WWII FIGHTING KNIVES PRICE GUIDE

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THE HISTORY OF THE NAVY FIGHTING KNIFE

Knives have been a key fighting weapon in every war. No matter how advanced the technology, a good knife always has a place in battle.

A special breed of knives saw extensive development during WWII. Known as the "fighting knife". While it could be employed for the uses of a regular knife, its primary goal was for hand-to-hand combat. The design, balance and materials employed varied from the run of the mill knife.

This page provides a sample of the various fighting knives the US Navy employed during WWI and beyond. The samples displayed here cover various countries that participated in the war. Information provided includes the identification of fighting knives and pricing of fighting knives.

USN KNIFE MARKINGS
The way in which the US Navy knives were marked has changed over a period of time. The following are some examples of how the knives were marked.

	The photo to the left is of a WWII navy knife. The markings were placed in teh ricasso and consisted of the letters USN. The photo to the right is also a WWII knife. The ricasso is stamped with USN and MARK 2, which indicates the type of knife. The other side of the blade has the name of the manufacturer. The bottom photo is a knife used by navy SEALS during the 1990's and 2000's. The marking remains in the ricasso. It reads MK3, MOD 0.

USN KNIFE HANDLES
The material and construction of the knife handle has evolved over time. Each year and new model brings about a better type of handle. the following are some of the examples of the handles that have been used.

	This is a leather handle with a series of round cuts made into the material for the purpose of providing a better gripping surface. This handle design started in WWII and was used past the Korean war. The pommel is also round and made of metal.
	This is a hard plastic handle with a tight checkered pattern that provides for better gripping. The pommel is made of metal and has a hole where a string (lanyard) is secured.
	This is a handle made of a series leather rings compressed together. Usually the rings at each end are of different color. In some instances more than one of the end rings are of different colors. This is done to enhance the look of the knife. The pommel is made of wood. That is a variation as normally it would be made of aluminum. This type of handle is used by the RH knife series.

If you have an interest is seeing other fighting knives, you can do so by going to our Military Fighting Knives Price Guide identification page. Where we cover Army, Navy, Army Air Force, USMC and other military groups.

While the knives shown on this page are not for sale, you can visit our website, MilitaryItems.com , to see other military and non-military knives available for sale.

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