Original U.S. WWII Blade Marked M3 Fighting Knife by PAL Cutlery Co. with M8 Scabbard
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Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice service worn example of a WWII M3 U.S. fighting knife, made by the desirable maker, PAL Cutlery Co.. With the marking on the blade, this is the more desirable "2nd Pattern", which was replaced quickly by the 3rd pattern with markings on the crossguard. It comes complete in the correctly M8 scabbard, which was updated during the war to the M8A1 standard, but there is no belt hook. These fighting knives were preferred by American infantry during World War Two for hand to hand combat.
This knife is very early production, indicated by the maker information being stamped and dated directly on the blade: U.S. M3 PAL. The 6 3/8 inch spear point blade is in good condition, but definitely shows significant use and sharpening. The edge is still sharp, but much of the finish has worn away.
The handle and stacked leather grip do show wear and staining with wearing from period use. This wear pattern from extensive use is impossible to duplicate. The crossguard is still in the correct shape, straight with a forward bend at the top for the thumb, and has only a tiny bit of movement. The bottom of the pommel shows the U.S. "Flaming Bomb" ordnance proof mark and correct peened over tang.
The original scabbard is marked, U.S. M8 / B.M. CO and is in very good condition, with light overall wear. The scabbard was manufactured by Beckwith Mfg Co. a division of Victory Plastics. This is the earlier pattern of the scabbard, without the retaining loop, though it was later updated to have one. These feature a thermoplastic impregnated cotton fabric body, metal throat, and canvas frog and securing strap. The scabbard is still fully functional, with a functional retaining strap, but does show wear and use. The canvas is somewhat dirty and discolored, and the finish on the metal fittings is mostly worn away. The belt gook is now gone, if there was one to begin with.
The combination of the blade-marked U.S. M3 PAL designation, heavily service-used spear-point blade, stacked-leather grip, Ordnance Flaming Bomb, peened tang construction, and original B.M. Co. M8 scabbard with later hanger modification makes this a strong representative WWII fighting knife set. The sharpening, finish loss, grip wear, missing belt hook, and slight movement in the crossguard are the principal condition issues, while the original wartime markings and construction remain especially desirable.
Dimensions:
Blade length: 6 3/8”
Blade Style: Spear Point Knife
Overall length: 11 1/4”
Crossguard: 2 1/4”
Scabbard length: 8"
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