tthen Posted January 27, 2019 Share #1 Posted January 27, 2019 Greetings all, I just acquired this machete at a military surplus shop that has been closed for about 6 years and has recently reopened under new management. My question is in regards to the scabbard/sheath. It came in this leather sheath that appears to be of Collins manufacture though there are no markings at all on it. The date on the machete is 1944. I have seen many of the USN 22" blade machetes in a USN marked canvas sheath but this is an 18" blade with a leather sheath. Any ideas if this is correct. If not what is? Would they have put the 18" in the canvas sheath for the 22"? Sorry for the long drawn out question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tthen Posted January 27, 2019 Author Share #2 Posted January 27, 2019 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tthen Posted January 27, 2019 Author Share #3 Posted January 27, 2019 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKIPH Posted January 28, 2019 Share #4 Posted January 28, 2019 tthen- My guess would be the Collins USN MK2 was mated to a commercial 18" sheath. Up to, WW2 most Collins 18" scabbards that I have seen were tooled leather, usually with a number "13" to indicate a style. This one is plain, but looks a lot like a Collins style. I have had machetes that came with scabbards similar that came with non- Collins made blades. That style sheath is very commonly seen in Central American machetes sold in the US markets. SKIP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tthen Posted January 28, 2019 Author Share #5 Posted January 28, 2019 Thank you for the reply Skip, Do you know if there is a proper USN canvas sheath for the 18" machete? Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKIPH Posted January 28, 2019 Share #6 Posted January 28, 2019 There are a lot of canvas MK2 scabbards floating around, also there are leather MK2s available too. My guess would be any MK2 scabbard whether canvas or leather, USN marked, or not would probably be correct. The canvas USN marked are a little rarer. Just found this USN MK2 w/ a True Temper machete for a starting bid of $83.52, ebay # 362543168640, gives you an idea of the USN canvas scabbard. Also there is a MK2 scabbard made by BOYT ebay # 113602342511 for a start bid of $36.99 which will give you an idea of the difference. SKIP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Flick Posted January 29, 2019 Share #7 Posted January 29, 2019 Tthen: The Collins USN Mk 2 machete was a 22" blade. If your machete has an 18" blade, as it appears in the photo, then I think that chances are very good that the blade has been shortened. Perhaps that was done to accommodate the existing scabbard on hand. The scabbard, of course, is not USGI. Regards, Charlie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tthen Posted January 29, 2019 Author Share #8 Posted January 29, 2019 Skip and Charlie, thank you for your responses. I would have never guessed that this was a cut down. There is no evidence as far as grind marks or anything. I had an even layer of cosmoline and the edge looks factory. Maybe it was left over from the war and Collins cut it down and mated it with the leather sheath for the civilian market. Oh well I didn't pay that much for it. Thanks again for the help guys. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKIPH Posted January 29, 2019 Share #9 Posted January 29, 2019 I just did what I should have done yesterday. Checked my collected machetes out. I have a Collins USN MK2 w/ and 18" blade (I measured), in the exact same leather scabbard. My blade has the curved blade like the MK1, & 22" MK2s, but it is 18" in length. Scabbard is identical, no USN markings. My blade does not appear cut down. Tom, you blade does look cut down, I agree with Charlie on that aspect. SKIP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tthen Posted January 30, 2019 Author Share #10 Posted January 30, 2019 Hey Skip, thanks again for the extra effort. I'm sticking to the cut down was done at the factory. It's just to well done and the cosmoline was completely covering the blade. Take care Skip Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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