Ever wonder what the bayonet is for?

I remember the first 91/30 I bought...

I remember putting on the bayonet and giggling at it's epicness.

I also remember putting on the mil-surp sling, throwing it on my shoulder, and walking out of the study into the living room and meeting some resistence from the doorway...

Some years ago there was a report in the NRA's American RIfleman Magazine of a home owner that repelled boarders with I beleive some sort of early Mauser with attached bayonet. I seem to recall the event was in or near Bayonet Point. FL.

-Bob Hollingsworth

don't hurt "yourself"!

As said above, the bayonet makes someone less likely to try to grab the rifle. Also, unlike the rifle, there's no doubt in the intruder's mind that the bayonet is "loaded".

On the other hand, I'm not sure if a person who wasn't deterred by having a rifle pointed in their face would think twice about a rifle with a knife on it.

I remember the first 91/30 I bought...

I remember putting on the bayonet and giggling at it's epicness.

I also remember putting on the mil-surp sling, throwing it on my shoulder, and walking out of the study into the living room and meeting some resistence from the doorway...

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Part of the reason why I bought my 91/30 was the huge spike bayonet it came with.

I almost took down some overhead lights with that thing

Always use enough bayonet:

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Madre en Dios!

HeavyDuty

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That's a sword!
Where can I get one of those?!

I always figured that if I had to use my M-44 Mosin-Nagant carbine in a home/self-defense situation, I could use the bayo to fend off a cretin or 2 while I stuffed another stripper-clip of ammo into the M-44.

One time, when I was shooting my M-44, a kid (about 10-12 years old) came over and asked.."Hey Mister, why do you have that long screwdriver sticking off the end of your gun?"

"It isnt really a screwdriver" I said, while poking one of the gallon water jugs....

I don't know about the prosecutors' point of view......

But it would sure send a message to criminals not to mess with you!

"...isn't the spike bayonet for that rifle the exact same length as the blade?..." Yep. So are the other 7 types of bayonet for a No. 4. The biggest complaint about the 'spike' was its inability to open cans and chop wood.
Bayonets are a hold over from the days when the PBI used a pike and carried a sword. That and single shot muskets. Fire a volley from well under 50 yards then charge with fixed bayonets.
You have to know how to use a rifle with a bayonet fixed. The last thing you'd want to be doing is fending off attackers while trying to load the rifle though.

MDeViney said:

I remember the first 91/30 I bought...

I remember putting on the bayonet and giggling at it's epicness.

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for truly epic try an M91 with bayonet see here

AmishFury said:

on a side note... silly british with their stubby little spike...

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2-meter long, 7,62 rifle weeth bayonet eese proper Russian way, Comrade. Long bayonet and large vodka bottle bring glory to State!

The bayonet drill in Basic, with a Garand, was to first attract the enemy's attention with a vertical buttstroke to the chin. Then, a long rake down his front with the pointed end*. If he still shows interest in being hostile, you can stab or shoot, as you deem necessary.

All the while, you're doing the loud-yell thing.

Imagine a poor innocent burglar's reaction to such friendly but unexpected attention...

, Art

*This assumes you've known what to do with a whetstone.

Bayonets were originally developed for hunting. Bear hunters in the Pyranees mountains, between Spain and France came to realize that it's difficult to reload a matchlock musket while a bear is chewing on your leg. So they carried huge knives.

Then someone woke up and smelled to coffee, "If I'm close enough to stick a bear with my knife, he's close enough . . . "

This bright boy put a tapered plug handle on his knife -- and if he missed or only wounded a bear, he shoved the plug down the muzzle and had himself a spear.

These knives were made in quantity in a nearby town -- Bayonne, France.

Are you sure that it wasn't Bayonne, New Jersey?

Nope -- they only got little bears in New Jersey.

"ENGARDE!"

"AT MY COMMAND, SHORT THRUST SERIES WITH VERTICAL BUTTSTROKE AND SLASH AS FOLLOW-UP!"

"MOVE!"

-Bob Hollingsworth

To answer the ? I think the original
purpose of " Fix Bayonets " is for the
fighting soldiers, disaster scenarios, no more ammo to shoot, continue to fight, Hand to Hand combat.

Where can I get one of those?!

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Its a Swiss Pioneer's bayonet. They show up in online auctions once in awhile, they sell for around $150-250.
Mine came with the 1911 rifle pictured, although its not the right bayonet for the rifle.

don't take a knife to a gunfight?
How bout a gun and a big knife?

Cracked Butt, that's a great pic. I gotta get me one of those.

SO I am at a gun show once and a guy buys an E-tool off some one for cash. I immediately offered him a 20 percent mark up and he got suspicious.

THe small shovel head twisted onto a light wood handle and could be taken down for compact storage. WHen he announced he found it too interesting to part with I figure what the heck and showed him. It was an e-tool the british issued to No.4 Rifle users. Picking up a round Spike bayonet for a No.4 from the next table (after asking politely)I demonstrated that the bayonet also fit the shovel handle. I passed by the guys table forty -five minutes later ansdhe was still playing with it.

WHen I was eleven or so a buddy had one of the Swiss Engineers bayonets like pictured above. He could saw neatly throughtrees and logs and don't tell anyone fence posts with it. My WWII USN issue Machette cleared brush better and wasn't so darned heavy. My sheath knife at the time was an M5A-1 bayonet for the M-1 Rifle. It had the M8 sheath with the metal tip guard. Naturally as soon as I started JROTC in highschool it found its way to the end of an M-1.

-Bob Hollingsworth

WHen I was eleven or so a buddy had one of the Swiss Engineers bayonets like pictured above. He could saw neatly throughtrees and logs

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bayonets are usually dull, but the teeth on the Swiss bayonet are razor sharp- I cut my finger the first time I carelessly poked at it.