camillus Posted April 25, 2015 Share #1 Posted April 25, 2015 I am looking at machetes and am curious about this, it looks like an M1942 but it is marked MK2 the blade length is 18" not 22 any body have an idea why Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WW2JAKE Posted April 25, 2015 Share #2 Posted April 25, 2015 is it USMC with black plastic grips? reads USMC/MK2/1942/SW1? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camillus Posted April 25, 2015 Author Share #3 Posted April 25, 2015 sorry for got to post the link, no its not SWI it is Collins here is the listing http://www.ebay.com/itm/vintage-WWII-USN-Navy-MK-2-Collins-machete-1944-/141642157670?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20fa87ce66 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tankerman Posted April 25, 2015 Share #4 Posted April 25, 2015 Looks cut down to 18" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warcollect1942 Posted April 25, 2015 Share #5 Posted April 25, 2015 They made 18 20 22 26 inch machetes. They are listed in Coles books. A lot of them were 18. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camillus Posted April 25, 2015 Author Share #6 Posted April 25, 2015 are all of the ones in coles the only ones used in WWII Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warcollect1942 Posted April 25, 2015 Share #7 Posted April 25, 2015 Coles book has all the issued ones. People could always have private purchased knives. They also used native and captured knives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bayonetman Posted April 25, 2015 Share #8 Posted April 25, 2015 The machete in question is not a USN Mk 2 as it stands. As tankerman mentioned, it very likely was reshaped to the M1942 blade style. It was possibly officially done (post WW2?) by the Navy to standardized the machetes and sheaths. Although Cole did a good job with his drawings of the machetes (except that the SWI was not then known to be a reproduction), there are other variants that he does not show. Machetes have not experienced a great deal of collector interest, and there is not too much information available. Anyone interested in them should (must) have Collins Machetes and Bowies 1845-1965 by D.E. Henry as he has a very detailed sections on the military machetes. Although other companies made machetes for the US military, most were based on Collins designs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camillus Posted April 25, 2015 Author Share #9 Posted April 25, 2015 thanks for the information, I didn't think it was right but wanted to check Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warcollect1942 Posted April 25, 2015 Share #10 Posted April 25, 2015 I have the five Cole books and. the Collins book. What other companies not listed in Coles book made U.S. marked and issused machetes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bayonetman Posted April 25, 2015 Share #11 Posted April 25, 2015 I have the five Cole books and. the Collins book. What other companies not listed in Coles book made U.S. marked and issused machetes? My comment was meant to say that there are variations, mostly by Collins, that are not shown in Coles works that are shown in the Henry book on Collins. I don't know enough about the makers to know if there are other makers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now