Two dress bayonets - Opinions sought

[all1knew]

Hello all,

Have a chance at these two and wanted to get some opinions on them first. I know nothing of daggers so I don't even know what to call these or how to search for others like them. Any information would be much appreciated. Thank you.

William Kramer

[all1knew]

2 - What does this say?

[all1knew]

3

[all1knew]

4

[all1knew]

5

[James N.]

Hi, All1knew!

You obviously at least know these are dress bayonets! ( NOT daggers! ) If you DON'T know, that also means, strictly speaking they're NOT government-issue items, but rather what're called "private purchase". They were worn only when off-duty for what the British call walking-out dress; if they're like the one I own, they're made correctly with functional catch releases and buttons, but won't even FIT on a rifle. These 2 are both the "short" variety - others are the length of issue combat bayonets. They were worn by members of all branches of the service who cared to buy one; that could apparently even include officers, though they're usually thought of as an enlisted item. The "short" ones like these are sometimes confusingly referred to as carbine length or NCO's/Officer's, but I really imagine they were available to whoever wanted a slightly shorter one. Why wear one at all? It was not only tradition but even regulation to always be under arms while in uniform; for common soldiers that meant wearing a bayonet - NOT armed with rifle, pistol, etc.

These 2 are unfortunately not in the best shape; the greatest problem is the excessive amount of silver plating that has separated from the base metal of the pommels and crossguards. That's a common problem of these, but worse like this if they've been kept in poor storage conditions. The damage to the paint on the scabbards is also pretty bad - remember these should've NEVER gotten near a battlefield or any kind of "active duty" and are in NO way a combat item. The typically narrow-waisted frogs are or were originally shiny black patent leather and correctly lack the retaining strap found on those for most combat bayonets; unfortunately that too is in pretty cracked and crazed condition. The blade for the one with the likely phony "stag" grips looks also to be in pretty bad condition, but it's hard to tell conclusively from your photo if it's been sharpened or otherwise abused. ( It looks as blurry and out-of-focus as most of the ones I take! )

Then is there anything GOOD about these? The ones with engraved or etched blades for some reason greatly excite a LOT of collectors! ( The inscription reads basically In memory of my service time. ) Its checkered grip panels don't appear to be broken or damaged as is often the case with these. The other is less-desirable, but the "staghorn" grips are less common than the checkered ones. In GOOD condition these would easily be $200 - $400 each - BUT... In this condition I don't think they're worth much if any over half that. Compare these with one on another thread running at this time also asking for opinions to see the difference in condition.

[jancz3rt]

Hmmm

These two pieces have their issues and the above post sums it all up well. I would recommend waiting for a better deal as the issues with both these overweight what you could gain from buying them, unless you could get them for a steal that is. The blades could be polished to some extent but the loss of plating on both pieces would scare me off by itself. For me the price I would buy these for would be 100 USD max. However, as I have mentioned, I would wait for pieces in a good condition instead.

JAN

[all1knew]

Hello again,

I didn't get them in fact but I want to thank you for your opinions as they may have saved me some hard-earned money.

William Kramer