Item:
ONSV22TGA46

Original U.S. Pre-WWII M1905 Springfield Rifle 16" Bayonet by S.A. with M1910 Scabbard - dated 1921

Item Description

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a truly excellent near mint 16” WWI M1905 Springfield rifle bayonet by Springfield Armory, complete with an M1910 Scabbard. It is dated 1921, being made for the M1903 Springfield rifle. It is still in the original issued configuration, with a 16 inch blade and wooden grip scales.

The WWII-era M1 Garand was designed to take the same blade bayonet as the M1903 Springfield rifle, so at the beginning of WWII, many were issued with bayonets originally made for those rifles. Later in 1942 to keep up with wartime production, new orders for M1905 bayonets with plastic grips were sent out, which had plastic ribbed grips. These were also sometimes fitted to M1905 bayonets made previously that had damage to their wooden grips.

In 1943, the specification for bayonets was changed to have a 10 inch blade, and many M1905 bayonets were shortened to this length. This bayonet however is still in the original configuration, which is rare to find on the market today.

The blade ricasso is marked with SA for the Springfield Armory in Springfield Mass, the primary center for the manufacture of United States military firearms from 1777 until its closing in 1968. Below this is the Ordnance flaming bomb and date of manufacture 1921. The other side of the ricasso is marked with U.S. above serial number 1180407. The blade is in great shape with a nice edge, and in many places the original factory grinding marks can still be seen. The handle and cross guard still have their full blued finish, and the original wooden grip scales are in excellent condition, with all of the factory "ribbed" surface visible.

The scabbard included is an original WWI issue M1910 scabbard, which has a raw-hide clad wooden inner scabbard, with a steel and aluminum throat. The scabbard still has the canvas and leather "sleeve", which is so often missing. The retaining hooks are still intact, so the bayonet locks securely into the scabbard. The canvas and leather sleeve shows some light wear and staining with cracking present on the leather portions.

An excellent example of the 16” WWI M1905 Springfield rifle bayonet by Springfield Armory, complete with scabbard! Ready to display or fit on your Springfield 1903 Rifle.

Specifications:
Blade Length: 16"
Blade Style: Single Edged with Fuller
Overall length: 20 1/2“
Crossguard: 3 1/2”
Scabbard Length: 17"

The M1905 bayonet was produced from 1906 to 1922 by Springfield Armory and Rock Island Arsenal. The blade and handle frame were forged as a single piece with a wide, square-shaped fuller, and the crossguard was pinned to this assembly through two holes with cone-shaped steel pins. The ribbed hand grips were made of walnut wood and attached to the handle with a screw. The screw also held the catch mechanism, manipulated with a button under the crossguard, that was used to fix the bayonet to the rifle's bayonet lug. In mid-1941, it was decided to restart production of the M1905 bayonet.

To simplify production, these later bayonets had handles with black or dark red ribbed grips, made of phenol formaldehyde resin, the earliest type of synthetic plastic. Production was scheduled to begin in January 1942, but the first bayonets were not delivered until April, with quantity deliveries not beginning until the summer of 1942. Despite initial setbacks, the M1905 bayonet was manufactured in sufficient numbers to keep up with the widespread introduction of the new M1 Garand rifle in 1942. By the end of 1942, all six manufacturers had changed the shape of their fullers to a narrower, round-bottomed shape. The later version of the M1905 bayonet with plastic grips is sometimes referred to as the "M1942" by collectors and historians, but this designation was never used by the Army

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