Thanks for the video. I'm looking for a little more info on these knives. I have a 1945 dated SSP made "Burma Knife". Good condition, very sturdy. I was surprised to learn they used aluminum alloy for the scales rather than stainless steel. I would have thought they were reserving that aluminum for things like aircraft manufacture. You know a good source on the topic?

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SSP was Sheffield Steel Products, company was based in Devon, but manufacture was done in Sheffield at many smaller Cuttlers and stamped up as SSP. Burma knife has Stainless steel Scales, only the knife issued to Royal Navy has Aluminium scales, and stayed same size as the 1905 pattern right through to 1980’s. I have approx 180 different British Army, Navy and Air Force Clasp knives from 1890’s to 2010. Yes, a locking blade version came out in 1990’s and is still an issue item, I have a 2004 example.

I have a Harrison Fisher & Co 1945 Burma pattern with Stainless steel scales.

Mine is "Harrison Fisher & Co" 1945. It has stainless steel scales.

Very interesting indeed, thanks for the info!

I've got one

Glad you found it informative!

I''m glad you found it interesting! Hope you find time to ID the knives in your collection, nice to know this has been of use.

Very interesting, glad the video was informative.

Glad you found it informative.

Glad you found it interesting!

Italian had a copy of those from the 50's to the 90/2000's, before it had a simple folding knife with wood grips

Thank you. The one I have has a black plastic grip handle.

No worries!

Thank you!

Thanks very much for the information it's greatly appreciated!

I wouldn't be surprised. It's not very good as a screw driver and will soon mangle a screw if you're not careful.

@@RiflemanMoore= Indeed.I had to replace a few screws.

Glad this was of use! I believe not all were dated.

I have a f newton sheffield.tin opener and merlin spike. Knive. Brass classp. Looks old but strong.not sure year.?

Thank you, glad you enjoyed! Looking at diagrams of blade shapes it is correct to term the type on the post-1939 knives as a sheeps foot blade, not a drop point. The blade type on the earlier knives is more akin to a drop point. What you call the lanyard loop is referred to as a shackle in the knife specifications. "The Shackle to be made of copper wire, No. 11 gauge, same size and shape as that of the Standard Pattern."

@@RiflemanMooreI believe that the correct term for the blade shape on the WW1 6353/1905 pattern clasp knife is spear point. The correct term for the blade shape on the WW2 British clasp knife is sheep foot. There were a few specialist clasp knives that varied with spear point blades. Generally the sheep foot blade has continued in use ever since.

Using Britih Army nomenclature it's a shackle. From the official 1905 Army manufacturing specification; "the Shackle to be made of copper wire, No. 11 gauge".

Rifleman Moore Apologies, I stand corrected 😞(as regards British Army nomenclature, of course!😁).

Hi, of course! Email me at riflemanmoore@yahoo.com

You push the spike end of tin opener into and through the metal, using brute force or a stabbing action, does not fit on the edge, goes near the edge as you want to cut a good size opening, once you have pierced the top you lever up and down, with the lower part inside the can the shorter part acts as a lever on top of the can, it's crude, but very simple and not much to break, used this type of tin opener in my mums kitchen as a child that's all we had

Hi did you get an answer on ww1 knife without marlin spike as I have one too. Thanks in advance.

A useful item to keep, for sure.

Very nice!

Undoing knots

Glad you enjoyed. The commercially made example I have is devoid of dates and any military markings, I didn't realise some were dated.

Interesting, I wonder when general issue tailed off. I've heard from veterans up to the early 1980s having them so presumably at some point in the mid '80s.

I was issued a two piece in the Royal Marines in 2006. I think it was purely to give us an extra thing to clean in field inspections. I have fond memories of getting beasted because the instructor could hear grit on the joints, after we did a muddy river crossing the night before!

That sounds about right, your reasoning could well be on the money!

Ex liney here - 1999 to 2006 We weren't issued the knives in my time, but if the lads did have one, and had earned their line belt, the knife could safely hang from the brass clip on the belt in working dress. This was very unusual - Every other soldier in the army would wear a stable belt in working dress, but lineys would often be seen wearing a black leather belt - even on some parades. Some people resented the above, but the alternative (stable belt) was something that was basically maintenance free. Meanwhile, the line belt was leather with a brass buckle, and the leather had to be highly HIGHLY polished with the buckle polished with brasso to within an inch of its life. Same with the little leather loop & brass hook for the knife. The senior liney (usually a Cpl but sometimes the troop Sgt / SSgt) would polish their belt brown / cherry red. The rest of us polished ours black. The knife was expected to be immaculate. No dirt. No dust. No rust. We were never issued any kind of sharpening tool, nor were we trained to sharpen the knife. The only time sharpening was metioned was with regard to the bayonet, and we were warned that using a modified (sharpened) bayonet "COULD" be seen as some kind of war-crime. (I know - citation needed). The point was, we avoided modifying any of our gear. These knives appear to fall into a similar category as windproof (SAS) smocks - No one knows anyone that was formally issued one, and people seem to "acquire" them over time. My knife had the Marlin spike, which I used to strip braided shielding on cables.

@@digitalradiohacker Very informative comment, thank you! You mentioned earning the belt. Was this after completing the basic Dvr Liney trg, in my day at 8 Sigs in Catterick (red shoulder slide as a combat trade) and presumably at Harrogate for Juniors, or were there some further requirements to earn it?

Interesting variation and not one I've seen before.

Thanks!

I can send some pics if required

you use the Spike to work into rope knots to loosen them if they've worked tight

Many thanks for the kind words, I'm not aware of grinding down the blade to a flat eng being usual, I'm honestly not sure why someone would do that.

@@RiflemanMoore it was done a long dang time ago so it's at least not a new addition. But yeah, I've seen some images of similar pin.it/2T4FObQ just like this one. Near identical. I wonder if it's just heavy use. Also what would be the best way to make tool access easier? Mine's quite siezed and takes some serious work to unfold anything. I feel as though wd40 would be a poor choice

Very good price even then I would say.

Could you send a photo Albert? Always much better than a verbal description.

The handle is shiny silver with "Staybright" stamped along the side, the lanyard loop is brass, it says something (need my glasses) Sheffield 1940 on the base of the tin opener, no bottle opener, and it has a single large fold out blade, from the same side as the tin opener.

I also have a mint unissued 1945 dated jack knife, blade, tin opener and spike. Can't remember whether it has the bottle opener.

Would it be possible to drop me a photograph of the 1940 dated knife on Facebook? I have a feeling I know what it is but a photo will confirm it, it sounds like an Ibberson 'rolled back' knife. It's not a 'Burma knife' but an unusual early war deviation from the standard patterns, Ibberson was peculiar in having two of these, yours and another known colloquially as the 'canoe pattern' as the scales look like a Canadian canoe with a peak at each end, in contrast to the 'rolled back' the 'canoe pattern' included a marlin spike. As I say they are a deviation and something I will probably cover in a future video! My error in the video but the scales on the late war jungle knife are in fact aluminium alloy and not steel.

I think the Polish army made use of these, they were something of a utility tool, for anything you may need to cut, whittle, etc.

the ones with the spikes were designed to be used at sea with the Spike being used to loosen tight rope knots

The Belgian knives are nice indeed, good using pocket knives really.

A marlin spike is used primarily for splicing hawser laid ropes together, or creating intricate knots in rope, I've never known why the army needed them, but hey ho. Or why they're still being included today. Maybe someone knows.

Unpicking tight knots.

​@@Frodillicus1because the navy was issued the same knife

Possibly so, some simply weren't dated, it would more likely have been sold off by the military itself and then just sat in stored condition for all these years.

@@RiflemanMoore Hi I have an older large knife with diamond bone scales, brass lanyard, old style can opener, but no spike. Can this be dated. Thanks in advance . Best regards

Just to clarify. It is the large one with the original coarse scales, 1 blade, can opener, marlin spike. And copper lanyard ring.

Undoing knots in rope.

It's actual use was many and varied Undoing knots, undoing ratchet straps, punching holes in cans, bradawl, pushing pins out, helping line up pieces, hoof pick - Designed for and used are often very different, still have a couple of mine - still carried them (with and without marlin spike) long after buying a Gerber when serving.

As Chaz says the uses were very varied. I've interestingly seen information regarding the introduction of the knife with a spike stating that those cavalrymen issued them should no longer be issued hoof picks. It was practice in cavalry regiments to file down the point on the spike somewhat for service as a hoof pick.

The primary use of A marlin spike is for splicing ropes.

It's not uncommon to find knives in many of these patterns which are unmarked.

Keep looking, they are out there! As you say the Belgian ones used to be dirt cheap. I think they can still be had for around a fiver which isn't bad for a using knife, the blades are pretty good.

Very nice, as I say they were being made into the late 1930s.

As they're issue they're rather hard to find. Unless you get a knockoff, I didn't make that clear in the video. As you say it would be questioned if you were carrying one around but I think the blade length is still quite permissible if you were carrying it with good reason, I'd need to double check the legislation.