camillus Posted January 25, 2016 Share #1 Posted January 25, 2016 Hi, I am confused so I'll ask is this knife a pilots knife or is it a commercial version, is the sheath correct its an imperial thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Misfit 45 Posted January 25, 2016 Share #2 Posted January 25, 2016 It looks like a WWII Mk 1 to me. Marv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doyler Posted January 25, 2016 Share #3 Posted January 25, 2016 SEARCH MIL-K-8662 These were fore runners of the Jet pilots knife.Camillus made one as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jw517 Posted January 25, 2016 Share #4 Posted January 25, 2016 Commercial knife. I bought one cause I liked it and was 11.00 . Not sure about the sheath. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sactroop Posted January 25, 2016 Share #5 Posted January 25, 2016 It looks like a MIL-K-8662(AER) as doyler said. Made by Camillus, Imperial, and Schrade Walden. Frank wrote a nice article on them in the December 1998 Knife World. It's re-printed in Military Knives a reference. Still there's a lot of references out there IDing these as MK1's. Not surprising that it looks commercial as both Imperial and Schrade made similar commercial knives off this pattern. Usually hilts and spacer colors will separate them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sactroop Posted January 25, 2016 Share #6 Posted January 25, 2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jw517 Posted January 25, 2016 Share #7 Posted January 25, 2016 Boy was I wrong! Thought his hilt /guard was short on top. Sorry! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camillus Posted January 25, 2016 Author Share #8 Posted January 25, 2016 thats ok they are a confusing knife at least to me, I have read frranks article and the previous post about them but when I see one in ebay I can't tell if it is military or not, commercial versions were made and they are the same except parkerizing and many old knives the park is gone. next question is how much should this knife go for thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sactroop Posted January 25, 2016 Share #9 Posted January 25, 2016 Yes they can be confusing, especially with the wide variety of commercial knives. The MIL-K-8662(AER) came with both bright and parkerized blades, and yes many of the parkerized blades got worn to bare metal along the way. The spacers should be black or brown, according to the Navy specification. There's some argument with that, but I stick to the written spec for me. The guards are either straight or bent, (similar to the M3 trench knife). In fact some guys like to describe these as a knife with the MK1 blade attached to an M3 hilt. Not exactly right but a pretty good generalization. If you see a knife with a model number on it, it's a commercial knife. The handles are stacked leather with grooves like the ones pictured above. If you see a smooth leather handle, it was either a commercial knife or an original that was modified by a previous owner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thorin6 Posted January 25, 2016 Share #10 Posted January 25, 2016 thats ok they are a confusing knife at least to me, I have read frranks article and the previous post about them but when I see one in ebay I can't tell if it is military or not, commercial versions were made and they are the same except parkerizing and many old knives the park is gone. next question is how much should this knife go for thanks In good condition (90% park left, no nicks, leather/guard tight) with good sheath (solid stitching, strap intact, etc.) I would say $70 would be a fair price. If you can get it cheaper, go for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camillus Posted January 29, 2016 Author Share #11 Posted January 29, 2016 I have seen many Schrade Walden H 15 knives listed as pilots knife but they have red spacers, is that the commercial model Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sactroop Posted January 29, 2016 Share #12 Posted January 29, 2016 Yes those are commercial, and they are not the only ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jw517 Posted January 29, 2016 Share #13 Posted January 29, 2016 Now I am confused. I thought it WAS a pilot knife. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sactroop Posted January 29, 2016 Share #14 Posted January 29, 2016 The Schrade H-15 came up recently in another thread here, http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/256537-schrade-walden-knife-military-or-civilian/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thorin6 Posted January 29, 2016 Share #15 Posted January 29, 2016 It took me several years of looking and comparing before I bought one (a Schrade-Walden) that I knew was a military issued knife. I saw a lot of them advertised as military but I just wasn't sure and passed. I'm glad I did, but collecting these is a lesson in doing your homework; too easy to make a mistake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camillus Posted January 29, 2016 Author Share #16 Posted January 29, 2016 thanks for the info that clears up a lot Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKIPH Posted January 29, 2016 Share #17 Posted January 29, 2016 For a long time, a lot of us , me included thought these were a version of the USN MK1 series. In fact MH Cole had them in Book III as MK1 & RELATED KNIVES. They weren't distinguished as Pilot knives until later. These are great little knives to collect. SKIP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camillus Posted January 30, 2016 Author Share #18 Posted January 30, 2016 the first one I saw on ebay was an Imperial with the M3 like guard and grip, I thought it was a variety of MKI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKIPH Posted January 30, 2016 Share #19 Posted January 30, 2016 I have an Imperial Bent guard. Love it! So much like an M3 handle. I thought they were MK1s also. SKIP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camillus Posted January 30, 2016 Author Share #20 Posted January 30, 2016 I have been looking for one but have only seen one and got outbid on that one, the one post first in this thread, It went for 86.00 how is that price. I can find any sold ones to compare to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKIPH Posted January 30, 2016 Share #21 Posted January 30, 2016 That's about right. Can't remember what I paid for mine, think around $125 for a mint one, $85 for real good ones. You don't see many of them. SKIP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dustin Posted January 31, 2016 Share #22 Posted January 31, 2016 Seeing this topic reminded me of this image from 1944 on Saipan, USAAF pilots are reviewing a map of Tinian. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dustin Posted January 31, 2016 Share #23 Posted January 31, 2016 To me it looks much like these pilots knives, most likely its a Kabar but to me it looks to have a bent guard. It shares some of the same characteristics of Sactroops post #5 third knife down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camillus Posted January 31, 2016 Author Share #24 Posted January 31, 2016 could it be a ka bar commando, I at first glance mistake them for pilots knives Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sactroop Posted January 31, 2016 Share #25 Posted January 31, 2016 In the first picture my first thought also was KA-BAR Commando. In the close up I don't feel so sure. The sheath doesn't look like either of the two versions I'm used to associating with the Commando, but there're other things in the details in the knife that seem different too. I like the shoulder holster on the right side of the crewman across from the knife owner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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