Found this today cleaning out a shed

[MarkV]

I had forgotten I got it when I was maybe 12 years old. I found it sitting in an old shed on our property when I was cleaning it out. It has a bit of rust that needs to be addressed but it looks interesting. Is the marking on the wood grip common?

[Stinkpotpete]

It was made by Lithgow, an Australian armory. I've seen these scales before, but I'm not real familiar with Aussie blades, so I'm not sure how common these were. All the ones I've seen have been loose, waiting to replace broken sclaes.

[sandgroper]

A nice 303 bayonet made in Lithgow N.S.W., they are quite common, I have one in my collection.

[aussie mick]

As stated a Nice original Lithgow manufactured Bayo.
The stamps on the blade are as follows;

The Broardarrow is above an early Lithgow Inspection Mark,
The two Stars with A are early Lithgow Proof Marks,
The X is a Bend test mark, proof.

The A in the Star above the Shield with 1907 I is a Early Lithgow manufacture mark, with pattern acknowledgement (1907)
The 3 22 is the Month and Year of Manufacture, ie- March 1922.

The Stamp on the grip is somewhat common but a good feature to have,i have also seen ones marked SLAZ for Slazenger,but i believe these are later replacement issued.

Look after it,its a beauty
Mick

[4md]

nice find,I havnt seen very many 1922 dated lithgow bayonets around lately. Also the A 95371 is the serial number of the rifle this bayonet was issued.
"A" prefix rifles were made between 1918 and the early 1920's,which would line up with the date of this bayo beautifully
Now all you need to do is find the rifle so you have a matching set.......1922 rifles are not that common either
regards Paul

[lithgow]

A rare bayo-not many made between the wars-clean it up though-rust is never 'attractive'-Lithgow in the state of NSW (New South Wales) is the primary arsenal in Australia, set up by Pratt and Whitney USA for the Commonwealth govt and opened in 1912 although it didn't start making rifles until 1914 just in time for the fun 'n games of WW1. Some 17,000 rifles were made in the 1921/22 and 1922/23 fiscal years (Australian fiscal years run July to June).

[davejb]

If your going to clean it please dont use anything harsh like wire wool or emery cloth, use some WD40 on a cloth, although i dont try to clean up items that have a rarity value as it removes the patina

[lithgow]

Would suggest 'Ballistol' spray and a rag-WD-40 is not good for the metal-a non stick scourer pad with the spray is also gentle enough if any rust puts up a fight.

[rbminis]

I would recommend carefully treating it with CLR and a q-tip. If you are unsure, find an old tool with rust on it and try it, you will be surprised. It does not affect the surface finish.
Ralph.