Real or repo fighting knives

[corsair]

I recently purchased these two military knives at a garage sale. I collect US Medals but cannot pass up any militaria at a garage sale. My knowledge of knives is very limited so please educate me on these if you can.

First knife is an M3 which is blade marked US M3 CASE 1943. The blade marking on the E in case and the 1943 date are very light. Also the blade, guard, and butt cap are all blue steel and not parkerized. Is this a possible repo?

The other knife is a Mk2 which is marked on the top left side of the guard with KA-BAR and on the right side USN MK2. The blade on this knife is bright steel and may be plated even not Parkerized? The guard and butt cap are parkerized. Also the leather washer type handle does not have any grooves as I seen on other Kabars. It came in a gray scabbard marked USN MK2. Any thoughts on this one?

 

[Charlie Flick]

Hi Corsair:

 

Your Kabar Mark 2 is what collectors for years have referred to as a "UDT knife". Many of them had the markings removed or obscured and the plastic sheath seemed appropriate for underwater work. Indeed, many publications have repeated this erroneous ID.

 

Several years ago Frank Trzaska, well known US blade author and researcher (who is also a member here), discovered the real deal and published an article in Knife World that effectively torpedoed the UDT theory. I have forgotten the details now, and don't have access to my materials at the moment, but basically the knives are WW2 blades or parts of blades that were reworked/modified and sold by another company post-war as hunting knives. I think this company may have been Weske, but my memory on that is not sharp. It is not a repo or a fake, just a post-war knife sold as an inexpensive hunting knife.

 

They are nice knives but are not USGI and not UDT knives. Be aware that a lot of collectors still buy the UDT theory and will point to the old published references from years ago as support. However, to my knowledge no US Navy document has ever surfaced that identifies these knives as UDT knives. I think Frank T. got it right.

 

I hope that does not take the wind out of your sails, but those are the facts.

 

Regards,

Charlie Flick