Well, I finally found a blade-marked Camillus M3 fighting knife that was in my price range (less than half of what they usually go for ).

 

Thing is, this poor knife appeared to suffer more abuse post-war than it did during its wartime service:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, after a bit of elbow grease here is what she looks like now:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now, the only problem is that I had to repaint the fiberglass body of the scabbard after being overzealous trying to remove all the spray paint. Ideally, I would like to replace just the body, but, I do not know whether a source of WWII vintage fiberglass bodies exists and, if so, how easy or difficult is it to replace one.

 

Tim

Well, after a bit of elbow grease here is what she looks like now:

 

Now, the only problem is that I had to repaint the fiberglass body of the scabbard after being overzealous trying to remove all the spray paint. Ideally, I would like to replace just the body, but, I do not know whether a source of WWII vintage fiberglass bodies exists and, if so, how easy or difficult is it to replace one.

 

Tim

 

Hi Tim, you have an original piece o.k. a little somewhat below what you really would like, but it is complete and as manufactured.

 

I once had a much loved WWII Jeep I took it everywhere, it went everywhere, I never had a problem, if I ever felt I would like to visit Timbuktu ( or the other side of the moon ) I would have had no qualms driving it there.

 

However I was often derided by friends with freshly painted Jeeps, I eventually took it off the road and spent two years doing a nut and bolt restoration it was almost as it left the factory, and in those days I had access to original parts. So even though I took the effort and used all original replacement parts it was never the Jeep I started with.

 

Hated driving it ever after , so where's this long story going, you have a complete scabbard I would say don't attempt to re-rivet a new scabbard to the web, it would not be original to the knife anyway. Try and find a nicer condition complete scabbard and then either keep the first one as a stand-by or pass it on to someone who would dearly love it in the condition it's in.

 

Sure wish I still had my Jeep in the condition it originally was in.

 

Cheers ( Lewis )

Hi Tim, you have an original piece o.k. a little somewhat below what you really would like, but it is complete and as manufactured.

 

I once had a much loved WWII Jeep I took it everywhere, it went everywhere, I never had a problem, if I ever felt I would like to visit Timbuktu ( or the other side of the moon ) I would have had no qualms driving it there.

 

However I was often derided by friends with freshly painted Jeeps, I eventually took it off the road and spent two years doing a nut and bolt restoration it was almost as it left the factory, and in those days I had access to original parts. So even though I took the effort and used all original replacement parts it was never the Jeep I started with.

 

Hated driving it ever after , so where's this long story going, you have a complete scabbard I would say don't attempt to re-rivet a new scabbard to the web, it would not be original to the knife anyway. Try and find a nicer condition complete scabbard and then either keep the first one as a stand-by or pass it on to someone who would dearly love it in the condition it's in.

 

Sure wish I still had my Jeep in the condition it originally was in.

 

Cheers ( Lewis )

 

Lewis,

 

This is an interesting point you raise and I pretty much agree with the sentiment. At this point I would not part with the scabbard if it has been with the knife since manufacture and, more importantly, if the writing on the back of the webbing can be attributed to the soldier that carried it. If, on the other hand, there was no writing on the webbing or I chose not to believe the scabbard and knife were "mated" at issuance I probably would not hesitate to replace this one with an M8 scabbard in original condition.

 

As far as the knife is concerned, I am very pleased with it and really prefer a blade with that "been there and done that look". Personally, I never quite saw the rationale of collecting wartime weapons that look like they never fired a round, blew something up, or cut into something.

 

Tim

As far as the knife is concerned, I am very pleased with it and really prefer a blade with that "been there and done that look". Personally, I never quite saw the rationale of collecting wartime weapons that look like they never fired a round, blew something up, or cut into something.

 

Tim

Tim,

Very nice work on the blade and scabbard! As far as your comment about battle used items.....couldn't agree with you more. I like my items the same way as well. However, there are some people who prefer minty items. It is all good!

Arch

Nice Knife. Great job on cleaning it up. I like that been there-done that look. Plus you can buy stuff much cheaper that way. I'm not saying anythings wrong with only collecting "MINT" item but I just can't afford that. I say leave the scabbard as is and look for a better one.

Well, after a bit of elbow grease here is what she looks like now:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now, the only problem is that I had to repaint the fiberglass body of the scabbard after being overzealous trying to remove all the spray paint. Ideally, I would like to replace just the body, but, I do not know whether a source of WWII vintage fiberglass bodies exists and, if so, how easy or difficult is it to replace one.

 

Tim

 

I'm curious what you used on the leather?

Neetsfoot?

Pecards?

 

It looks great now!!!!!

Nice job, Tim!

I'm curious what you used on the leather?

Neetsfoot?

Pecards?

 

It looks great now!!!!!

 

I have never used Neetsfoot or Pecards, but, have heard great things about both. I happen to use and swear by Connolly Hide Care . It's a product made in England and available at most gun shows. It is a cream that you apply very sparingly to the surface of the leather. I work it in gently with a soft cloth (it does a great job of removing grime while moisturizing the leather) and then buff with an old-style soft bristled shoe brush.

 

What I particularly like about Connolly Hide Care is it will not alter the color of the leather being treated regardless of the number of treatments applied .

 

I am curious to learn if any other collectors use this product.

 

Tim

Yes, finally another Connolly boy, the stuff absolutely kills Pecards! I've been using it for years. I still find that it very gently may darken some items however. It's used my Jag, Ferrarri and Bentley etc, to treat, care, and look after their leather trims, so you know it's great stuff. It's basically all the high end luger guys use, i just dont know why so many US guys swear by the Pecards, the Connollys is soo much better, and doesnt leave that chalkish, glazy, ghosty look after time. I have an m1916 holster that has been totally destroyed by the previous owner Pecarding the crap out of it. And it's not from age, it's near unissued.

Job well done mate, it looks great

Great work. I'm curious about the orange paint. I had a M4 with its handle painted orange once. Does anyone know about the orange paint thing??

Yes, finally another Connolly boy, the stuff absolutely kills Pecards! I've been using it for years. I still find that it very gently may darken some items however. It's used my Jag, Ferrarri and Bentley etc, to treat, care, and look after their leather trims, so you know it's great stuff. It's basically all the high end luger guys use, i just dont know why so many US guys swear by the Pecards, the Connollys is soo much better, and doesnt leave that chalkish, glazy, ghosty look after time. I have an m1916 holster that has been totally destroyed by the previous owner Pecarding the crap out of it. And it's not from age, it's near unissued.

Job well done mate, it looks great

 

 

This is the first I've heard about Connolly. I've looked on the web and found Connolly Hide Care and Connolly Leather Care. Which are you talking about? Or is it something different yet?

Great work. I'm curious about the orange paint. I had a M4 with its handle painted orange once. Does anyone know about the orange paint thing??

 

Ha, I don't know about any "orange paint thing", but, I do know there was absolutely nothing original about this paint. Unfortunately, the knife was stored in a garage (under rather poor conditions from the looks of it - moldy handle and rusted blade) where alot of spray painting was done. Ergo, the red paint on the knife and the red and silver paint on the scabbard .

 

Tim

This is the first I've heard about Connolly. I've looked on the web and found Connolly Hide Care and Connolly Leather Care. Which are you talking about? Or is it something different yet?

 

I have been using the Connolly Hide Care and am quite pleased with it. I have a few high-dollar German P38 and Luger holsters that will never see anything else .

 

Tim

This is the first I've heard about Connolly. I've looked on the web and found Connolly Hide Care and Connolly Leather Care. Which are you talking about? Or is it something different yet?

It's the Connollys Hide Care, or Hide Food. The other one is more of a cleaner