The 1945? dated pieces have no sign of reworks, the DH are engraved, the rough finish is typical for this type of commerzial pieces, so as same pieces exist owned by other members here is the question why are the pieces 45 stamped? which could be a assembly numbers in reality, as is not in full date format? same as the grips looks correct there. Why they are DH and serialed on grips?
Andy,
I understand what you are saying, and as we already know period Solingen made bayonets have an external “45” marking which signifies the year they were manufactured.
I’m also not making any other judgements, but I would argue that they are most likely supposed to represent a (hidden from view) 1945 date of manufacture/reworking. With the other wood grips seen to date with some type of “SS” marking on them, we’ve seen four digit dates. But with these last two examples we see a matching serial number with a “DH” on one grip. But only the last two of the matching numbers on the opposite side. But also having a “45” marking which is noticeably larger. Without a matching “45” assembly number on the tang, what else could it be?
Best Regards, FP
