Indian P1907

[sawdoc34]

Another Indian bayonet added to the Indian part of the collection, this 1 is dated 4 17 but has the false edge on the tip, altho my other full length Indian WW2 dated 07 has no false edge.

Which begs the question, was this common practice in WW1 or was the false edge a later modification?

[sawdoc34]

[4thGordons]

Later I think.

IIRC the false edge was a late WWII innovation. Skennerton and Richardson do not state so specifically but their description of it comes in the WWII section of their discussion of Ishapore, they also compare the practice to that in Australia and in Australia the change was approved in 1944

Chris

[sawdoc34]

Thanks Chris,

I had noticed that it seemed a regular practice with the 12" WW2 bayonets & had seen a few of the WW2 dated full length bayonets with the false edge but never a WW1 dated 07.

Thought it may have been done later but was just wondering if anyone else had came across it this early?

Cheers,

Aleck

[4thGordons]

Thanks Chris,

I had noticed that it seemed a regular practice with the 12" WW2 bayonets & had seen a few of the WW2 dated full length bayonets with the false edge but never a WW1 dated 07.

Thought it may have been done later but was just wondering if anyone else had came across it this early?

Cheers,

Aleck

Several of the shortened and "made short" Indian pattern blades were produced with a false edge as you say. There is a separate mark designation for those with a false edge and those without.

Full length Ishapore bayonets appear to be relatively uncommon as almost all of them seem to have been shortened in later Indian service.

Apparently there was a trial version of a full length P07 without a fuller in the blade made in India during WWI - the blade without a fuller also made a come-back in late WWII. I would suspect these full length fuller-less blades would be amongst the rarest WWI bayonets -- I do not know if any even exist.

Chris