kiddcrappie
Greenie
- Joined
- Aug 3, 2013
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- Primary Interest:
- All Treasure Hunting
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Here are a couple of images that might help you date your find. The easiest way is if the rust hadn't obliterated the date, the of year manufacture will be stamped right in front of guard on the blade, along with the ordinance stamp. <img src="http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=839045"/> These particular style bayonets were manufactured apparently from 1905 until 1953, and if the date on the blade can't be read, then the type of grip will give an approximate date. <img src="http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=839047"/> The early grips were wood, then in 1942 they were a plastic (bakelite?) material. Sometime in there a lot of those bayonets were cut in two and a new point put on them, but that's getting kind of above my pay grade, and one of those isn't what you found anyhow. The last two pictures are a model 1903 Springfield with an bayonet dated 1942, and the other is an M1 Garand with the shortened version of the same bayonet, but I don't remember the date on that one. <img src="http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=839052"/> <img src="http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=839053"/>
I just looked at it again, and what I think you actually have is a bayonet for the P-17 Enfield rifle. These were made by a few different makers here in the US including Remington and Winchester for the British during WW1, and were also used extensively by American troops. I've heard they were actually far more common than the Springfield because they were much cheaper to produce. The end of the grip is different from the Springfield bayonet.
View attachment 839075
The same bayonet also fit the Winchester 97 trench sweeper.
View attachment 839076
Interesting side note on the P-17 rifle, The ones made for the British were chambered in .303, while the ones made for the US Army were chambered in 30-06. At the beginning of WW2 thousands of the American version rifles were shipped to England for the Home Guard under Lend/Lease. Those guns all had a red band painted on the buttstock to avoid people trying to chamber the wrong round in them.
Oh yes, I was going to agree with Citiboy, you found a Springfield bayonet. If there is an initial SA above the date, that means it was manufactured at Springfield armory, there were other manufacturing facilities, one is RA, but again, I don't know what that stands for. I'm not an expert, just know enough to be dangerous.