US M1917 Bayonet, Winchester 1 Pattern Scabbard
I picked up a nice example of the US M1917 Bayonet made by Winchester with a earlier 1st pattern scabbard. Upgraded the one in my collection.
The M1917 was made by two makers Remington and Winchester. The style and finish is very similar to the US production of the P13 bayonet. Production began in or around September 1917 with Winchester starting a bit earlier than Remington. This one has the clearing hole in the pommel, often incorrectly described as a oiler hole. The clearing hole was added very early in production by both companies. Some were even brought back to add the clearing hole later. Examples without a clearing hole are not common and I do not have an example to share. Productions numbers for Remington vary from approximately 1.5 million to over 2 million.
Winchester production was between 350,000 and 500,000. Additional info on more certain production numbers would add to this thread.
The scabbard was also produce by two companies. Granton & Knight and Jewell Belting Company. The 1st pattern scabbard, indicated by the leather tab with hanger attached, was replaced by the 2nd pattern scabbard, indicated by the hanger attached directly to the scabbard throat, less the leather tab. The reason for the change was the 1st pattern did not hold up well during use.
Additional information to this post is welcome. I posted information known to me but may not be complete. All thoughts and opinions are appreciated.
John
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