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Winning Bid US $893 First bid $500 Quantity 1 # of bids 10 Time left Auction has ended   Started 2025-07-25 00:00:00 Ended 2025-11-21 22:35:25

RARE!! US, Landers, Frary & Clark (L.F.&C.) of New Britian Connecticut, Mark 1 Trench knife/knuckle dusters.

HISTORY: The Mark 1 was a further development of the US trench knife. The first knife was the M1917 & was designed by Henry Disston & Sons and based on examples of trench knives then in service with the French Army. It had a triangle Stiletto blade, wooden grip, a metal knuckle guard, & a rounded pommel. The M1918 trench knife was almost identical to the M1917 but the knuckle guard was a slightly different shape & made of different materials. Both of these trench knifes suffered from frequent broken blades because of the thin stiletto style. In June of 1918, a panel of AEF (American expeditionary force) officers would conduct test on both the M1817 & M1918 knifes as well as British & French trench knifes in order to find a improvement. The field test was performed to examine the qualities of each knife based on the following criteria: the ability to carry one-handed while performing other tasks, the quickness or rapidity of employment in action, security of grip, in case the user was stunned or knocked unconscious, ease of carrying when crawling in a low prone position, the probability of the knife being knocked out of hand during a struggle, the suitability of blade weight, length, and shape; and the shape of the handle. The testing would confirm the both our trench knife designs needed improvement. The panel of AEF officers & the engineering division of US Ordnance would redesign the knife with a combination of all the best features of the knives tested, culminating into the Mark 1 Trench knife. The grip style basically stayed the same but the double edged blade from the French Couteau Poignard Mle 1916 (Le Vengeur) was used. The Spikes on the knuckles & pommel were intended to prevent an opponent from grabbing the knife hand, as well as to provide a more concentrated striking surface when employed in hand to hand combat. America was already in the First when the Mark 1 was designed & it would take a long time for knives made here in the states to make their way over to Europe, so the first Mark 1 trench knives were made in France by Au Lion/ Sciete Fenerale. Over here in the states the Government would put out contracts for over 1.2 Million Mark 1 knives to many different companies & the first deliveries were planed in December of 1918; however the war would End in November. The government would cancel almost all of the Mark 1 knife contracts except for 119,424 knives from Landers, Frary & Clark according to US Ordnance records, however examples of original knives have been found to be marked ''HD&S'' & ''OCL'' for other companies that received contracts as well as some having aluminum grips. The grips & sheaths were blackened to prevent reflection of light, but many solider & later civilian owners have polished this away thinking it was tarnish, leaving originals with their blackened finish hard to find. The Mark 1 was liked by some & other complained about the same issues present from the mark one with poor balance & blade prone to breakage. The US made Mark 1 knives did not see any use during WW1 but would see lots of use at the beginning of WW2 due to shortages. They were mainly issued to units that needed a close-combat fight knife like the elite army rangers, the airborne, & with the Marine Raiders

CONDITION: Right side of the handle is marked ''U.S. 1918'' over ''L.F & C-1918''. Has a brass hang tag stamped ''150''. Blued steel blade, has sheath/use wear & scratches but retains about 40% of its blue, does have some light scattered roughness at the tip & ricasso. Cast bronze handle that was chemically blackened. Some the blackened finish has worn away in common handling areas showing the bronze color underneath, thinned blacked finish remains in protected areas around the guard & knuckle holes. Steel nut on the pommel that holds blade in place has some small scuffs & starting to tone brown. the steel sheath is marked ''L.F.&C.'' over ''1918''. One side of sheath has complete toned brown, the other side is a mix of gun metal gray with speckled brown patina. Grade: Very Good ++ - Value: 1000 to 2000

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Price

RARE!! US, Landers, Frary & Clark (L.F.&C.) of New Britian Con... Item # 50916 This auction is over. No new bids can be placed. Price: US $893

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