My first ww II dagger

[Lt Simwil]

Hello there,

I have a ww II dagger. I don't know much about it. Maybe there is someone who kan tell me more about it. His history and if it is real. many thanks already.
Here are some pic's.......

grtz...... William

[Lassi]

Hi it is a navy dagger!
Please try to post smaller pictures
Cheers
Lassi

[Maarten]

De foto's zijn echt veel te wazig, probeer eens wat kleinere foto's te plaatsen probeer ze eens in 800x400 te plaatsen.
Dan kunnen ze je denk ik veel beter helpen hierzo

[Lt Simwil]

I have adjust the pictures. I hope the pictures are better now/ ik heb de foto's verkleind, hopelijk zijn ze nu beter te bekijken.

grtz.......William

[Skipper Greenwade]

It's a 2nd Model Navy dagger. From what I can see in the photos, it appears to be original, but has a dent or two in the scabbard and is missing the release button (that explains the gap in the crossguard)

On the plus side, it is complete with what looks to be a nice set of hangers

Hope that helps,
Skip

[steve h]

does this dagger have a blade?, i ask because in all the pics, the handle, pommel and scabbard look to lie at awkward angles.

[Lt Simwil]

does this dagger have a blade?, i ask because in all the pics, the handle, pommel and scabbard look to lie at awkward angles.

i can't show the blade because it's broken. I think it is broken after the war. It's a shame i know. I'm thinking of repairing the dagger. Which officier had this dagger (rank)? Could it be a dagger they use at a ceremony?

I'll take some new pictures of the broken part, and the knight symbol on the beginning of the blade!

grtz... William

[Lt Simwil]

Hello,

I have examind the dagger, there were lot's of rust on the broken part. On the broken part is an engraving of a knight's helmet with the letters "WKC". On the otherside of the broken part engraved an "8". Here are the other pictures of the dagger.






I hope this is enough to see it's a real ww II dagger.

Grtz... William

[Daggerob]

Hello William:

Welcome to the forum.
And, welcome to the wonderful world of WWII German edged weapons collecting.
You should be warned that this hobby is known to be addictive.

The knight symbol at the beginning of the blade is called the "Maker's Mark".
I believe that it will look something like the image that I have posted.

What you have is a naval officer's dress dagger.
All military personnel were required by regulation to bear arms when in uniform, at time of war.

These daggers were designed to allow officers a means by which to comply with this regulation while in their full dress uniform.
They were more elegant than a pistol, and less awkward than a sword.
An enlisted man in dress uniform would wear a dress bayonet.

Such a piece might have been worn by most any rank of naval officer.
He may have started the war as an ensign and ended the war as a captain.
He would probably keep the same weapon throughout his rise through the ranks.

[Daggerob]

It WAS a real WWII dagger.
I'm sorry to tell you this but now it is a collection of WWII dagger parts.

The blade is the "Heart" of any dagger.
That is what we collect, "Edged Weapons".
If the blade is bad then the dagger will never amount to very much.

You could replace the blade, but it will always be a "Parts Dagger".
Parts daggers have a much lower value to collectors than all original pieces.

There may be good news though.
Do those hangers have solid brass fittings, or are they brass plated aluminum?
If they are fitted with solid brass they're probably worth more than the dagger.

[Lt Simwil]

There may be good news though.
Do those hangers have solid brass fittings, or are they brass plated aluminum?
If they are fitted with solid brass they're probably worth more than the dagger.

Hello Robert,

The lion's heads on the hangers are solid brass, but the fittings are brass plated aluminium. Does that mean the fittings are newer then the ww II? I hope to find more daggers in the future! And yes it is very addictive.

And of course thanks for the information!

Grtz... William

[Daggerob]

Hello William:

You are quite welcome sir.

Aluminum was used during WWII.
Many Luftwaffe (Air Force) and even a few Heer (Army) daggers of the peroid were made with aluminum hilt fittings.

If all of the metal parts of your hangers are made of solid brass they would be Pre-WWII and therefore quite a collectors item in and of themselves.

Remember that many of the officers in the Kreigsmarine (Navy) came from the old Imperial Navy and they would have brought their old stuff with them.
They only had to change the pommel to convert their Imperial hilt to a Kreigsmarine.

Even if they are plated aluminum fittings (WWII peroid) they are still valuable.
But not as valuable as they would be if they were the early, all solid brass fittings (Pre-WWII peroid) construction type.

This is what an early set would look like.
Every piece of metal used in their construction, clips (except the spring), buckles and chain should be solid brass though and through.

Here is a link to a crash course in dagger basics....

http://www.lakesidetrader.com/sa.html

....that may help you in your journey along the rocky dagger road.

Post images of anything that you are considering here, and on GDC...

http://www.germandaggers.com/

....for us to review prior to purchace. This practice will save you much grief.
If the seller will not provide you with the necessary images, do not purchace the piece, no matter the price.

You will find that most TR collectors are a tight knit group who are more than happy to help newcomers into the hobby.

[Daggerob]

Full Set,Early Navy Hangers.

[Daggerob]

Early Navy Hangers, Buckle.

[Daggerob]

Early Navy Hangers, Clip.