US M3 Trench Knife. - M4 Bayonet, - OSS Dagger.

US M3 Trench Knife or Fighting Knife (WW2)

Made only in 1943 and 1944, the M3 was designed for issue to troops not otherwise equiped with a bayonet – as a close combat knife. It was designed for rapid production with a narrow blued or parkerised 6.75" spear-point blade (dagger) with a sharpened 3.5" secondary edge.

In 1944, after the M1 CARBINE was modified to take a knife-type bayonet, the blade and handle design of the M3 were incorporated into a new bayonet – the US Bayonet M4.

M3 knives were made by at least nine different makers in USA and it was designed to replace the WW1 Mk1 Trench Knife. It was evaluated against the Marine Corps 1219C2. Fighting Utility Knife - but the M3s lower production costs persuaded the Smaller War Parts Corporation Board to approve the cheaper M3 for quantity production.- It also replaced the OSS Dagger in 1944.

Although well made and balanced (it made a good throwing knife) – the M3 was found to be not ideal for its designed 'close combat' use and was less able to stand-up to rough military use like opening cans and digging fox-holes. It was felt to be poor when used in a back-handed slash and the 3.5" edge was not easy to sharpen.- The Carbine-Bayonet M4 replaced the M3 in August 1944 - making it the shortest production record of any US Military knife – but 2,590,247 were recorded as made.

                                    M4 knife-bayonet on M1 CARBINE

The M3 blade design continued in service as the M4, M5, M6, & M7 bayonets.

OSS Dagger (Fairburn-Sykes)

The F-S Fighting Knife became famous in WW2 when issued to the British Commandos – It had a 6.5"(first pattern) or 7"(second pattern) narrow blade designed to easily penetrate a ribcage.

Unfortunately, the OSS (Office of Strategic Services - later the CIA) manufacturing bid was one fifteenth the cost of the British Wilkinson-Sword price and the 20,000 built for the OSS in Connecticut were inferior, improperly tempered, and poorly made.

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