Description
WW2 era Knife Crafters fighting knife made from Civil-War era cavalry saber, original and hard-to-find leather scabbard included. Rare type in great overall condition, considering the age. FREE SHIPPING WITHIN THE U.S. FOR THIS ITEM.
Very rare WW2 era fighting knife made during the war by Knife Crafters of Philadelphia of Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, PA, USA from the middle section the much-older Civil-War era cavalry saber. During the first couple of years of WW2 the US servicemen had no standard-issue fighting knife and the military was desperately looking for a quick way to satisfy the demand for the much-needed fighting knives early in the War. After the Great War most of the cavalry sabers were just sitting on storage, collecting dust in the government arsenals. So someone came up with the idea of re-purposing these old (and by than obsolete weapons anyway) info fighting knives and daggers. A large quantity of WW1 era M1913 Patton Swords and older Civil War sabers were converted into somewhat crude, but very practical fighting knives and trench daggers such as this WW1 era M1913 Patton Saver conversion or another “Patton Sword” fighter made by Anderson I have available for sale. The “Knife Crafters” fighting knives are some of the best known examples of such side arms. Typically, each saber would be cut up to be made into 3 fighting knives. This exact “Knife Crafters” fighting knife type is illustrated on page 224 of the KNIVES OF THE UNITED STATES MILITARY WORLD WAR II book by Michael W Silvey – a well-established expert and the author of a number of books on the subject of the US military edged weapons (see book’s scans attached).
This attractive fighting knife is about 12-1/2” / 31.8 cm overall; the blade is about 7” / 17.8 cm; the edge is razor-sharp still; original tip is intact. Knife Crafters had this labor-intensive but solid technique of welding a semi-curved handle to a piece of a blade and than brass-brazing the up-swept steel guard to the blade. The result was an excellent fighting knife with a superior balance and control. The lower part of the handle is covered with the original cowhide leather; the handle is in excellent overall condition, considering the age. The handle is solid; all parts are tight with no play. Original brown leather scabbard is extremely well-done; most of the original stitching is intact; the leather is soft and supple; original “no-snap” keeper is present and intact as well. There is some number printed on the front side of the hanger; it begins with 0-16.. but I can’t make out the rest.
Knife Crafters had always made a superior product; their knives and scabbards are always of high quality so their knives were quite popular with the GIs. Most of these handy fighting knives were used as intended in the field so finding a fine Knife Crafters specimen in such a great shape is pretty hard nowadays. This WW2 era Knife Crafters fighting knife is a great find – today most of the surviving Knife Crafters fighting knives are in private collections and are off the market. This is one of the best WW2 era “non-regulation” US fighting knives with a lot of character AND in excellent overall condition, don’t miss your chance to add this rare fighter to your collection!
This original WW2 era Knife Crafters fighting knife has not been cleaned or tampered with in any way, it is in 100% original “as is” condition. These are the actual photos; Garand clips are not included with the lot 😉 I have several fighting knives made from converted sabers, as well as some scarce WW1 and WW2 fighting daggers and trench knives available for sale – please take a look in our Militaria section.
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FREE EXPEDITED USPS PRIORITY MAIL SHIPPING WITHIN THE U.S. FOR THIS ITEM
International shipping for this item will be $55 and up to most countries on our “ship-to” list.
