Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is a fantastic example of a WWII Navy Mk. II Fighting knife attributed to Machinist Mate 2nd Class Robert O. Graham, Platoon 1, Company C, U.S. Navy 92nd Construction Battalion. According to a provenance letter included with the knife, Graham carried this knife while accompanying the Seabees in the initial invasion of Tinian through to the end of the fighting.

During the initial landing phase, Graham drove a bulldozer (as he was part of a construction battalion), and "driving it ashore, he noticed a Japanese pillbox with machine guns blazing away at infantrymen trying to advance inland. To assist with the advance he raised the blade of the bulldozer to protect himself and drove the heavy vehicle in front of the troops. They found shelter behind him as he drove toward the protective enemy shelter, bullets from their machine gun bouncing off his dozer’s blade, finally reaching the obstacle and with now lowered blade crushed everyone and everything inside the demolished structure.”

The knife’s ricasso is marked CAMILLUS, N.Y. on one side and U.S.N. on the other. It features original stacked leather washer grip, which is in good condition with no cracks or splitting. The handle, pommel, and cross guard are all mostly tight to the blade, with very little oxidation on the cross guard due to moisture exposure. The blade of this example is in great condition, with the original factory grind showing honest use, and still showing a bright steel machined edge on most areas. The original finish is retained at almost 70%.

The leather sheath is the standard type used with the Mark 2, and is in very good used condition, marked U.S.N., although this example has a great added reinforcement at the tip made of thin aluminum, which according to the provenance letter is likely from a damaged aircraft. This makes complete sense, as there wouldn’t be readily available aluminum in the field for any other reason. There is a small bit of tearing in the leather near the U.S.N. lettering as shown. The securing strap appears to just be a leather string which could be tied to secure the knife.

The letter of provenance comes from Art Beltrone of Beltrone & Company, a very well-trusted figure in the community.

A very nice example of the hard to find USN-marked "KA-BAR" knife, with a great provenance letter and in good condition. No knife collection is complete without an example of a "Ka-bar".

Specifications:
Blade Length: 7"
Blade Style: Clip-point "Bowie" Style
Overall length: 12“
Crossguard: 2 7/16”
Scabbard Length: 8" with Belt Loop

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 WW2. 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, so this knife was produced after that change.

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.