My grandads 1915 sword bayonet...

[GHarvey]

After losing touch for nearly 20 years I spent today with my Uncle who showed me his collection of service photographs (he was a hussar an in Daimlers Mkiis) and one pic attached to the album was of my great grandfather.

A pre WWI regular in the South Staffordshire Regiment he left the army before WWI but rturned to the colours on the outbreak of war but with the North Staffords

The pic ios him returning from the east (my uncle thinks he was fighting near Gallipoli but I thought that was an anzac action but apprently he did talk about shooting turks a now and then....) in the company of other North Staffords and also some scots soldiers in glengarrys. They appear to have just got off a troopship and are in fairly mixed order of dress, some guys in greatcoats, some in pith helmets etc etc

Regrettably I couldnt take a picture of this picture but I as chatting to m uncle about my love of militaria and he went off into the garage and returned with this bayonet and asked me to have it.

Its made in 1915, the frog is made in 1941 and obviously not the original for it (it's also weirdly got a brass popper on it) and needs a bit of a clean up!

So a few questions.

1. whats the best products to use to carefully clear up the rust and care for the leather

2. How would one go about trying to find out the service records for 'E A Harvey' of the North Staffordshire Regiment?

[Kiwi Ric]

Hello mate, great that you managed to catch up with your old Uncle, and a cracker to be given the bayonet

I myself would just give it a good coat of Renaissance Wax, this will tidy it up a little, but will stop anymore damage or oxygen to feed the rust.

In regards to the research question, I was always under the impression its hard to research your chaps over that way? Im sure someone with more info on this will help

Kind regards

-Ric

[GHarvey]

Hello mate, great that you managed to catch up with your old Uncle, and a cracker to be given the bayonet

I myself would just give it a good coat of Renaissance Wax, this will tidy it up a little, but will stop anymore damage or oxygen to feed the rust.

In regards to the research question, I was always under the impression its hard to research your chaps over that way? Im sure someone with more info on this will help

Kind regards

-Ric

Cheers

I'll look into getting some wax.

I've had some help on some other forums and I might be a bit closer to finding out more. I'll see if i can ask my uncle again soon for more info on my great grandad but my uncles in his 80s and not too well, i dont want to stress him.

edit: online research at the moment tends for me to think that whle the bayonet has be in my family for ages it's probably not my great grandads, my uncle didnt actually state it was - more presumption at the time given thats what we'd been talking about.

It looks most likely that it's a WWII RAF one from ww1 stocks.