Vicious WWI Trench Knives!

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  • mdonzi

    mdonzi
    Feb 26, 2010
    413
    pasadena
    i have a buddy who has 2 knifes he wants to sell i think i might buy the 1918 brass he wants 450.00 for the LF&C with seath and 500.00 for brass 1918 do you think that is a fair price on them Weapons Collector the one i picked up at arms show he wanted 600.00 for and i paid 400.00 + case m3 that had custom rope handle
     

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    WeaponsCollector

    EXTREME GUN OWNER
    Mar 30, 2009
    12,120
    Southern MD
    i have a buddy who has 2 knifes he wants to sell i think i might buy the 1918 brass he wants 450.00 for the LF&C with seath and 500.00 for brass 1918 do you think that is a fair price on them Weapons Collector the one i picked up at arms show he wanted 600.00 for and i paid 400.00 + case m3 that had custom rope handle

    $500 is ok but without the sheath you should see if you can talk him down some. $450 for the 1917 spike knife and sheath seems like a fair price in that condition. I've seen the sheath by itself sell for that much in ebay in mint condition.
     

    Indiana Jones

    Wolverine
    Mar 18, 2011
    19,480
    CCN
    - A Nice Collection: The WWI knives are some of the most gruesome, that kind of close quartered, trench-foot soggy muddy trench style warfare is something that hopefully we'll never see again.

    I imagine it's awful in the trenches, but I'll take it over the jungles of Vietnam, or being lined up against the redcoats!
     

    WeaponsCollector

    EXTREME GUN OWNER
    Mar 30, 2009
    12,120
    Southern MD
    I came across this on the internet for anyone who has a spare Mosin Nagant bayonet laying around. They make a handle that locks onto the bayonets and makes a nasty looking trench knife/dagger.

    I like that, don't have any extra 91/30 bayonets but it makes me want to get some.
     

    mdonzi

    mdonzi
    Feb 26, 2010
    413
    pasadena
    w/c i picked up the 1918 for 400.00 he gave me a deal now i just bid on a AU LOIN with sheath for 500.00 and looks nice think that is good price witch ones are more sought after 1918 or AU LION

    THANKS MARIO
     

    WeaponsCollector

    EXTREME GUN OWNER
    Mar 30, 2009
    12,120
    Southern MD
    w/c i picked up the 1918 for 400.00 he gave me a deal now i just bid on a AU LOIN with sheath for 500.00 and looks nice think that is good price witch ones are more sought after 1918 or AU LION

    THANKS MARIO

    There are two or more different types of "Au Lion" 1918 Mark I trench knives.
    One has a groove at the top of the handle on both sides and the other has no grooves. I also have two grooved examples that have slightly different "US 1918" markings on the handle. One has an open "9" and the other has a closed "9" but I've only ever seen the one with the open "9" in books and at shows and none of my books mention the other one. I'd say the Au Lion knife is a little more sought after than the LF&C just because they were made first and are more likely to have seen action during WWI but I think both are worth about the same. If the sheath is missing any prongs it will lower the value and so will any resharpening or cleaning. The most rare and valuable 1918 trench knives are ones made by the American makers OCL and HD&S.
     

    WeaponsCollector

    EXTREME GUN OWNER
    Mar 30, 2009
    12,120
    Southern MD
    I always thought it would be impossible but I was able to upgrade my 1918 LF&C trench knife.
    It's very hard to find examples in perfect condition since these knives are almost 100 years old and were reissued in WWII.
    While the French made "Au Lion" knuckle knives were originally made with shiny blades and unpainted brass handles, the US made examples came blackened and 99% of the ones you find today will be missing the original black coating on the blade and/or handle.
    A very nice example similar to my old one recently came up for sale on Gunbroker and it brought $1,500(http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=319642335)
    These knives have more than doubled in price over the last 10 years so I got really lucky and was able to find one even better for a much lower price.
    Check it out, this rare untouched and unissued example is almost in mint condition like the day it was made and the sheath is just as nice.
    They just don't get any better than this.
    My old one is on the bottom, it still has much of the original black coating but not as much as my new find and the sheath has some light surface rust.
    I won't have any trouble trading it for something very nice.
    Enjoy!
     

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    bpm32

    Active Member
    Nov 26, 2010
    675
    Hey!, I actually remembered this old thread when I was at the Imperial War Museum this past summer. They had a big wall of trench weapons in the new WWI section. It was really funny because there are almost no firearms in the war museum. I guess Londoners never stopped using maces and ghastly-looking knives on each other....

    IMG_3280_2_1024.jpg
     

    WeaponsCollector

    EXTREME GUN OWNER
    Mar 30, 2009
    12,120
    Southern MD
    very nice
    Thanks.

    I would love to have a classic set o' knucks like that...not the crappy, light "paperweights" from the back of Black Belt magazine.
    Gunbroker is a good place to get an old set of classic knucks, just watch out for the fancy fakes on there that are mostly from one seller.

    Hey!, I actually remembered this old thread when I was at the Imperial War Museum this past summer. They had a big wall of trench weapons in the new WWI section. It was really funny because there are almost no firearms in the war museum. I guess Londoners never stopped using maces and ghastly-looking knives on each other.... View attachment 167835
    During WWI I think all sides were known to have used maces and clubs on each other. They are very effective for close quarters trench warfare, especially night raids when firing a gun would get too much attention.


    looks like the knuckles were silver soldered on as an afterthought
    The whole handle is one piece of cast aluminum with black bakelite(?) pinned on.
     

    WeaponsCollector

    EXTREME GUN OWNER
    Mar 30, 2009
    12,120
    Southern MD
    Awesome collection!

    Thanks!

    Only 18 more to go...

    Sounds about right. There's many different British trench knives I don't have but I only need two more American WWI trench knives to have the complete set. They are the ones made by HD&S(Henry Disston and Sons) so if you know of any for sale please let me know.
    It might take me a while to pay for them but I will pay top dollar.
    The reason why I don't have them yet is they only made a very small number so they will cost at least $1,500 or more for each one, plus there's a lot of fakes to watch out for.
     

    Armadillofz1

    Ultimate Member
    Mar 25, 2012
    4,874
    DM-42
    I would love to have a classic set o' knucks like that...not the crappy, light "paperweights" from the back of Black Belt magazine.

    There's a guy that sells the solid brass ones at Gun shows here. If it's legal to have shipped to MD i can get you one. I think they are $20 or so.
     

    llkoolkeg

    Hairy Flaccid Member
    There's a guy that sells the solid brass ones at Gun shows here. If it's legal to have shipped to MD i can get you one. I think they are $20 or so.

    Just one more reason I HAVE to make it to one of the local shows sometime. I actually have no idea what the legality is on them regarding shipping. I've seen some cool investment cast ones but not for sale besides iron ones.
     

    WeaponsCollector

    EXTREME GUN OWNER
    Mar 30, 2009
    12,120
    Southern MD
    Just one more reason I HAVE to make it to one of the local shows sometime. I actually have no idea what the legality is on them regarding shipping. I've seen some cool investment cast ones but not for sale besides iron ones.

    I'm no lawyer, just a collector and collectors will collect. Most of the collection of 200+ was shipped to Maryland over the last 15 years from all over the country and the world, the only problem was when customs opened a package of knuckles from Portugal and held it for a month before sending it.
     

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