On 5/11/2026 at 9:16 AM, dustin said:

I have yet to see any evidence of Naval aviators or aircrew using the Western five inch knife, the six inch yes.  

 

Hi Dustin:

 

Agreed, I have seen no such evidence either.  However, I have seen photo evidence of USAAF aircrew in the PTO using the 5 inch Western knives.  

 

Regards,

Charlie

I got this in a collection. I am not sure if it is stamped repro, or a repurposed issue ?  any ideas ? thanks

Post WWII knife and sheath Ken . 

2 hours ago, byf41 said:

Post WWII knife and sheath Ken .

looking at the blade sure, I've seen them for sale, just never with a stamped butt cap. I understand there are repos, and sometimes older model parts were used in production. 

I got this in a collection. I am not sure if it is stamped repro, or a repurposed issue ?  any ideas ? thanks

The third line of the stamp, i.e., the "I", is the date code stamp that Western instituted in 1977, starting with "A", and incrementing each year.  So "I" is 1985.  That's the year after Coleman bought Western and continued the date codes.  

 

The 1985 L71 was a reintroduction of the model that Coleman came up with to boost sales, and marking the 40th anniversary of the end of WW2, typical marketing department shennanigans..

 

The stamps in the pommel are an after purchase addition to the knife.  The meaning of them will probably remain a mystery forever.