Yesterday's Weapons Forums

My dad fought in the pacific, and brought this knife back. He always said it was a hari kari knife, but the more I look at it, it looks like the tip of a jap bayo and a wooden handle and sheath. The wood was all one piece, and the only peg I can see is the one holding the blade in place. Due to it being a bayo blade I started to think maybe it was just something someone made, or maybe it was made for a purpose.

_________________
Hunde, wallt ihr ewig leben?

Political Correctness is intellectual fascism
NRA life member
583rd ORD Co/59 ORD BDE
Handorf FRG 1988-1990

_________________
Hunde, wallt ihr ewig leben?

Political Correctness is intellectual fascism
NRA life member
583rd ORD Co/59 ORD BDE
Handorf FRG 1988-1990

so was your dad part of the invasion force ?
my dad was in the first group to land B29s there , and ive known a few marines over the year that helped take saipan ,

my father and mother both mentioned that they respected and honored those that took the island because they were aware of the losses prior to my father shipping out - but i doubt he really knew where he was going till well on his way and i think it was after he was on the island that he was told of the cost - i know he was flying with morgan in the honor flyover of the marine cemetary shortly after he arrived , so i very much doubt the real cost of taking the mariannas was fully known at home till after the airbases were occupied ,

BTW thats a neet momento , and i think its something to treasure , looks theater made and its very nicely crafted

_________________
Hunde, wallt ihr ewig leben?

Political Correctness is intellectual fascism
NRA life member
583rd ORD Co/59 ORD BDE
Handorf FRG 1988-1990

neet - we have a connection , he most likely was there when mine arrived , they were being strafed and bombed right on thru , it was a regular experience , im sorry to hear your father suffered from his wounds later in life but im sure there were many so i shouldnt be suprised ,

i may be wrong on the theater made observation , it could very well have been made on the home island i was kinda going with the bayo blade assumption as it does indeed look like that but nothing says it wasnt original manufacture rather than theater alteration ,

I was thinking theatre made too. I know some guys collect that stuff, I just wish I could take better pictures to show it in more detail

_________________
Hunde, wallt ihr ewig leben?

Political Correctness is intellectual fascism
NRA life member
583rd ORD Co/59 ORD BDE
Handorf FRG 1988-1990

My dad never talked about it, just the fun/humorous stuff. My uncle told me about it years after my dad died. But, then I can see why

_________________
Hunde, wallt ihr ewig leben?

Political Correctness is intellectual fascism
NRA life member
583rd ORD Co/59 ORD BDE
Handorf FRG 1988-1990

Your little tanto in the wood fittings was probably purpose made in the home island.Some of those were made for the occupying forces ,some were made for soldiers,by top smiths. and even signed... I cant tell anything about that ones actual blade (simple fittings dont always mean anything) tho it looks more of the souvenier type..the knives and swords arent my area. But its patterned after the knives used by samuri to commit seppuku, hari kari is the lower class ,"vulgar" word for the ritual suicide , seppuku and "hari-Kari" have basicly the same spelling in japanese,its just changed by an extra symbol..by the WWII era ,I think a lot of these little ones were a symbolic thing, and lots of them seem to have came home from the occupation.