Unknown Mark on a Friend's Knife

[P Jones]

I have a friend I work with who showed me this when he found out that I like to forge blades. He said he had an old damascus blade from WWI or before, which struck me as odd because as far as I know modern pattern welds is more more recent trend. He thinks it might be an original damascus blade, but it's a bayonet and the pattern just doesn't look like wootz to me. We tried looking up the mark on the blade but couldn't find anything. Anyone have any ideas what this is? 

[Vern Wimmer]

I'd hazzard a guess that it is an Enfield bayonet madeat the Ishapore arsenal

What looks like a grain pattern is likely coarse grinding marks. If yo look closely at the area around the stamped marks you will see grinding marks at a right angle to the blade edge.

[Zeb Camper]

Its a late-war Japanese type 30 bayonet

[Vern Wimmer]

An Arisaka?  

2 minutes ago, Zeb Camper said:

Its a late-war Japanese type 30 bayonet

 

[Zeb Camper]

It was manufactured in 1945 by Toyota and was put out with the sub standard shorter model 99 rifle (but will still fit other 99s) these were rushed production (hence the sub-starndard fit and finish work). 

[Zeb Camper]

These are still somewhat valuable. You could expect to see $250 or more for it. I would do some looking to be sure. I would say the "pattern welds" are deep drawfile, or scraper marks etched via time and lack of care. Very cool piece!

[Zeb Camper]

I felt bad for not giving more information so here goes... During the latter part of the war, precious resources like steel and labor were scarce and they needed to produce weapons fast, cheap, and with as little resource as possible. So with the type 99 arisaka rifle (series 38 I think, but don't quote me), they shortened the barrel, left the upper wooden handguard off, left the front sight protecter off, and just left off any unnecessary parts (it may not have had and adjustable rear sight, but I only used to be a gun nut). And the same went for it's bayonet, crude profiling, no fuller, a flat guard, and it was just left rough. Some have doubed the late war rifle and bayonet the "last ditch" bayonet and rifle. It was manufactured in 45 by "Toyoda Automatic Loom Works" under Kokura Army Arsenal supervision. 

The scabbards are held together with string 

Edited February 19, 2018 by Zeb Camper

[Zeb Camper]

36 minutes ago, Vern Wimmer said:

An Arisaka?  

 

Sorry, yes! It was meant for the Arisaka type 99. (series 38 I think, not 100% on that) Incase someone isn't fully informed on the different models of Arisakas  (seems like I'm a tad rusty myself) look this up to double check me, before you go quoting anything!!!

[Vern Wimmer]

As I recall they also left off that funky dustcover that was rather iconic.

Funny think about the Arisaka...there was a rifle barrel maker, P.O. Ackley, who tested all kinds of bolt action rifles with heavy overloads and despite the Arisaka's over all crudeness, compared to a Springfield or Mauser 98, it tested out the strongest in several comparison trials.

[Zeb Camper]

Was he out to blow them up, or test longevity of the barrel?

[Vern Wimmer]

He was pressure testing the actions for custom builds. I saw a couple he did and had the chance to buy them but passed. As I remember one was a .257 Roberts.

[P Jones]

I didn't think it was any type of wootz or pattern weld, didn't look enough like either. Still though, that gives us something to pin it on or at least look a little more into. Thanks for the info.