Original Item: Only One Available. This is an excellent condition Unissued U.S. M1942 bayonet for the M1 Garand Rifle, complete with the correct WWII Issue M3 fiberglass scabbard. The hilt of this example is still wrapped in its original oil-soaked cloth, meaning it is a truly-unissued piece! Technically, this bayonet is considered an M1905 bayonet by the U.S. Army, manufactured in 1942 with plastic ribbed grips. The M1 Garand rifle was designed to take the same blade bayonet as the M1903 Springfield rifle, so at the beginning of the war they were issued with bayonets originally made for those rifles. To keep up with Wartime production, new orders were placed for a version of the M1905 bayonet with plastic grips, and collectors use the designation M1942 for these bayonets, made from 1942 to 1943. Six civilian firms produced 1,540,578 M1905 bayonets from April 1942 to May 1943.

After this, the specification was changed to have a 10 inch blade, and many M1905 bayonets were shortened to this length. This bayonet however is still in the original configuration, which is rare to find on the market today.

The blade ricasso is marked by maker A. F. H. (American Fork & Hoe of Geneva, Ohio) above U.S. around the Ordnance flaming bomb. Below this is the manufacture date of 1942. The parkerized finish on the bayonet blade is still very well-retained. The bayonet still has the original factory edge, with almost no wear/nicks. The red grips present on this example are actually somewhat rare. The bayonet doesn't have the standard black plastic grips, instead they are made of Cellulose Acetate Butyrate, commonly called CAB. In use, it was found that this material was softened by the solvents used to remove grease in the field. As it had been found that there were sufficient supplies of the black Bakelite material, the use of CAB was discontinued in April 1943. The grips aren’t very visible due to the wrapping, but there is just enough visible that we could confirm they are CAB.

Original use of these grips was therefore restricted to the 16 inch blade M1905 bayonet. The red grips were almost exclusively used by American Fork and Hoe (AFH), although it is possible that some small amounts were used by other makers. They were supposed to be replaced when the bayonet went through rebuild or was shortened to M1 length, but this did not always happen.

The original M3 scabbard is marked U.S. on the steel throat inside of the "Flaming Bomb", and is in very good condition. The B N marking on the underside of the metal throat lip indicates manufacture by Beckwith Manufacturing, who produced a variety of thermoplastic impregnated cotton fabric scabbards during the war. The N is for New England Pressed Steel, who made the steel throats under contract with Beckwith. The throat of the scabbard is missing a good amount of the original finish, with a bit of past oxidation showing on the back. The scabbard body has no cracks or major chips, and the paint does show some wear.

An excellent condition, truly unissued 16” M1942 Garand bayonet with original scabbard by American Fork and Hoe! Ready to display or fit on your Garand Rifle.

Specifications:
Blade Length: 16"
Blade Style: Single Edged with Fuller
Overall length: 20 1/2“
Crossguard: 3 1/2”
Scabbard Length: 17"