Help with this knife

[3105ns]

Help please! I have had this knife for quite a few years, however just discovered that it is a KA-BAR. I have been looking for a match online, and have not found one. The blades are 5". I would also like to know how I can clean the bone and the blades themselves. Thank you!

[Gunsil]

The handles are stag horn, not bone and sadly, there is no way to improve their appearance. They are well worn and appear to have water damage, there is no way to reverse this or improve it. How you could own it for years and not know it was a KA-BAR is beyond me since it is well marked on the blade and dog head. The bail is not original to the knife. These were/are fantastic knives but many got used and abused like yours and yous is mid 1920s-late 1930s.

[CluelessNick]

Great old knife. I would clean it a little. sharpen and oil it up and enjoy it just as it is.

[3105ns]

sorry- I did not hit the respond button

[3105ns]

The handles are stag horn, not bone and sadly, there is no way to improve their appearance. They are well worn and appear to have water damage, there is no way to reverse this or improve it. How you could own it for years and not know it was a KA-BAR is beyond me since it is well marked on the blade and dog head. The bail is not original to the knife. These were/are fantastic knives but many got used and abused like yours and yous is mid 1920s-late 1930s.

Thank you sir. I am not a knife person, and had not paid much attention. It was from dads best friend, I kept it when he passed away, not because of the dog marking, but because it seemed to be an interesting looking knife. I kept it in a drawer without really looking at it. I needed to use it last night and finally saw the Union Cut Co and decided to start researching. Should I take the bail off?

[FRJ]

That's a very nice knife you have there, 3105ns.
If you can make use of the bail maybe you might want to keep it. It doesn't hinder the knife. No harm, no foul.
Those are very sturdy hunting/working knives.
If you can get it sharp it will serve you well should you decide to use it.
Welcome to the forum; if you have a continued interest in knives you can pick up a lot of information here.

[Mumbleypeg]

Welcome to AAPK. Very nice old knife, looks like it has a lot of useful life left. Sharpen it, put a drop of oil in the blade joints, it will thank you with many years of good service. If you don’t know how to sharpen it I don’t recommend trying it yourself. Pay someone who sharpens knives professionally to do it - the few bucks it costs will be well spent. Some info about cleaning knives can be found here viewtopic.php?f=37&t=54157

Ken