The KA-BAR is a 12-inch fighting and utility Bowie knife first used by the United States Marine Corps in World War II. Bowie knife specifically refers to a style of knife popularized by Colonel James "Jim" Bowie and first made by James Black, although its common use refers World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including A typical KA-BAR knife has a 7" clip-point blade. A clip point is a style of Knife blade The back of the blade curves concavely or in a straight line down from the highest point It is made of 1095 carbon steel and features a leather-washer or synthetic handle made of Kraton (a substitute for rubber, non-slip grip). Kraton is the trade name given to a number of high performance Elastomers manufactured by Kraton Polymers, and used as synthetic replacements for Rubber
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History
The knife was originally designed as a hunting knife in 1898, and would have been considered unremarkable at that time. Hunting is the practice of pursuing Animals for Food, Recreation, or Trade. In 1942, soon after the United States' entry into World War II, American soldiers experienced the problematic nature of "US 1917/1918" stilettos and "Mark I" daggers that they were issued initially, and realizing the need for knives suited to trench warfare, the KA-BAR design was chosen from a catalog of hunting gear. Trench warfare is a form of warfare where both combatants have fortified positions and fighting lines are static The Marines bought a great many knives of myriad designs from a large number of suppliers during the war, but it was the KA-BAR that was most common and popular. It was chosen for continued purchase and issue after the war was over. The final shape was decided upon by the Marine Corps. The changes included a slightly longer blade for combat use, introduction of a small fuller to make the blade lighter, and the pinned pommel and stacked leather handle as standard. fuller is a rounded or beveled groove on the flat side of a blade such as a Sword, Knife, or Bayonet (shown In addition, the blade, guard, and pommel were all finished in a non-reflective matte black or grey phosphate finish instead of the brightly polished steel of the original.
Millions were made in the Second World War by KA-BAR, Ontario, and several other knife companies. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The knife is inexpensive, easy to replace, and adequate for most tasks. Ka-Bar Knives have been made by different companies including: Kabar, Camillus Cutlery, Case Knives, and Ontario Knife Company. The Camillus Cutlery Company was one of the oldest Knife manufacturers in the United States WR Case & Sons Cutlery Company is an American manufacturer of traditional pocketknives fixed blades/sporting knives limited edition commemoratives and collectibles Ontario Knife Company, also known as 'OKC' is an American manufacturer of knives and other edged tools The knife saw service even as a diving knife in the Second World War, though the model in use at the time disintegrated rapidly in salt water. Diving off a deck into the Great South Bay of Long Islandjpg|thumb|A man dives into the Great South Bay of Long Island. Seawater is Water from a Sea or Ocean. On average seawater in the world's oceans has a Salinity of about 3 The various forms of this knife are still very popular with hunters, fishermen, hikers and outdoorsmen. Hunting is the practice of pursuing Animals for Food, Recreation, or Trade. A fisherman or fisher is someone who gathers Fish, Shellfish, or other animals from a body of water The word 'hiking' is understood in all English-speaking countries but there are differences in usage
Manufacturing
The KA-BAR company was founded in 1897 as Tidioute Cutlery Company; following its financial collapse and take-over it was renamed the Union Cutlery Company. KA-BAR was initially a trademark but in 1952 the company renamed itself KA-BAR Cutlery Inc. The headquarters are currently located in Olean, New York. Olean (ˈoliˌæn is a City in Cattaraugus County, New York, United States. The Alcas Corporation, parent company of Cutco, acquired the company in 1996. Alcas Corporation is the parent company of Cutco, KA-BAR, and Vector Marketing. CUTCO is a Brand of cutlery and Kitchen accessories directly marketed to customers through in-home consultations with independent Sales representatives [1]
As to its name,
Soon after its introduction in the mid-1920's, the KA-BAR trademark became widely known and respected. There have been many versions of how the KA-BAR name came to be, but all evidence points to a letter received from a fur trapper. This particular fur trapper's testimonial turned out to be the most significant ever received by the company.
He wrote, in very rough English, that his gun had jammed and that he had therefore relied on his knife to kill a wounded bear that was attacking him. In thanking the company for their quality product the trapper described using his knife to kill the bear. All that was legible of his scrawled writing was "k a bar". The company was so honored by this testimonial that they adopted this phrase and used it as their trademark, KA-BAR. [2]
Service
Today, KA-BAR makes Army and Navy versions as well. The United States Army is a military organization whose primary mission is to "provide necessary forces and capabilities. They are virtually identical to the Marine version except for different initials at the bottom of the blade and different symbols on the sheath. Marines today often give the blades, guards and pommels of their knives a few coats of non-reflective matte black spray paint to reduce reflected light and give them a little more protection against salt-water corrosion. Its moderate carbon and low chromium steel mixture allows the blade to hold an edge very well. In combat, the knife has seen service opening cans, digging trenches, cutting wood and roots, and hand to hand combat. A tin can, also called a tin (especially in British English) or a can, is an air-tight container for the distribution or storage of A trench is a type of excavation or depression in the ground Trenches are generally defined by being deeper than they are wide (as opposed to a wider Gully or Ditch Wood is hard fibrous lignified structural tissue produced as secondary Xylem in the stems of Woody plants notably trees but also shrubs ROOT is an object-oriented program and library developed by CERN. Hand-to-hand combat (sometimes abbreviated as HTH or H2H is a generic term for Close quarters fighting, particularly when the outcome is potentially fatal as in Melee
References
- ^ KA-BAR History - A Timeline. KA-BAR Knives Inc.
- ^ How KA-BAR Got Its Name. KA-BAR Knives Inc.
Further reading
- Walker, Greg (2001). KA-BAR: The Next Generation Of The Ultimate Fighting Knife. Paladin Press (January 1, 2001). ISBN 1581601204.
External links
- The KA-BAR Official Web site
- Alcas Corporation website. (Parent corporation of KA-BAR)
- KA-BAR Knife USMC Combat Knife 1217, A Legend. Chestnut Ridge Outpost.
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