Original Item: Only One Available. This transitional SA Dagger is most interesting in that the cross guards are constructed out of aluminum. This is very rare. The producers experimented with aluminum early on to see if it was durable enough to withstand daily wear. We see this with some of the Army daggers, in particular those from Alcoso and E. P. & S. They later abandoned these efforts and went with a base of pot metal. SA daggers of course had nickel silver guards, eventually ending up as nickel-plated pot metal types. Once in a while, though, we do see aluminum guards on them, as well as SS daggers.

The guards on this example have good surfaces; the top example has just a few scratches. The lower guard, however, is still in fine condition. Both of the guards have very deep accent grooves and nice, crisp edges. The tang nut is the standard nickel-plated steel type. As there aren’t any scratches on the guards, the plating is worn away on all 3 of the nickel plated pieces on the hilt.

The grip is a mahogany example, being in very good shape throughout with no flaws and showing only modest usage. It fits the crossguard very nicely. The SA symbol button is perfectly placed and has a good enamel surface. The nickel grip eagle retains excellent detail to the head, breast and wing feathering, talons, wreath and mobile swas.

The scabbard shell is perfectly straight. This shell has a lighter chocolate brown paint which remains in 95% condition. This paint has minor chips and still looks very fine. The scabbard mounts are the nickel-plated steel types. They are in great condition through to the lower ball. These mounts are retained by dome head screws.

The blade of this dagger is very bright and has the typical in/out wear lines. Overall this blade, taken on its own, is in excellent grade condition. The motto is crisp but has almost none of the original factory blacking in the recesses of the letters. The matching etches on the reverse ricasso help to make up for a lot, as they begin with the desirable, almost hieroglyphic twins indie without circle logo at the top. They are an apt logo, as Henckels uses the name Zwillingswerk which, in English, means Twins Factory. Beneath the twins is a double RZM circle with a shaded center, positioned over the Henckels code, M7/10, and the year of production 1938. The blade shoulders perfectly fit the lower contour of the guards.

A very interesting rare dagger from a top maker with transitional double proofs, as well as the rare aluminum crossguards, you won’t find another one of these anytime soon!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 8 3/4"
Overall length: 13 3/4”
Crossguard: 3”
Scabbard Length: 10”

History of the SA-

The SA or Brown Shirts, were a private political formation which Adolf AH and the NSDAP used to maintain order at organized Party meetings and demonstrations. The group was formed in 1921, and grew to a huge force of nearly 3,000,000 men by the later 1930's. To instill esprit de corps, as well as create employment for the Blade City of Solingen, it was decided each SA man would carry a dagger with his Brown Shirt uniform. Huge quantities needed to be produced to accommodate the demand. The dagger initially was produced of hand-fitted nickel mounts with attractive finished wood grip and brown anodized (a bluing process) finished scabbard.

The blade was etched with the SA motto, Alles für Deutschland. Examples produced prior to 1935 were stamped with the German sector of the SA group on reverse lower crossguard. Later examples underwent standardization through the RZM ministry. These pieces were produced of cheaper plated zinc-base fittings and scabbards were simply painted brown.

Prior to his "unmasking" as a traitor, Ernst Röhm was the leader of the SA. In 1934, he distributed approximately 100,000 SA daggers with his personal inscription on the reverse blade. These daggers were to honor individuals who had served with the SA prior to December, 1931. Other than the inscription, these pieces were identical to the standard M1933 SA dagger. After the Röhm purge, the inscription was ordered to be removed. Many examples were returned to the factory for grinding. Others were simply ground in the field by whatever means were available. Examples will occasionally be encountered with remnants of the original inscription remaining on the blade, but mostly none will remain. Some blades exist with an intact inscription, reflecting only the removal of the Röhm signature. Very very rarely is an example seen with a full, untouched inscription, as the holder would have surely risked a charge of treason.