Hi, I am new to this forum. The members here have some really nice daggers, and I love reading about the history tied to some of the examples I�ve seen.
I don't have much history to tell about mine. I picked up this early SA dagger at a garage sale several months ago and that's about all I know about it's history. I found it in a box that looked like it hadn't been touched in at least 30 years if that helps at all.
I have spent some time online learning about my dagger and trying to pin down a value for it (so I can eventually sell it), but I have hit a bit of a roadblock. My scabbard has a throat fitting design that I have never seen in other online SA scabbard images. I'm wondering if anyone here possibly knows anything about why mine is different and what that means? From looking around this forum and from my research on other SA dagger websites I have been able to figure out the following about my dagger/scabbard:
1- Early style with solid nickel crossguards = pre RZM
2- "Wm" stamp on lower crossguard indicates it was made in Westmark
3- My finial ball is relatively undamaged which is good in terms of value. There is no indication it has been reshaped in any way.
4- I have not done anything to clean it, and all the patina appears to be correct for its� age, so if my scabbard throat is in fact a replacement part it must be from a very long time ago?
5- My pommel nut shows no tool marks, disrupted patina, etc.
6- I don�t see any identification marks on the scabbard connecting ring, strap, buckle, or clip.
7- The blade has a maker�s mark of a rectangle with an arrow inside it (pointing to the right) and then the name �F. Dick�. I haven�t been able to find much related to this maker mark other than it indicates an early manufacturing date.
8- The roundel on the handle has some green oxidation on it, but all of the enamel appears to still be there.
9- The acid etching on my blade remains crisp and easy to read.
10- There is a dent in the side of the scabbard but it appears to have been there a long time because the rust within the dent matches the rest of the scabbard�s patina.
11- The blade tip is not dented or bent.
12- The handle has a nice tight fit everywhere except for where it meets one side of the lower crossguard. There is a slight gap visible at that location as well as a small piece of the handle wood missing.
13- The eagle insignia appears well made with tightly carved handle wood around its� perimeter.
