2014 Author Share #16 Posted September 19, 2014 Many thanks, it would be a shelf king, so I'm not too concerned about the interior... ViewfinderGyrene Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thorin6 Posted September 19, 2014 Share #17 Posted September 19, 2014 I wish I had enough room to make my knives shelf kings--right now they're taken up by canteens, boots, and helmets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViewfinderGyrene Posted September 20, 2014 Author Share #18 Posted September 20, 2014 Ha, I know the feeling. I only have one display case at the moment. A sliding-door curio. I have many MC items I would move to have in it but most of what is in there are items I already had when I replaced my old case. I too, wish I could fit another case in the room. As of now, the knife will probably be the last thing I could fit in it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViewfinderGyrene Posted September 26, 2014 Author Share #19 Posted September 26, 2014 While not pristine, it is a 1944 production U.S. MARINE CORPS steel utility knife. $23.00 shipped would be a good price if no one else bids. Guess I know now I need around $50-$60 for one that nice, at least on Ebay. Sold for $56. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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