Item Description
Original Item: Only One Available. This is an excellent condition example of the USN Mark 1 fighting knife, manufactured by the PAL Cutlery Company.
According to The Official Price Guide of Collector Knives by C Houston Price & Mark D Zaleysky, PAL was originally used as a trademark by the Utica Knife & Razor Company of Utica, NY from about 1924-1939. PAL marked knives of that era used blades imported from Germany, and the blades typically bore the word "Germany" as well. Another company using the name PAL was established in Chicago in 1934. This company was known as the Pal Blade Company of Chicago, and was started by Otto Kraus. In 1935 the two "PAL" companies merged into one, known simply as the PAL Blade Company, and opened a manufacturing facility in Plattsburg, NY. Around 1940 PAL purchased the cutlery division of the Remington Arms Company, including of their existing stock of completed knives and knife parts.
While PAL was originally a manufacturer of pocketknives, after the Remington acquisition they expanded their range of products to include a variety of fixed blade knives as well. PAL received a number of US government knife contracts during World War II and produced thousands of combat knives during the war years. Pal went out of business in 1953.The USN Mark 1 combat knife was produced by a variety of manufactures during World War II and was issued to Navy personnel by the thousands. It had a 5 ¼" long blade and was patterned after typical hunting and sideknives of the era. The subsequent Mark 2 knife had a longer 7" blade.
This particular example was manufactured by the PAL Cutlery Company and is clearly marked on one side of the blade: RH - PAL MADE IN USA - 35 and U.S.N MARK 1 on the other side. The knife is in good used condition, with the blade still showing a bit of its original grayish parkerized finish. The blade does show traces of past pitting, and has definitely been used and sharpened multiple times. The hilt is composed of multiple thin leather washers, and this example was field modified with a larger wooden pommel, making the knife easier to hold.
The scabbard is the earliest leather MK1 version which is nicely marked USN on the front side, and is in good used condition. The leather is solid, and the snap functional. It is also stamped on the back with the owner's name and initials: SHIPPEY, W.L. and W.L.S. in various places. We have not been able to identify the owner, so this definitely has some research potential.
Overall this is a great example of a service-worn PAL 35 USN Mark 1 combat knife with a nice named scabbard. No collection of World War II US military knives is complete without a Mark 1, and this is the perfect opportunity to acquire one with a great patina of age.
- This product is available for international shipping.
- Eligible for all payments - Visa, Mastercard, Discover, AMEX, Paypal & Sezzle
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