Gary
Cunningham's
Bayonet Point's
February 2003
The M6 Bayonet Modified to fit the M1 Carbine
Over the past two columns, I have shown some of the M4 bayonets with
plastic grips that are commonly found. This one is really not an M4, although
it has been heavily modified to fit the M1 carbine. The basic bayonet is an
M6, which has been disassembled and then undergone several changes. One of the
two in my reference collection has an Imperial marked guard and the other a
Milpar, although the markings on both are barely readable due to the
modification removing most of the area in which the markings were applied.
Both blades are the thick Milpar version.
The top of the barrel ring on the guard has been cut and material removed.
The ends were apparently squeezed back together and welded, and the barrel
hole re-drilled to be round and of the proper diameter for the M1 carbine
barrel. The sides of the guard were slimmed down to approximate the width of
the M4 guard. Some of the rear of the blade material was removed so that the
guard could be moved forward about 5/16 inch and material was added behind the
guard to take up the space left when the guard was moved. The pommel had
several cuts made in the groove so it would fit onto the bayonet stud on the
carbine, and the pivoting catch had the rear section removed and longer
extensions welded onto it. Then the entire bayonet was reassembled and
Parkerized. The original M6 grips are used without apparent modification. Most
of the work shows that it was done by hand in a fairly rough fashion.
I have seen these for sale labeled as Korean modifications, but I doubt
that as the South Koreans made the M4 and did a workmanlike job. It is much
more likely that these were done somewhere that did not have a factory capable
of making the bayonets from scratch. They must also have had a need for the M4
bayonet, and at least a fair supply of M6 bayonets as these were made in some
quantity and to a pattern, not in a "jungle workshop" that modified
just a few. I have spoken with some dealers, and there seems to be a general
feeling that they came from either Cambodia or Thailand. Does anyone have any
solid information as to the origin of these modified bayonets?
Upper, standard M6 interior parts. Below, M6
modified to fit M1 carbine.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
Modified M6 bayonet shown fitted to an M1
Carbine.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
The M5, M5-1, and M5A1 Bayonets
The M5 bayonet was adopted in 1953 as a replacement for the M1 bayonet.
Some of the reasons given were its more compact size, lighter weight, use of
less strategic material in manufacture, and ease of production. It shares the
same general blade shape as the M4 and could use the M8A1 scabbard, which had
proven reasonably satisfactory in service.
The M5 is one of the few military issue bayonets that were patented. The
original application was made on December 11, 1952. This application was
separated and two patents were issued for this bayonet. The first, issued June
21, 1955 covered the method of holding the guard in position against the blade
shoulder and the use of the stud engaging the gas cylinder screw. The second,
issued December 27, 1955 covered the latching lever. These patents were issued
to Michael A. Mirando of Providence, Rhode Island who assigned them to the
Imperial Knife Company.
Patent drawing for the M5 bayonet.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
Within a fairly short time, complaints began to come in from the field that
the M5 was sometimes very difficult to remove from the rifle, especially if
wearing gloves. It was found that under many conditions it was too hard to
sufficiently depress the latching lever, and that on some rifles there was a
little fore-and-aft movement. Further development led to a modification of the
latching lever and the cuts in the tang for the placement of the coil lever
return spring. The spring angle was altered to change the direction of the
load to an angle from the rear from its previous vertical position, and the
hole in the lever was changed to an oval shape to allow some lateral movement
to tighten the lever against the bayonet stud when locked. These changes
caused the nomenclature to be changed from M5 to M5A1. I have not found the
record as to when the change officially occurred (although it apparently was
in the 1956 time period) - does anyone have that information? In the photo
below, note the more or less vertical backcut (the line between the true edge
at the bottom and the centerline of the blade) used on US contract M5 and M5A1
bayonets other than those made by J&D Tool Co which is discussed later in
this article.
Top, interior view of the M5 - Below,
internal view of the M5A1.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
Another change that apparently occurred fairly early (and I do not have the
date for this change either) was in the grip. For reasons still unknown, the
grips were made slightly thinner, and with checkering that rolls further up
toward the upper tang. These are fairly uncommon, so it appears that the
change was made early in production. The part numbers for the first style are
7266552 (right) and 7266553 (left). The part numbers for the second type are
7267652 (right) and 7267653 (left).
Top, early M5 grips - Bottom, later M5
grips.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
The M5 and M5A1 were manufactured by 5 contractors for the US military.
They were:
Why two of these companies used the nomenclature stamping of M5A1 and the
other two M5-1 is unknown to me. The official military nomenclature, based on
what limited documentation I have from that time period, was M5A1.
Some of these bayonets have appeared on the market that are most likely
aftermarket surplus - that is, made for the surplus market rather than on US
military contracts. During the period of production of the M5 and M5A1, US
contract production that was accepted by Ordnance inspectors was marked with
the Defense Acceptance Stamp (DAS) which was a very stylized eagle with three
stars over its head. This mark was often poorly stamped and may be hard to
see, but regular military production should have it on the lower face of the
guard. I would be suspicious of any bayonet that is found without this mark,
and would consider it commercial rather than military.
The hardest to find of the M5 series is the one made by Utica. In the
Springfield Research Newsletter, Frank Mallory reported that "In 1953,
Utica was just completing a contract for 75,000 M1 bayonets". The M5 that
Utica made is not marked with the DAS but with the older Ordnance Shell and
Flame mark (as used on the M4 bayonets of WW2) which leads me to believe that
the contract was very early. Whether the 75,000 mentioned were actually M1
bayonets or M5s is still a question, as I have seen neither one in original
packaging to determine a contract date.
Guard markings on M5 manufactured by Utica
Cutlery.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
Aerial and Imperial both made M5 and M5A1 bayonets, although Aerial used
the M5-1 mark and Imperial used M5A1. I believe those made by Aerial are all
US contract, but have seen a number of Imperial marked M5A1s that are almost
certainly aftermarket commercial production. They lack the DAS and the backcut
is long and sloping rather than the near 90-degree backcut that was standard.
Guard markings on M5s manufactured by Aerial
Cutlery and Imperial Knife. Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
I have seen (and so stated in my book) that the J&D Tool Company was
Jones and Dickinson Tool (I have also seen it as Jones and Dickson). However,
I have yet to find any confirmation of that. Does anyone know for sure?
J&D used a semicircular backcut that is very specific to their production.
The DAS on their production is small and often very lightly stamped, but I
believe the bulk of their production was on US contract.
M5A1 as manufactured by J&D Tool, note
the distinctive radius of the backcut. Click on thumbnail to view full size
photo.
Columbus Milpar (marked MILPAR COL on their M5 and M5A1 bayonet production)
sometimes used a blade that is unique to them, although not always. The taper
from the centerline to the edge is not as great, and the true edge has a very
short but rapid taper. This gives the blade a heavier look and feel.
Milpar produced the M5s, M6s, and M7s, and then sold off their machinery
and remaining parts inventory to a commercial surplus company. A reliable
source told me that it was Century Arms and some of their advertisements from
the 1980s seem to verify this. This company used up the parts in making a
hodgepodge of knives and bayonets. For some time they apparently produced
standard bayonets, lacking only the DAS mark.
As they ran short of some parts they made their own or combined them to
make "fantasy" items. One of the most common is the M5
"Knife" which used a M5 guard minus the stud, and new grips made
without the opening for the latch. These were sometimes sold in M8A1
scabbards, and at times in a leather scabbard marked M5. These have been
represented recently as PX sale knives from the Vietnam era, but I feel that
they are all commercial production from the 1970s and 80s.
Guard markings on M5s manufactured by J&D
Tool and Columbus Milpar.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
M5 commercial knife as made from leftover
Milpar stock and new grips. Note the long sloped backcut typical of many
aftermarket bayonet blades.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
There are a few M5 bayonets made in other countries, mostly Korea. These
seem mostly to have actually made for the Korean armed forces rather than for
sale, although they now appear regularly on the surplus market. I show two
representative specimens from my reference collection, but there are other
marking variations to be found. Most seem to carry the designation of K-M5A1
and another mark or letters, which may indicate the maker or the using
service.
Two Korean made M5A1 bayonets.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
Typical markings found on Korean made M5A1
bayonets.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
The next bayonet is an M5 manufactured for Kiffe of New York in Japan.
These were possibly made for sale to the military of some Central American or
Caribbean nation, as Kiffe did quite a bit of business in that area. It is
also possible that it was sold out of his store as a commercial item. It is
basically a standard M5, reasonably well made and with a slightly heavier and
stronger blade than the Kiffe/Japan M4 bayonet that is much more common.
M5 bayonet made by a Japanese maker for Kiffe
of New York City.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
As with most of the US bayonets from the M4 to the M7, the German firm of
Carl Eickhorn has made versions both for the military forces of other nations
and for commercial sale. The engraved marking on the blade indicates use by
the Haitian military. Note the odd colored blade typical of much of the older
Eickhorn production. M6 bayonets can also be found with Haitian marks similar
to this. Phillips head screws are used in the grips and the pommel and
internal parts are of a different design than that used by the US contractors.
Although the tang has a hole for the US style U shaped retaining bar, this
bayonet has small welds on each side of the guard to hold it into position
against the blade shoulder.
M5 bayonet made by Eickhorn for Haiti. Guard
marking is US M5A1.
Click on thumbnail to view full size photo.
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