Hi All,

 

Here is my recent estate sale pickup of a Collins No. 128 Machete.  Been trying to do some research the last few days to understand what this is, and admittedly I'm pretty confused.

 

This example is undated and has no "U.S." military type markings.  Does that suggest this is a commercial model rather than military issue?  Likewise for the sheath.  Does this sort of sheath indicate commercial model, or in some cases will you find a military issue machete with this sort of decorative leather sheath?

 

I included some photos that show close-ups/different angles of the handle, as every example I've been able to find online is different from the next when it comes to handle construction.

 

Let me know if any other photos or info would be helpful.

 

Cheers!

 

-Bosley

 

I believe what you have is the civilian version.  I bought the military version from Frank Trzaska's site some years ago, and the machete is dated 1941 and the sheath is an undated and unmarked Boyt sheath.  It is my understanding that is was bought in 1941 before they began marking and dating both the sheath and machete.

 

4 hours ago, thorin6 said:

I believe what you have is the civilian version.  I bought the military version from Frank Trzaska's site some years ago, and the machete is dated 1941 and the sheath is an undated and unmarked Boyt sheath.  It is my understanding that is was bought in 1941 before they began marking and dating both the sheath and machete.

 

 

 

 

Thanks, thorin6.  And what is it that allows you to distinct between civilian vs military for these?

 

Btw, I should have mentioned the one I have here is 27" total and 22" blade.

 

Can you tell if the handle of yours is identical to mine?  I've definitely seen a few different versions, but from what I can see, yours looks the same.  I'm curious if there literally is no difference between civilian vs military, aside from the "1941".

 

Cheers,

 

Bosley

Other than the date and eventually the US mark, I don't think there is any difference between the civilian and military versions made in the same year.  Yours might be an earlier version; if you look at where the tang of the blade goes into the handle, it's not as wide.  That may be a just a difference in years of manufacturing.  The handles are also essentially the same.  The lengths are also the same for the machete and roughly the same for the sheath.  I believe the military found the 22-inch blade to be too unwieldly and went to the 18-inch length fairly quickly.

As for telling the difference between military and civilian, I use the various books such as Coles and Walters to distinguish them.

Bosley- According to D E Henry's book "COLLINS", the type 13 scabbards were available to the military early on around 1940ish. The 128 machetes were stamped with the 1941 date like thorin6' picture. As Bill stated the military found the 22" blades unsatisfactory, and went to the 18".  SKIP

10 hours ago, SKIPH said:

Bosley- According to D E Henry's book "COLLINS", the type 13 scabbards were available to the military early on around 1940ish. The 128 machetes were stamped with the 1941 date like thorin6' picture. As Bill stated the military found the 22" blades unsatisfactory, and went to the 18".  SKIP

 

Thanks, thorin6 & SKIP.

 

SKIP, considering these Type 13 Scabbards were available to the military early on around 1940ish, do you think it's possible this machete could actually be a 1940 military issue?  Do we know if there are any No. 128s stamped with a date prior to 1941?

 

Also, is there any general understanding for things like machetes, axes, etc., how often commercially made examples for one reason or another could have ended up in the hands of military personnel for use in the field?  For example, just making this up, if military orders for these No. 128s weren't made until 1941, is it possible the military could have just stocked up on commercially made models in the meantime?

 

I picked this up at an estate sale that had a bunch of other military edged weapons from WWII (and some from later years), which in my mind could suggest a greater likelihood that this is somehow military related, but I understand it's not necessarily so, especially considering I believe the owner was a collector rather than a WWII vet.

 

Cheers,

 

Bosley 

 

 

The military at some point at the beginning of WW2 was buying up commercial knives, machetes etc.  Keep in mind, Collins was one of  the largest manufacturer of machetes. axes, and hatchets at that time. Even since 9/11 the military was authorized to buy certain items off the civilian market.  Sometimes you can't wait for production to kick up, or contracts to be awarded, remember, it was a national emergency.  SKIP

3 hours ago, SKIPH said:

The military at some point at the beginning of WW2 was buying up commercial knives, machetes etc.  Keep in mind, Collins was one of  the largest manufacturer of machetes. axes, and hatchets at that time. Even since 9/11 the military was authorized to buy certain items off the civilian market.  Sometimes you can't wait for production to kick up, or contracts to be awarded, remember, it was a national emergency.  SKIP

 

 

Thanks, SKIP.  I think I'll hold onto this one and keep with the collection for now, as a possible early-war example.  If not truly that, it at least seems an identical representative to what would have been used at the time.  To my eye it looks like this got a decent amount of use a long time ago, but of course there's no telling where/when this was.