Father's Knife

R

rlewis

Joined
Sep 2, 2002
Messages
2
I came into possession of the knife my father used while in the Navy during WW2. Pulling it out of its sheath, I noticed it had "USN" on one side, and "Camillus NY" on the other side of the blade. The handle is quite unusual. Can anyone tell me any more about it? I have a scan of it that I can email. Please either reply here or contact me at rlewis@inebraska.com

The Stats are as follows:

5" Blade Long
1.25" Blade Wide
4.76" Handle Long

Any help would be appreciated!
 
Thanks for the help. I've just emailed you the picture. Also, if anyone else would like to offer some help, I'd be more than willing to accept!

Thanks in advance!
 
I think Levines Guide to Knives said they were made from 1902 to pres. you already know it is vintage WWII. Which could make it a U.S.N. Mark 1 Utility Knife. Value is..$60, but certain ones are hard to find ( in excellent/ mint condition ), according to Levines Guide to Knives and Their Values 5th Edition. It was used to cut the lashings that were used in deploying the life rafts. A great story, a great knife..a great knife story, thanks.
What condition is it in. My dad's knife is a rusted-up Schrade - Walden...which makes it priceless, to me.
 
Wow, it turns out i have the exact same thing, but the "Camillus" marking was worn away, so i was left wondering. It's a great work knife.
 
The Mark 1 knife that was made by Camillus is a model #5683 that was made for the Navy Department. This knife has a 5" sabre ground blade and a leather handle. The early versions had a parkerized blade and the later knives had a glazed blade. Camillus production of the Mark 1 knife was 1942-3 135,000, 1944 135,481 and during 1945 195,000 were initially ordered but the contract was terminated at the end of WWII.
The first knives were issued with a leather sheath made by Braurer Bros. On September 13, 1944 the specifications were changed to a plastic sheath.

Tom Williams
Camillus Cutlery Co.
 
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