unmarked M7 bayonet

[tango1niner]

Hi all,

Looking at an M7 bayonet and M10 scabbard. Are modern M7's unmarked, or is this a repro. Other than being unmarked it looks good.

 

thanks

Anthony

[Still-A-Marine]

Hi all,

Looking at an M7 bayonet and M10 scabbard. Are modern M7's unmarked, or is this a repro. Other than being unmarked it looks good.

 

thanks

Anthony

 

Reproduction. All issued M7 bayonets would have maker marks. I don't think the M10 has ever been a military issued item.

 

Bill

[bayonetman]

The unmarked M7 bayonets were imported several years ago and sold CHEAP - as I recall, in the neighborhood (depending on where you got it) of less than $25 with the M10 scabbard. I heard they were made in China.

 

The M10 scabbards were marked as made by US contractors, but I am not sure if they were actually made by that company (Hauser Products CAGE 1Z803) or the markings were copied by an overseas maker.

 

Although not all that common in US service, orders for the M10 scabbard began in 1987 with about 200,000 delivered in the 1987-1990 time period and probably more later. I know they were made by (or at least marked with the CAGE code of) Hauser Products Inc, Chicago IL (no longer in business). Ontario Knife Company, Franklinville, NY, and Imperial Knife Co, provenance RI (no longer in business). It may be that some of these were subcontracted and marked with the prime contractor name. I have seen a couple that are marked only M10 on the throat with no part number or CAGE on the body - these MAY be very early production or may be (more likely) commercial copies. The M10 was designed much earlier (the earliest drawing that I have seen is 1970) but production did not begin until much later as there were sufficient numbers of M8A1 scabbards on hand.

[tango1niner]

Thank you both for responding. I thought it strange to not have any markings but did not know for sure. Once again forum members come to the rescue.

 

thanks again

Anthony

[Still-A-Marine]

Although not all that common in US service, orders for the M10 scabbard began in 1987 with about 200,000 delivered in the 1987-1990 time period and probably more later.

 

Thanks Gary. In a prior thread I had asked the question "did Marines ever use the M10" and the answer was no. I was under the impression the Army did not either. Thanks for correcting my understanding.

 

Bill

 

http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/ind...c=33523&hl=

[thorin6]

I read somewhere that M10s with a red thread running through the canvas hanger were "rare." Is there any truth to that?

[bayonetman]

Thanks Gary. In a prior thread I had asked the question "did Marines ever use the M10" and the answer was no. I was under the impression the Army did not either. Thanks for correcting my understanding.

 

Bill

 

 

Bill, here is a comment that Frank Trzaska had on his Knife Knotes column awhile back about the M10 and the Marines that might bear on your question:

 

M8A1 Scabbards

 

The current Fed Log (Federal Logistics) states the Army, Navy and Air Force call for scraping 1095-00-508-0339 (M8A1) if it is deemed unserviceable and replacing with 1095-00-223-7164 (M10). The Marines cite it as a repairable item at the Company Armorer level and parts are to be procured through CAGE 19205 (Springfield Armory) or CAGE 83421 (National Industries for the Blind) located at 1901 Beauregard St. Suite 200 Alexandria, Va. 22311. With all the M8A1 scabbards being put on the market by the DRMS I wonder if the Marines will ever need to buy another one?

[bayonetman]

I read somewhere that M10s with a red thread running through the canvas hanger were "rare." Is there any truth to that?

 

Yes, according to Bill Humes. The following is quoted from his page: http://www.usmilitaryknives.com/humes_m7_04.htm

 

The reason I wanted this particular scabbard was that it was one from the 1998 GEN CUT subcontracted production run. It seems that during the production of those M-10 scabbards, a single red thread appears on the left side of the frog. Whether the entire 10,700 were produced that way is unknown, but it is a very rare M-10 scabbard. Later, on the way home, my brother noticed that the M7 bayonet that came with that scabbard was approximately one inch shorter than a normal M7. When Frank got home he found that his scabbard with the red thread also had a short version of the M7. I know other people that have checked their collections and say they have a regular length GEN CUT M7 with that scabbard. So, on one of the very last production runs of M7 bayonets for the US military, you have a rare M-10 scabbard with a rare M7 bayonet that somehow both made it past government inspection and quality control.

[Misfit 45]

At the time, Bill said that this production run of the General Cutlery M7 with the M10 scarlet thread scabbard was the last production of the US contracted M7 bayonets. I don't know if that is still true, things change. He told me in an email that the shorter M7s he got were an aberration and that most, if not all he has seen since have been the regular blade length. I am fortunate to have the regular length M7 Gen Cut bayonet with the red thread scabbard in my collection.

Marv

[thorin6]

My M10 Scabbard with the red thread is marked "M10" on the throat, with "19204 ASSY 8448476" over "MFG 1Z803" on the shaft. I picked it up at an Army Navy Surplus store for $10. I've been curious as to how the red thread came to be used on the scabbard. I might add there is a rack number on the reverse, a stencil of "A" over "7". Didn't come with an M7 bayonet, although I have two or three of them somewhere.

[SKIPH]

One point I use to determine M7 bayonets, is to remove the handle. If the guard is "spot welded", I take it as commercial, if it has the "reinforcing bar" behind the guard, I take it as issue, or at least a better quality. SKIP