My First Commando Knife:
Appropriately, pictured in this first article on "standard" Second Pattern knives, is the first F~S knife I bought to begin my collection. Back in 1980 ninety dollars would buy such a wonderful knife, and ninety dollars would also buy a week’s groceries! That extravagant expenditure represented about six percent of my gross annual income! Did I say I was poor?

This knife is a fine example of a Second Pattern, B2. There are no other markings on this knife except the small “England” stamped on the guard, a customs’ requirement for its eventual importation into the US, and the “crow’s foot” or broad arrow acceptance stamp of the British War Dept. Once it was thought (due the their exceptional quality) that the B2 versions were produced by Wilkinson Sword Co. Now some say the B2 code indicates manufacture by BSA, or Birmingham Small Arms, or that it is only an individual inspector’s stamp. The man who sold it to me said that it had been last carried in the late 1960s by a British soldier during the “Troubles” in Northern Ireland. I have no way of proving or disproving his story, nor do I feel a need to, the knife speaks for itself. It is still a battle worthy knife today.

When originally issued, back in the 1940s, this knife would have been an “all-black” version, with blackened handle, guard and blued blade. Nearly all of the finish is worn off or polished away indicating that the knife did see considerable use. Whether that use was combat related, or not, we cannot presume to know. The blade has been honed to a keen edge, something you will not find on the majority of commando knives. This suggests to me a knife that was used by its owner, not simply carried. That use may have included mundane cutting chores, but the fact that the blade is not all scratched up indicates that the owner carefully and
lovingly sharpened it by hand. All of the finish is pretty well gone from the
finely checkered bass handle too. Again, this indicates a lot of handling and honest wear.

You have to look closely to see any remaining etching on the blade. The seller did not even notice it was a Wilkinson!

Col. Grabfield's knife:
Time and neglect took a heavy toll on this next blade. Only with very close scrutiny can the owners name be made out in the etched scroll. The F~S and Wilkinson logos are nearly gone as well. This knife belonged to a Col. G. P. Grabfield. "Named Knives" command a 50% premium, or more in some instances, but not when they are in this poor condition. If only there were a way to go back in time and prevent this damage from occuring.

Perhaps it was stored in a damp place, or put away wet. It might have even been lovingly oiled and stored away for too long without attention. For those of you new to the collecting field let this be a warning to constantly monitor your knives for corrosion. Be careful what you store them in and what protective products you use on the blades and sheaths. Some oils actually contain a lot of water.