Yard sale....WWII era (1944) U.S. mattock/pick with cover

D

Drum4fun

Joined
Mar 21, 2018
Messages
371
Found this today... gave $5.00. (see photos). May need to replace the
handle.

Pistol belt/L.B.E. attachment cover appears to be made by W.L. Dumas MFG CO..

Foundry info from web....
"The Diamond Calk Horseshoe Company was founded in 1908 by Otto Swanstrom, a blacksmith operating in Duluth, Minnesota. As the name suggests, the company was formed to make calks and horseshoes, and their initial product was a patented insertable calk for horseshoes. (A calk is a gripping bit on a horseshoe, added for better traction on ice or slippery surfaces.)
Diamond was very successful in their calk and horseshoe business, but as the tractor and automobile reduced the need for horses and horseshoes, the company turned its forging skills to the production of adjustable wrenches. "


Charles
https://imgur.com/a/Q7JRGTS
 
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Those are really handy! Great score! Rare to find them together.

I was able to find a NOS sheath for my 1944 Diamond Calk.
Pick%202.jpg


https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/mattock-lets-see-what-you-have.1518315/page-2#post-17803128
 
Square Peg... amazing survivor.... 75 years. Planning on using this in my truck
along with my Pulaski. I will keep the handle but find a replacement for use...
long deep cracks in this one. Your case definitely looks N.O.S..

First one I've seen in the wild. As always..I wish I knew it's story. :thumbsup:

Charles
 
Besides garden work, mattocks are handy camping. In fact I consider them a must. By camping I don't mean a campground in a park, rather some where out in the bush where the ideally the game is close by. There is always bushes and tree roots on that flat area where you want to set up the tent . When I go to dig that two week hole for the box-in-the-bush I always find roots. Great tools.
 
Super handy! I use mine primarily for 2 things, camping and doing habitat resoration plantings. I love it for the habitat restoration work. I hang in on the hammer loop of my Carharts. Good for digging the small holes needed for plantings and great for breaking up the roots of the potted start to be planted.
 
The crash axe is ww2 B17 bomber escape axe
The second machete ( LC14B) is Also ww2
The third (marked RP4 in the steel) ,ww2....

Which one is not ww2?
 
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1) Crash AXE : actually i must check the model number on the handle. The first 2 numbers indicates the production year.
2) Crash Axe RP4 (WW2) : the english model is called "Commando" : same as above : i check the 20.000 V on the handle..... Pretty sure it is a WW2.
 
By the way,
The argument of my father collection is "WW2 Weapons" (own about 45 rifles and about 40 guns : English, German, USSR, Japanese, Usa, Italian and Swiss).
This photo show the "military accessories" : it is a secondary argument, not
strictly controlled as weapons.
2392166302.jpg


1891064451.jpg
 
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Sorry for my bad english.... maybe i have not fully understood your observation:

I found this original report, written by B17 veteran :
https://www.ozatwar.com/ozcrashes/nt125.htm


"On the 27th of June 1942, the 93rd Bomb Squadron of the 19th Bomb Group launched a strike against the Japanese Air Depot at Kendari in the Celebes Islands. After departing for the target, our formation was attacked by several Zeros. The attacks coming at approximately dusk made it very difficult for the gunner to fire until after the fighters had opened fire. This running air battle lasted approximately 30 minutes. During this time, our aircraft was damaged. The extent was not completely known. The number 3 engine was shot out and the right aileron had been severely damaged. On our return to Port Darwin, we were unable to find our landing field because of a pending Japanese's air raid. Another engine on our aircraft failed and was feathered.

After several attempts to locate our landing field , another engine began to lose power and we crashed into the jungle. The aircraft hit on the nose and right wing and turned over on its back. I was thrown clear of the aircraft, sustaining only minor injury to my left arm. The aircraft started to burn and I did not see anyone exit the aircraft. I found the navigator pinned under the nose section and freed him and laid him under a bush. At this time, I saw the aircraft commander and co-pilot exiting from a hole near the roof of the right wing. These officers were injured and were assisted to a safe place. The crew members in the rear of the aircraft were trapped because the rear hatch could not be opened. I removed the escape axe from the nose, cut a hole in the rear of the aircraft and removed four men; one was dead and another seriously injured. The other two were not seriously injured but required hospitalisation. Shortly after the removal of the last crew member, the main wheel tires exploded and the incendiary bombs in the bomb bay were set off by heat."


So Boeing B17 has got an "Escape AXE". (shape and firm, it is not written).

--------------------------
Not related to what i written above, I also found that this kind of axe (see pics) is also made by other firms than Adler :

This particolar photo, show one of then :
g0c7veATurl83Cy7k-6QnA-smallw.jpg




Chillington tool company, in the UK. Patent number 515767. Now they were also made by a company named "ELWELL", also located in the UK. I suspect other companies also made them off a government bid system. They were designed to cut thru the aircraft aluminum skin, and could also insulate the user for up to 20,000 volts, if he hit electrical wires. Here are a couple more links for you to look at below:

http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/30028513


http://www.warrelics.eu/forum/aviation-history/raf-air-ministry-marked-escape-axe-11010-2/


http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/raf-aircraft-crash-escape-axe-ww11-279639492




Question :
Which model (name of firm, name of model) is the "Escape AXE" that is originally in B17 Bomber?
 
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