Question on Ontario Marine knife

[winchester73]

Is the Ontario Marine knife the old Marine knife made by Camillus? Didn't Ontario buy some of their patents? I like the parkerizing on it better than Kabar's epoxy powder coating(not that I don't like Kabars). Does anyoe know if the stacked leather handle is brown or black?

 

[Peter Parker]

The handle is black and I don't know about the other, but I suspect that Ontario made their Mark IIs.

 

[D R E]

Is the Ontario Marine knife the old Marine knife made by Camillus? Didn't Ontario buy some of their patents? I like the parkerizing on it better than Kabar's epoxy powder coating(not that I don't like Kabars). Does anyoe know if the stacked leather handle is brown or black?

Here is some info compiled by noted expert on the subject, Frank Trzaska:

A new contractor entered into the Knife, Combat, MIL-K-20277e world in 1980, Ontario Knife Company. Ontario won a bid to supply the knives to the government on a small contract to compete with Camillus as the sole provider. The government does not like to purchase from a sole provider if at all possible. Too many fingers to point in cost and quality analysis profiles. Ontario continued to provide the knives at a low cost, and for that matter still does to this day. Several updates to the specifications were done, MIL-K-20277f was established in 7/7/82, MIL-K-20277g on 2/19/88, and MIL-K-20277h on 9/1/93 to bring us up to date. Nothing major was changed in any of these revisions, some slight drawing issues, packaging and preservative updates to ensure the stock on the shelves met the most current of standards. The Ontario made knives are all black, they entered the arena well after the change for the early “Ox-Blood"? color had been superceded. At this date in time Ontario is the sole supplier to the United States government of the MIL-K-20277 knife.