M3 PAL Fighting Knife parts

[Busterman]

I have an U.S. M3 PAL 1943 marked blade that I am trying to find the leather washers, pommel and guard for restoration. Anyone know of a source for parts?
Thanks,
Don

[Barryeye]

I think your chances of finding original parts are remote unless you can find another “damaged” M3 as a donor. It is possible to make your own but it is very fiddly and it helps to have an original as a template.
If the blade and tang of your M3 are of a condition that warrants the investment I suggest that you purchase a good modern reproduction and take what you need. Camillus did or still do make a fair reproduction of the M3. As they were one of the original makers I suppose you could view their parts as original. The Camillus reproduction has the bonus of being blade marked so the guard is unmarked and correct for your blade marked PAL. Should you decide to cannibalise a Camillus reproduction you will be left with a decent blade that with a little imagination could be turned into a useful knife.
My first M3 was a blade marked UTICA. I was young and foolish and much to my shame used and abused it by using it as a throwing knife. Broke a ¼ inch off the tip and smashed off the cross guard.
I was lucky and came across a guard marked Imperial that had been abused, ground to a stiletto shape and was missing its pommel. A friend managed to get the pommel off my UTICA and slip the leather washers off the tang. Great care was taken to keep the removed washers in sequence and position. The washers were very dry and this was a good opportunity to renourish them. I put the Imperial cross guard on and replaced the washers and pommel. The friend who helped remove the pommel also replaced it and for reasons best known to himself polished the top and removed the flaming bomb and any indication that a tang penetrated it. I now have this unusual M3 that has no pommel markings but is blade stamped UTICA and cross guard stamped Imperial. A future collector’s puzzle.
Good luck with your restoration. These are fine knives to own and well worth the time and effort to restore them. Please keep us posted of your progress.
Barry

[Busterman]

Thanks for your reply. I have looked at various reproduction M3's and will probably go that way. I appreciate the advice.

[Johnny in Texas]

One other option would be make it a theater modified version. Brass and plexiglass or micarta.I will look through my M3's I had a blade marked Pal with a polished blade most markings gone.

[Barryeye]

On the subject of modified military knives. I like but have always been cautious of the providence of some “Theatre modified “knives. Whilst there is no doubt that many knives were modified in the field I suspect that a large number, possibly the majority, who knows, were modified after the war. Few soldiers would bother to replace a functioning handle. Should the handle become damaged or rot then they would have cause to replace it. I ask myself what are the chances of an M3 handle becoming damaged during 3 or 4 years of army issue, with only a fraction of that time spent in combat, compared with 65 years of post war ownership.
I have replaced dried out crumbling grips from an old Martini bayonet with wood. I will tell the next owner what I did but in time down the line it may well become a Theatre Modified bayonet. Buy the knife not the story. But do listen to the story and pass it on.

Barry

[Scott Wilson]

When I found this M3 the only handle material it had was duct tape and mason's twine. It was badly rusted as well. I went to the local cobbler and bought some sole leather to make the washers from. I cut them oversize to leave room for shapping. The new handle is obviously not authentic but I like the look, especially when I remember what it started as.
http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q230/isky_bucket/DSC00487.jpg

[Johnny in Texas]

Nice work !

[Barryeye]

Now that is one nice looking knife. Good job. Well done.

[Scott Wilson]

Thanks Guys. The stack of washers worked out pretty close to being tight with the pommel installed, but not quite. When I had everything ready I started putting on the washers with Gorilla Glue in between. The Gorilla Glue swells slightly as it cures and that made for a nice tight fit when the pommel was pinned on. The blade had been noticably sharpened in the past so I just trued up the edge, bead blasted and blued it. It is as sharp as a razor now.

[jimb]

I used sole leather on an old M4 that was missing the guard amd handle. I made a new guard frome 1/8 in. steel and cut the washers the same way with excess that could be "ground off". I contoured it using a belt sander. To make the handle tight, I filed down the shoulders if the shank 1/16th in. then put the M4 pommel back on and hammer peened the end. I drove the point into a thick hardwood block when peening the end. That proved to be the easiest way to hold the blade tight enough for peening without clamping the blade in a vise and ruining the finish.