My WWII Machette

H

Helleri

Joined
May 12, 2012
Messages
153
So yesterday I finally got some better pics of My Collins & Co. Legitimus Machete No. 128, and wanted to share it (I did post it in another thread on here earlier but felt it deserved it's own).
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So how do I know it's a Collins and Co? And beyond that how do I know that this is a WWII issue machete?
In 1942 The Legitimus No. 128 was adopted by the US Army as the M1939 Machete. You will notice that what is still visible of the hallmark shows an inverted US, a squished pentagon, what looks like two curved slits, and and a few other faint marks here and there...Here is a picture of a much better preserved marking then mine off one such M1939.

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As part of the adoption Collins & Co. dropped the "Made in USA" in favor of "US", inverted the marks 180°, and added the date. Fortunately, just enough of the markings on mine remain that in conjunction with the form, size, and construction of mine being exactly in-line with the legitimus No. 128, there is really nothing else that it could be... :D (And yes I am rather pleased with myself, because it was 6 months ago that I first got this blade as sheathless filthy mess in a pile of free stuff at a yard sale. I've cleaned it up, made a sheath for it, and spent 10's of hours digging on the internet to get to this proud point).
 
Yeah this thing is awesome. When a tree fell on my trailer recently. I cleared out all the thick of the branches before the chainsaw guys arrived so they could get to the big stuff easier (they probably could have gotten at it easy enough without my help but I just wanted to, lol). This thing went through up to 4 inch branches with a single swing. I cleared 20 feet deep of blackberry bush with it as well a few weeks before that. And had multiple little clearing jobs with it. That actually took a long time though, because I kept stopping to eat the berries...I gave myself a stomach ache. I like to set smaller wedges of wood on our splitting round to chop up starter wood with it. And that song it sings is a thing of beauty. I was already offered $120 and then $200 by two separate people for it. But it's already almost made me that much money in the time I've owned it. I ain't ever selling this thing though. I am attached to it.
 
Their understanding of blade harmonics and vibrational node points was really pretty incredible. Nothing handles quite like a Collins.
 
It's so sad when good companies go under. The free market is so fickle. It gives rise to those with a quality product. Then crushes them at the slightest sign of weakness on the business end of things. And it's downright depressing when good names become sullied over that sort of thing through the selling off of their carcasses (albeit a good chunk of Collins ended up with Stanley. And Stanley stuff ain't bad. But they are basically built off acquisitions). The worst thing is...what happens to that sort of genius? where does it go? Collins closed its doors in 66'. Are any of it's former employees still alive even? One thing I am certain of. Having owned one of their machetes for a while now...I have got to get me one of their axes (what made them famous). A Gransfors Bruks was top of my list for that. But using this machete has bumped that down on my "to collect" list.
 
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