Made in America!

What a find! When I got this knife, I was assuming it was just a cool little bird and trout knife. Apparently, I am not the only one who has been fooled. After a bit of research, it turns out that this was actually a Cold War Era USAF survival knife from the 1950s. This knife was the precurssor to the well known Jet Pilot Survival Knife made by Camillus and Ontario during the Vietnam Era. The following is pulled from another website:

"As part of that effort the Air Force in the early 1950s adopted a sheath knife for use in the E-1 Survival Kit. It was intended to be a tool, not a weapon, and weight was a major consideration. That knife was the Boker 155, a blade that is little known today among martial blade collectors.

The Boker had an overall length of 8 3/4", a 4 1/2" blade, a stacked leather handle, and aluminum guard and pommel. It was carried in a unique pouch or tube shaped leather sheath.

Both the knife and the sheath are free of any USAF or other military property markings. This has, no doubt, led to its anonymity among collectors. The left ricasso is simply marked "Boker U.S.A" and the right ricasso marked "155", the Boker model number.

Frank Trzaska relates how several knife models were evaluated for this role, including the famous Randall Model 14. All were rejected in favor of the little Boker. Some 300 of the Bokers were tested in the early 1950s at the USAF Survival School located at Stead AFB in Nevada.

Total production numbers for the Boker 155 USAF Survival Knife are unknown. Other survival knives came along later which are better known and were produced in far greater numbers, including the Pilot Survival Knife and the 6" and 5" versions of the Jet Pilot Knife. Today, the little Boker remains a rarely seen and even more rarely recognized US martial knife."

- Credit Charlie Flick, US Militaria Forum (Possibly sourced from Fitz Willies?)

This knife is in very nice condition. The handle has some slight wear, but the leather looks like it was well taken care of and not dried out at all. Nothing is loose or wobbly. The blade has some light patina and minor wear; I'd estimate 5-10%. The pommel has some knicks and marks as if someone used it as a striking tool (see pictures) The sheath is not original, I just happened to have one that looks surprisingly close to the original.

(Note: I didn't stab the knife into the post; it was gently wedged into a crack which was already there)

OAL: 8 3/4"

Blade: High Carbon, 4 1/2"

Handle: Stacked leather, aluminum pommel

If you collect military knives, this belongs in your collection!

**Note: I am new to knife collecting and selling. All descriptions are to the best of my knowledge and in an attempt to be as honest and forthright as possible in regards to knife condition. I have conducted hours upon hours of research on each individual knife that comes into my possession in an attempt to set a fair price. PLEASE feel free to contact me for more information on this or any other item in my store.

Semper Fi 

For Sale By: Dr. Shank-N-Stein

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