MAKER:   Western

PATTERN:   L44-5 ½

OAL:   10”

BLADE LENGTH:   5-1/2”

GUARD:   Aluminum

HANDLE:   Bifurcated tang with stacked leather.

TANG STAMPS:   WESTERN/BOULDER, COLO./PAT. NO. 967479

SHEATH:   Leather factory sheath

CONDITION:   Excellent plus

DAMAGE:   Minor wear from normal use to both blade and sheath, (see pictures).

BLADE WEAR:   Appears to be less than 10%

MADE IN:   U.S.A.

ADDITIONAL INFO:   This knife is a bit of an enigma to me. The knife has no numbers stamped on it. It has a 5 ½ inch saber ground blade with the bifurcated leather ring handle. It appears to match up perfectly with the L44-5 ½ shown in the 1950 reprint of the Western catalog in Harvey Platts book “THE KNIFE MAKERS WHO WENT WEST”, however the L44-5 ½ should have 9 ¾ inch overall length. While this knife matches the picture and description in the catalog in every way, there is one difference; the overall length of this knife is 10 inches. It is ¼ inch longer than a L44-5 ½ should be. I have searched through Harvey’s book multiple times trying to find this knife but the L44-5 ½ is as close to this knife as I can find. I think this knife may have been and SFO with a little longer handle to meet someone’s specifications, perhaps a government order.

This is an excellent knife with very little where showing and a nice patina to the blade. There are some darker spots on the blade that are stains only; there is no damage to the steel. This would be an outstanding knife for anyone’s big-game hunting kit or collection

*By purchasing, the buyer confirms it is legal for them purchase and own this knife.

Item # 9894