Any thoughts on the Sykes Fairbairn?

fixer27

fixer27

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Nov 17, 2004
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Any opinions about the WW2 sykes fairbairn dagger? I am thinking about buying a post war British MOD one and would like to know if anyone has any experience owning one?

I'm assuming that it is a high carbon steel that needs resharpinging often.

Any thoughts?
 
I had one years ago, I believe it was a sheffield made f/s. As I recall it wasn't difficult to sharpen and seemed to hold the edge pretty good. But I should say due to the design of the knife i don't remember cutting anything more than opening a couple of packages. I do remember the grind lines on mine were bad but I didn't really care as the reason I got it was the history of the design and for some reason it felt good in the hand. It did strike me as a pretty weak design as far as the diameter of the tang where it goes through the guard and into the handle. I guess for a strictly sticking weapon it was plenty strong. get one and enjoy it, i did. ahgar
 
I bought one of the "charming cheapies" to get a feel for one and liked it. The tang however stunk. Maybe I'll see if I can get a custom "S" hilt made for the thing.

I like the history though.
 
I'm assuming that it is a high carbon steel that needs resharpinging often.
Click to expand...

How long do you think your killling spree will be?

The thing it was designed to eliminate is not a cereal box or overgrown bush.
 
Save your money, all the current production knives are unmitigated rubbish!!!
Go to www.nzknives.co.nz/ he make the best there is , well worth the money and wait. He will even customise somewhat. BTW I have no connection to this maker except as a consumer.
Phil
 
kel_aa said:
How long do you think your killling spree will be?

The thing it was designed to eliminate is not a cereal box or overgrown bush.
Click to expand...

The design is defintely not utilitarian. The tip will break at a harsh word IMO, this is going to be a display piece/occasional carry blade only.

And Pml108, the "blackened" model looks great! If I like a "real" one I might consider buying one. A WW2 model goes for around the same price however.
 
Is Wilkinson still making those in London?
They put one together for me 30 years ago, let us wait in their museum/showroom while it was being done. Didn't mind the wait at all. :D
 
OMG! ahgar. "...i don't remember cutting anything more than opening a couple of packages"???!
I am assuming you still have it around solely as some form of "collectable historical cutlery"?
Guess it's no mystery why there isn't much of a cutlery industry left in England.
As for the F/S design. It's not entirely cut out to be a slicer, as it is a suitable form of penetrator. It's diamond profile and slim & slender blade length doesn't go down well with pure cutting chores.
In fact, it strikes me strange that most F/S blades have a secondary bevel along the cutting edge. Such grinds would only make it less efficient in cutting as the angle becomes far to wide for anything requiring delicate slicing. Go on, just see how well an F/S can slice a sheet of paper for that matter. Betcha, it snags and might not even cut it.
Way I see it, the F/S requires a perfectly skilled individual to ground it properly into an effective tool of the trade. Which is something you would be more than luckly to find in F/S blades fashioned to shape by some young factoryhand.
 
Wilkinson have shut down their sword and knife facilities. I have one of their comemorative knives in a fitted box, quite nice but not sharpened and no sheath.
fixer27 I would like to see you buy a mint first pattern knife for that money, the last one I was offered looked like it had been lost at sea for 50 years and they still wanted silly money. There are some 3rd pattern knives at better prices, but they are much faked. The NZknives items are clearly marked to avoid this.Phil
 
I have a repro which I have never used ,I got it just as an example of a knife. It has been described as a " light duty " combat knife which is a very interesting oxymoron !! In actual use the tip would break off easily. Not a practical knife at all.
 
I am looking at a J.Nowill blade. Nowill.......:D

What kind of steel do they use? I like the "coke bottle" pattern but my goodness, for a starter knife they are a little pricey.
 
I got a Nowill F/S a couple years ago.Black coated,definitely a dagger.:eek:
Not sure of blade steel but will dig it out along with my knife collection journal and post back or edit it in. :)

Doug
 
If you mean they know what they are doing flogging cheap rubbish to people who don't know any better, then you are right on the money. I have three Nowells and they are junk, the Rodgers ones are only slightly better. if you must have a factory knife hunt down the Wilkinson version, they pop up on Ebay regularly. Otherwise see the web site in my first post.
 
PMel,
Very sorry to hear Wilkinson has closed up shop on their blades.
I still have the dagger, and the Army infantry officer's sword I brought back.
 
The original "tactical" knife. Originals go for top dollar. I'm not talking about the average WWII models, but the original designs which there are several variations, but certain ones sell for thousands. Took a look at a few at last year's JAG show in louisville. Every once in a while a nice reproduction rolls onto e-bay for a decent price.
 
Quiet Storm : Nice link. However I do wonder how many throws it would take before the tip of an F/S dagger gives way. I would sincerely advise against such throws on anything harder than a watermelon :D
If you're into historical aspects of the F/S there two sites which are a great reference point. :thumbup: :thumbup:
http://gotavapen.se/gota/artiklar/fs/fs_knife.htm
http://www.angelfire.com/art/enchanter/stiletto.html
 
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