Original Item: Only One Available. The originator of the KA-BAR trademark, Union Cutlery Co, began using the name in 1923, having received a letter from a fur trapper who had used the knife to kill a wounded bear which attacked him when his rifle jammed. According to company records, the letter was only partially legible; "ka bar" could be read, as fragments of the phrase "kill a bear". In 1923, the company adopted the name Ka-Bar from the "bear story" as its trademark. From 1923, the KA-BAR trademark was used as a ricasso stamp by Union Cutlery Co. on its line of automatic switchblade pocket knives, including the KA-BAR Grizzly, KA-BAR Baby Grizzly, and KA-BAR Model 6110 Lever Release knives. The company produced about 1 million knives with the trademark on the ricasso.

This is a great service-used example of the legendary WWII Production U.S.N. / U.S.M.C Mark 2 "Ka-Bar" fighting knife with leather belt sheath. Overall length of this Mark 2 knife is 12 inches, with a 7 inch clip-point blade. This example was either marked USN or USMC on the ricasso, but someone looks to have ground off the marking long ago for reasons we can only speculate. The markings on the other side of the ricasso are as follows:

KA-BAR

There is no address under the "KA-BAR", which would be correct for the earlier war made USMC marked knives by Union Cutlery, the third pattern recognized. The blade shows very heavy wear with much of the black finish worn away on one side, but it is more retained on the other side. It has the correct larger rectangular tang with a 1/4" thick pommel that is cross pinned to the tang. It also has the correct stacked polished leather handle. The handle does show signs of wear but it’s overall great. We cannot say for certain whether this was a USN or USMC example, but we are leaning more towards USMC. 

The Mk2 Knife was developed as an improvement over the Mk1 design, which had issues with blade snapping due to the thinner design. Working with Union Cutlery, USMC Colonel John M. Davis and Major Howard E. America contributed several important changes, including a longer, stronger blade, the introduction of a small fuller to lighten the blade, a peened pommel (later replaced by a pinned pommel), a straight (later, slightly curved) steel crossguard, and a stacked leather handle for better grip. The knife was officially known as the 1219C2, but it was commonly called the "Ka-Bar" after the trademark of Union Cutlery that was on the blades of early examples. The first production order went out to Camillus Cutlery Company, who produced the largest number of knives during WWII. The design was subsequently adopted by the Navy as the US Navy Utility Knife, Mark 2, and the USMC adopted it as the USMC Mark 2 Combat Knife, or simply the Knife, Fighting Utility.

In 1944, the US Navy put through a change order to have the markings moved from the blade to the cross guard, however the last pattern of the "KA-BAR" marked knives kept the blade markings, as on this example. It has the later war slightly "swept back" cross guard. The knife features original polished leather washer grip, which is in excellent condition, with no cracks or splitting, and it has a 1/4" steel pommel with cross pinned tang. The grip is quite shiny, as it still has most of the original factory "buffed" finish.

The leather sheath is the standard type used with the Mark 2, and is in very worn, used condition with a broken snap. The leather has faded to a lovely darker brown, but it is still supple and has some cracking, though there is a bit of surface dry rot on the top of the strap and belt loop. All of the stitching and staples are still intact, and it is structurally very sound. The securing strap itself is still intact, but as shown the snap broke in one spot and now will no longer snap closed.

A worn and scrubbed example of an exceptionally hard to find "KA-BAR" knife, field used with a very worn original leather sheath. No collection is complete without one! Ready to display!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 7"
Blade Style: Clip-point "Bowie" Style
Overall length: 12“
Crossguard: 2 7/16”
Scabbard Length: 7 3/4" with 5"Belt Loop