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View Full Version : Trench Knife On a Budget?



Dr. Gonzo GED
08-23-2012, 06:26 PM
So, i'm in a bit of a pickle. I'm dead set on a knuckle knife for defensive carry. Yeah, yeah "legality", well I live in a free state and the knuckers' are no worse than a regular one in the eyes of the law. In these parts you could cary a samurai sword if you wanted. Long as it's single edged.

A couple problems I'm running into trying to find a decent trench knife.

The real thing is expensive. Actuall WWI and WWII knives don't seem to be available for less than $800. Custom knives tend to run in the same ballpark. http://www.edmfknives.com/ has GREAT deals comming in under $100 but they are custom and I'll have to wait till next year if I go through them.
http://www.militaryfightingknives.com/thumbs/f17.jpg
The fakes are cheap as hell. I don't know what forge in China cranks out crappy 440 stainless steel by the mega ton but I swear the Pakistanies have cornered the market on it and are hell bent on producing the shittiest pot metal wall hangers in history. Most of the new trench knives on the market are made form this crap. Thin, soft blades. Pot metal fittings. And to make matters worse, my style of choice, the 1918 MKI is only available in this sorry state. (It is also a double edged blade so I would need a modified version...)
http://www.swordsknivesanddaggers.com/assets/images/fm-490knifeandthrower.jpg
So doing a little research I found that many enterprising soldiers produced "theater knives" from 1918 MKI handles and varrious battle field pick up blades. Some of them were complete in feld fabrications made from enemy plane parts, or actual knuckle dusters plus whatever bayonet or knife blade was on hand.
http://www.militaryknives.bizland.com/2968.JPG

Sooooo, Since I already have a brass knucle duster, I'm thinking of combining it with a blade.

So this:
http://www.olamiccutlery.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/d/a/damascus-blade-blank-0477-1.jpg
Plus this:
http://img.coolbuy.in/imed/30011565_i2.jpg

Becomes something like this:
1676
1677
1678

This example simply ties the blade to the knucks. I'm thinking of actually cutting a channel into the duster to accomodate the blade tang and schemeing some way to fix it nice and tight. Also considering adding a small hilt and some kind of nasty butt cap / pommel for breaking things with. Maybe, if I'm feeling extra industrious I'll drill holes into the knucles for steel studs. Just because I'm a bad person like that. We'll see.

What say you chaps? A worthy undertaking?

deth502
08-23-2012, 07:48 PM
if going with the last option, imo, the best one. you can get what you want with no compromise. id get a small piece of plate steel and make my own handle, laminate it with 3 pieces.

alismith
08-23-2012, 09:56 PM
Neat idea, but won't the handle be a little bulky, wearing it on a belt? I'm thinking something like that is illegal in my state (the knuckles make it so), but not totally sure. I do know that a double-edged knife is legal here.

Dr. Gonzo GED
08-23-2012, 11:49 PM
if going with the last option, imo, the best one. you can get what you want with no compromise. id get a small piece of plate steel and make my own handle, laminate it with 3 pieces.

That's a good idea. I might have to. Having trouble finding those brass knucks.


Neat idea, but won't the handle be a little bulky, wearing it on a belt? I'm thinking something like that is illegal in my state (the knuckles make it so), but not totally sure. I do know that a double-edged knife is legal here.
Yeah, it could turn out to be really impractical. I was thinking of messing around with rigging something like this though:
http://www.smkw.com/large/knife/UC784_harness.jpg


Here's a cool picture featuring one of our boys brandishing the 1918 MKI:
http://www.warrelics.eu/forum/military_photos/edged-weapons/146543d1312785386t-1918-knuckle-knife-us_mark_one_trench_knife-soldier.jpg

An Al Warren custom:
http://www.warrenknives.com/kris%201a.jpg

Some "theater made" fighting knives:
http://cdn103.iofferphoto.com/img3/item/385/841/148/wwii-trench-knife-theater-knuckle-duster-knife-grouping-545e5.jpg

cevulirn
08-23-2012, 11:54 PM
http://www.knifekits.com is a good source for blades and supplies. I'd like to see what path you end up taking with this.

Also, for defense? Having individual finger holes might not be a good thing... could make it slower to bring to bear, and increase the chance of a finger getting caught if the blade becomes removed from your grasp. Perhaps something like an 1/8th thick steel bar could be cold formed into a hand guard, then drilled/tapped and threaded with spikes? http://www.knifekits.com/vcom/product_info.php?cPath=2_383&products_id=2193 might be a decent option for that.

Dr. Gonzo GED
08-24-2012, 12:14 AM
[http://www.knifekits.com/vcom/product_info.php?cPath=2_383&products_id=2193[/url] might be a decent option for that.
Nice! Thanks for the link. I'll be getting some suplies togeather and posting pictures of the build.

Schuetzenman
08-24-2012, 06:01 AM
Why bring a knife to a gun fight? Meaning why not just carry a handgun and skip the getting in close enough to be hit or stabbed yourself?

cevulirn
08-24-2012, 10:03 AM
Nice! Thanks for the link. I'll be getting some suplies togeather and posting pictures of the build.

They also have Kydex and Concealex to mould your own sheaths. Almost a necessity for what it looks like your after.

cevulirn
08-24-2012, 10:04 AM
Why bring a knife to a gun fight? Meaning why not just carry a handgun and skip the getting in close enough to be hit or stabbed yourself?

Why not carry both? Admittedly I carry a folding knife... but a blade has so many utility uses, where a gun should only come out if you need to shoot someone.

Dr. Gonzo GED
08-24-2012, 10:30 AM
Why bring a knife to a gun fight? Meaning why not just carry a handgun and skip the getting in close enough to be hit or stabbed yourself?
Getting a pistol and a CCW would come in @ $1000 at the end of the day and I can't afford that.

As for distance? Usually when someone want's to beef they get right up in your face to let you know. Legally we're not even supposed to pull the gun untill we're already under attack.

Also the knife has it's place. A gun makes a ton of noise drawing everybodies attention to you. It can only be pulled in the most dire of circumstances and it guarantees legal reprocussions just for bringing it into action. The trench knife on the other hand just makes you a very prickly pear to any someone that might have previously though you a mark. It also can be operated with a greater dergree of stealth than the handgun.

We have soccer hooligans, neo nazi skinheads that pick on everyone who isn't nazi, "anti" nazi skin heads that just pick on everybody, youth gangs who listen to too much rap music, thweakers and mook scumbags. Multiple opponents that like to rat pack people for no reason and they often come out of no where in public places where you don't have the time or opportunity to draw. The trench knife is pourpose built for that kind of party. Makes it harder to "wrassle" you, and god help the fool that attempts a dissarm.

The silence is a good atribute as well when having to jack someone on a city street. You can be gone before any bystanders have a good idea of what's happening. Use a gun, and it's a "life event" to everybody who witnesses it. You're burned in their mind for ever and the perp becomes a victim. I'd rather everybody just wonder "who stabbed this dude" tha be calling the police saying 'he shot that guy"!

The knife has it's palce where fists aren't enough and a gun is too much. The trench knife also give you the option of simply wrecking their face instead of stabbing.

That, and I'm bored man! I looks like a fun project.

Helen Keller
08-24-2012, 10:34 AM
make one of these.
http://www.joblo.com/images_arrownews/cobra2knife.jpg

Dr. Gonzo GED
08-24-2012, 10:46 AM
make one of these.
http://www.joblo.com/images_arrownews/cobra2knife.jpg
:lool:

http://www.weapons-universe.com/Brands/Master_Cutlery/Cobra_Knife.shtml

That and a Colt model 70 with white grips emblazoned with a cobra head. Perfect.

Helen Keller
08-24-2012, 10:48 AM
and blue jeans so tight folks can see the veins in your weiner.

Dr. Gonzo GED
08-24-2012, 11:27 AM
and blue jeans so tight folks can see the veins in your weiner.
"Every seven mintues in America some one green lights a terrible action film..."
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