Any experts on older US Cutler's and who contracted cutlery for the ARMY ?

Hickory n steel

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I would like to try and find out who manufactured a large 16" or so US ARMY cooks knife.

A little backstory first.

my dad got the knife in the mid 80's as they were getting rid of carbon steel and wood handles for sanitary purposes...ect , and they told him to just take it home.

At some point it lost about about an inch or two at the tip and was just left in the countertop knife bucket where it sat and rusted for as long as I could remember.
Now when as a teenager I was getting a lot more interested in knives but more specifically tinkering and knife related projects, so my dad gave it to me to modify or repurpose.

There were no marks on the really dark wood handles, and I never thought to be careful with the rust removal at the potential of revealing an etch.
The knife no longer looks anything like it used to, but I saw the knife everyday for years and remember it well because i always thought it was cool and looked like something out of a slasher movie.

Call me crazy, but I would like to try and find out who manufactured it simply because I like to know who made my stuff.


Here's my best drawing of what it looked like, the exact blade shape isn't really the important part as it's the handle that I think would identify it.
The handle had very little taper to it, and the butt end was round with no hint of a hook or birds beak.
I have looked online, and it's doesn't look like the major brands.
It doesn't resemble a Lamson, LF&C, Ontario, Clyde, Dexter, or Russel.

If anyone recognizes the handle shape, or knows of any sort of database of who contracted cooks knives for the US military I'd sure appreciate any info I can get.
I figure if I can find a list of who contacted these knives I can just Google each name until I find a picture of a matching handle.
 
based on blade shape & hole placement.
Gustav Emil Ern
Harold Leanard & Co. but these are german based & not probable gov. contracts

Clyde Cutlery { Ohio }
e27345fd83e415e43ddd07bc0f4b0861.jpg


vintage Dexter Russel { forged bolster & holes look right }
4334293c-8129-41b3-ae34-65a36e407a2d.png
 
Thanks for the info :thumbsup:

The transition into the blade looks more correct on the Dexter, but the only example of an army contracted Dexter I found is very crisp in this area which mine was not.
This one also used pakkawood I assume because the scales we're very dark.

Btw the tang was not perfectly centered in relation to the blade and flare area, this leads me to speculate it was not of premium manufacture. But this type is forged and these are thicker than companies normally made , so maybe they just kind of messed this one up a little.


The pictures I have found are pointing me towards Clyde because the Russel handles we're too light.
I've only seen pictures of Dexter and Clyde contracted examples and no commercial knife handles that look right.
 
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