UBB.threads Forums Edged Weapons Army, Navy, and Luftwaffe Forum Ivory Grip WKC 2nd Luft - Opinions Please

Would like to get your opinions on this WKC dagger. Dagger blade is crisp and near mint condition with all the crossgrain. No nicks or rust and has the factory pointy tip. Thanks in advance.

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It looks like ivory, but in my opinion, it is one of those ivory grips Tom Johnson was selling awhile back.

Jeff, is this a dagger that you have or are considering?

i am sorry to say that in my opinion this is a reproduction grip. Myself & another member both have been caught with reproduction luft daggers in the past & this grip looks identical. Note that it is very wide & this shape is very distinctive to me.
I have never seen an original grip with the same characteristics. It looks to me as though I can see a feint trace of the mould line that has not quite been polished out.

The scabbard looks identical to the reproduction one but without better details of the scabbard bands & especially the throat I cannot be certain.

I am sorry to say that I would speculate that if the blade is original & I am correct about the scabbard that someone has been burned with this piece & contrived to make it look genuine with a replacement blade.

I should very much like to see the front of the crossguard in more detail, the detailing on the top as well because they appear remarkably similar to those I am referring to.

They are very convincing. i hope that i am wrong if you have acquired this dagger.

I have the dagger, but no worries returning it. The lower scabbard band has a repair that I see. Here is some more photos.

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Other side of top

Back of crossguard and maker's mark.

Pommel and grip close up.

Extreme close-up of grip texture

Jeff, I have been trying to find some images of the one I had to compare. I took some when I sold it (as a repro!) back in the summer but unfortunately I had computer problems & had to wipe my drive & it doesn`t look like they were backed up.

I have to say that I do not like what I am seeing & the crossguard looks almost identical except that the one you are showing has been very heavily cleaned removing the very black & shiney (-another give-away) burnishing that was present on the one that I had. The pronounced pimpling on the reverse of the crossguard & the detailing on the top of the arms of the crossguard are what I expected to see but softer due to that heavy cleaning.

Do you have a picture of the scabbard throat, if not then it should match the profile of the blade with angles rather than a more oval opening.

Perhaps someone else will chime in with an opinion. I may just be being over-cautious & I must say that the coulouring is very like that of ivory.

If you look in the for sales right now stirnpanzer is selling a WKC. If you look at picture 8 you will see clearly what I mean with regard to the rear of the crossguard. The differences are to be seen in the pimpling & the edging, particularly at the wing tips.

Thanks for taking the time to weigh in on this. Just curious, how much was the dagger worth as a repro?

Here is the scabbard throat.

Another angle.

Tough to call on that Jeff other than to say it looks a little rough & uneven. Mine was more oval as I stated before. Someone may have taken a file to it? I sold mine as being suitable to hang on a uniform for a collector not fussy about having the real thing & got $160 for it. It was mint & certainly looked the part.

You know; when you have been ripped off it does make you very wary & the last thing you want to see is that happening to another guy. my instincts tell me that this does not add up & it would not be for me.

I really hope that some other opinions will be forthcoming so that you can make a more balanced & informed decision.

regards

Vaughan

Definitely not ivory, but I don't think Its a repro. At worst a parts piece. Too many questions to consider purchasing though IMO.

Supposedly a way to tell genuine ivory is to hold a pin with a pair of pliers and then heat it red hot over a stove flame and then 'stick' it into the handle. That should be easy to do in the area covered by the ferrule. If it's ivory it will smell like burnt hair. If it dosen't smell that way it's NOT ivory.

Thanks for the opinions gents. Not sure I want to stick a pin in it if it's going back to the seller.

Dont like crossguard(FAT bird!) or Pommel. This is not the WKC pommel.(acorns sould be facing opposite directions) face same like this on the generics(I think WKC made some of the generics for sale to other firms,but they didnt use them on there own product). Scabbard is not WKC either. May be real or not,but not original to dagger.That is one fat grip too! springy wire wrap looks super new also(and uneven inconsistant twists under fine wire?). Scary all around! Kevin.

Thanks, you all confirmed and expanded my own suspicions that I had right after I opened the package. It's on it's way back to the seller.

this one pic shows what appears to be casting lines,if you hold a straight line against your monitor you will see they all line up.

Hey Landser,

I was the one that bought the repro off you.
I have`nt received it as yet, but my Mom is bringing it over to South Africa in January. If you want, I can take a couple of pics for your Archives, when I get it.

Cheers,
Dion