Outlandish prices!

It seems impossible to me that some greedy sellers are asking upwards of $300 - 400 for plain jane 3rd pattern knives. Even more incredible is some people are paying those prices. Now I expect the values of knives I bought 20 years ago to rise but seriously! I'd call it price gouging. Remember folks the combined manufacturer output of   WW-II 3rd pattern knives was nearly a quarter million. Most of those made since the war have ranged in quality from Wilkinson's excellent war-time models to the absolutely awful ones out of Pakistan and China. Some post war years (and into the Korean war era) saw the production of a few well made knives. But, even the last production out of Wilkinson Sword was very marginal, with non-traditional shaped handles (said to me made in China) and blades buffed out like tableware or letter openers.

Beware, because many sellers are describing their knives (3rd pattern) as Wilkinson commando knives when there is no justification. They could be made by one of a dozen makers of varying quality. If it doesn't say "Wilkinson", it most likely is NOT a Wilkinson. If it has a coarsely ground blade and thin, flimsy guard you can be sure it is not a Wilkinson. Personally I would prefer a raggedy second pattern dagger any day to a pristine 3rd pattern. Its all a matter of preference but just don't get taken by some unscrupulous dealer on the famous auction site and pay twice what a knife is worth. Then there are out-and-out fakes like this one. I bought it just to get it off the market.