Nighteyes
Member
Folks,
We have spoken a lot about "Ka-Bar" (real designation/name Mark II) knives. I collect knives, primarily US military edged implements from just before WWII through Vietnam - perhaps a bit later. Within that, I also collect "oddballs" because, for some reason, they fascinate me. Some of them are excellent while others are merely odd. Anyhoo, I thought y'all might like to see some of my oddball Mark IIs. Here they are.
The first one isn't an oddball so much as a rarity: a first-production-run USN Camillus Mark II, the one with the "screw-pommel." They're rare because Camillus discovered the design was flawed and issued a recall. They retrieved most, but not all, of them. This one is even more rare because its near-mint and came with its original, also near-mint, sheath. The third picture shows why this version is called a "screw-pommel". The fourth pic shows the one I actually carried & used in the mid-to-late 1960s, before I knew better. (P-s-s-t! Its the one on the right! Heh-heh-heh!):
Next is a World War II USMC Mark II by Case Cutlery. There's only one problem -- other than for two unbelievably valuable prototypes Case didn't make WWII Mark II knives! This is a surprisingly well-done fake. (The actual knife is probably a Camillus.) A word to the wise, and all that:
The next one requires a bit of upfront explanation. For a short time during the Vietnam era, Mark II knives were made by Conetta. For some reason Conetta Mark IIs have become very hard to find, which causes them to bring a premium.
Conetta went out of business, and a company called SARCO bought all of their equipment and inventory. Among said inventory was a large number of Conetta-marked Mark II blades. No fools they, SARCO began assembling and selling knives from the old Conetta inventory. The most (in)famous of them is an M7-type bayonet, with either a leather or a plastic handle, that used the Conetta-marked Mark II blade. Less-knowledgeable or -scrupulous people quickly began calling them "prototypes" and selling them for hefty prices.
Here is a considerably less-known "Mark II" that SARCO assembled out of leftover Conetta parts. This knife even came in an oxblood-colored sheath (a Conetta Mark II "trademark"). Notice that the handle, though made of compressed leather rings, has no grooves.
The next "oddball" is a SOG-style knife that was carefully and skillfully made from a Camillus Mark II. The pics tell the story:
Last but by no means least is my absolute-of-all-time-favorite "oddball Mark II" (for a whole danged lot of reasons). It is not actually a Mark II, but an excellent presentation-quality knife crafted from the Mark II design. Its from mes amis the Third Infantry Regiment of the French Foreign Legion:
We have spoken a lot about "Ka-Bar" (real designation/name Mark II) knives. I collect knives, primarily US military edged implements from just before WWII through Vietnam - perhaps a bit later. Within that, I also collect "oddballs" because, for some reason, they fascinate me. Some of them are excellent while others are merely odd. Anyhoo, I thought y'all might like to see some of my oddball Mark IIs. Here they are.
The first one isn't an oddball so much as a rarity: a first-production-run USN Camillus Mark II, the one with the "screw-pommel." They're rare because Camillus discovered the design was flawed and issued a recall. They retrieved most, but not all, of them. This one is even more rare because its near-mint and came with its original, also near-mint, sheath. The third picture shows why this version is called a "screw-pommel". The fourth pic shows the one I actually carried & used in the mid-to-late 1960s, before I knew better. (P-s-s-t! Its the one on the right! Heh-heh-heh!):
Next is a World War II USMC Mark II by Case Cutlery. There's only one problem -- other than for two unbelievably valuable prototypes Case didn't make WWII Mark II knives! This is a surprisingly well-done fake. (The actual knife is probably a Camillus.) A word to the wise, and all that:
The next one requires a bit of upfront explanation. For a short time during the Vietnam era, Mark II knives were made by Conetta. For some reason Conetta Mark IIs have become very hard to find, which causes them to bring a premium.
Conetta went out of business, and a company called SARCO bought all of their equipment and inventory. Among said inventory was a large number of Conetta-marked Mark II blades. No fools they, SARCO began assembling and selling knives from the old Conetta inventory. The most (in)famous of them is an M7-type bayonet, with either a leather or a plastic handle, that used the Conetta-marked Mark II blade. Less-knowledgeable or -scrupulous people quickly began calling them "prototypes" and selling them for hefty prices.
Here is a considerably less-known "Mark II" that SARCO assembled out of leftover Conetta parts. This knife even came in an oxblood-colored sheath (a Conetta Mark II "trademark"). Notice that the handle, though made of compressed leather rings, has no grooves.
The next "oddball" is a SOG-style knife that was carefully and skillfully made from a Camillus Mark II. The pics tell the story:
Last but by no means least is my absolute-of-all-time-favorite "oddball Mark II" (for a whole danged lot of reasons). It is not actually a Mark II, but an excellent presentation-quality knife crafted from the Mark II design. Its from mes amis the Third Infantry Regiment of the French Foreign Legion:
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Still, it is an interesting knife and a job well done.
