Help with 20" U.S. 1906 bayonet

[FRJ]

A guy I know wanted to know more about his bayonet. I know nothing about them at all.
Hoping some one here can help my friend with information on his very nice bayonet and sheath.

Thanks for looking.

[zzyzzogeton]

That is a US M1905 bayonet for the 30-06 US M1903 rifle. It also fits the M1903A and the M1 Garand rifle.

The SA stands for the manufacturer - Springfield Armory. 64332 is the serial number. 1906 is the year of manufacture. The US and flaming bomb indicate US Army and the Ordnance Corps acceptance mark.

Not enough pics of the scabbard to tell if it is original or reproduction.

[FRJ]

Thank you very much, zzyzzogeton. My friend will appreciate this information as do I.
I assume close up photos of the scabbard with any marks would be helpful in determining the originality of the scabbard.

I hope to get back with more pictures today.

Thanks again!

[FRJ]

I got a picture of a mark on the scabbard.
The scabbard is very light. looks like it is made of fiberglass.
Has the bomb stamp.

[Dinadan]

I do not know much about bayonets but I doubt that sheath dates back to 1906. I would expect either leather or metal from that era. On the other hand, the stamp matches. Nice bayonet!

[FRJ]

Thank you, Mel.
The bomb stamp, I think, legitimizes the scabbard. We were wondering if the scabbard was original to the bayonet.
That it is made of fiberglass had us wondering. The 1906 date does seem early for that fiberglass.

[zzyzzogeton]

That is an M3 scabbard, which is correct for the bayonet....for WW2.

Original "period" scabbards for the SA made M1 bayonets were leather, with steel throats & chapes.

In 1939, in preparation for possible entry into the war that was starting up in Europe, the Army did an inventory and determined they had over 580K M1 bayonets on hand (plus an additional 2M M1917 bayonets). What they were short of was scabbards. Why? I don't know. I simply quoting what Carter Rilla, the late bayonet guru, said in his Bayonet Points Article #22.

My guess on scabbard quantity deficiencies would be that the original leather scabbards made during the the period 1905 - 1922 rotted or molded while in storage. Unlike European military organizations, the US did not even attempt to have matching serial numbers for their bayonets and their scabbards. The bayonets were stored in armories and taken care of by armorers. Scabbards were stored in boxes in warehouses and maintained by supply clerks. Guess who took care of stuff better?

This scabbard shortage (and probable storage damage) lead to the development of the fiberglass scabbard. They were developed and made by the Detroit Gasket Company. If you look at the OP's picture of the scabbard throat, you will see what appears to be, at least in cattle branding terminology, a "Lazy S" stamp. It is actually the stylized "DG" logo of the Detroit Gasket Company.

DGC also made M3 knife sheaths and M7 scabbards (for the M1905E1 cut-down/shortened M1 bayonets) of the same material. One of the differences between the DG made M1/M3 scabbards and the UMSC 1219C2 / USN-MK2 / USN-MK1 / M8 /M8A1 scabbards made by the Beckwith Corporation is that paint did not stick very well to the Detroit Gasket material and the paint jobs on them (DG scabbards) is frequently found to be chipping/peeling/missing because of it.

[FRJ]

This is such great information, zzyzzogeton.
My friend was greatfull for your comments on the bayonet and I know he will appreciate this information on his scabbard.
i appreciate it too as I like to pass this on to him with your kind expertise.
Thank you very much.