| Pictures (click to enlarge) |
Type | Description | Blade Length |
Overall Length |
Muzzle |
Markings | |||
| in. | mm. | in. | mm. | in. | mm. | ||||
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No. 4 Spike Bayonet | Socket bayonet for use with the caliber .303 Lee-Enfield No. 4 rifle. These saw extensive use during World War II and into the 1950s, when the Lee-Enfield was superseded by the 7.62 NATO caliber FN-FAL assault rifle.
Go to the No.4 Spike Bayonets page.
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8.00 | 203 | 10.00 | 254 | .595 | 15.1 | |
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No. 5 Mk. I |
Knife bayonet for use on the .303 caliber Lee-Enfield No. 5 Mk. I rifle. The No. 5 Mk. I was also used with the 9 mm. Sterling L2 submachine gun.
This example was made by the Wilkinson Sword Co. Ltd., 53 Pall Mall, London. The scabbard is the early No. 5, without the thick brass throatpiece found on post-war scabbards. Unlike most bayonets, the wooden grip scales wrap completely around the tang. Early examples have the grip secured by a single screw and a press stud without the screw slot. These early examples are very scarce today. 316,122 No. 5 Mk. I bayonets were produced by the end of 1945. Wartime production was carried out by four manufacturers: Wilkinson Sword Co, London - 188,354; An unknown quantity were produced post-war at the Royal Ordinance Factory, Poole. No. 5 Mk. I bayonets were also commercially produced by Sterling Ltd. for sale with the 9 mm. Patchett machine carbine and at Rifle Factory Ishapore in India. Ishapore bayonets were made in small quantity. More recently, a large quantity of RFI-marked reproductions has surfaced. The vast majority of RFI-marked No. 5 Mk. I bayonets encountered today are reproductions. |
7.875 |
200 | 11.875 |
298 | .895 |
22.7 |
Ricasso (Left): "S294" over "W.S.C."
Ricasso (R. Side): Crown over "??" and "X" bending proof and broad arrow proofmark. Press Stud: broad arrow proofmark Wilkinson marked their No. 5 bayonets with the initials “W.S.C.” and/or their dispersal code “S294”. Viners marked theirs with “VNS” or their dispersal code “N79”. Radcliffe (about which very little is known) marked theirs with their dispersal code, “N187”. Elkington marked theirs with their dispersal code, “M78”. ROF, Poole marked theirs with a “P” inside a small circle. Sterling bayonets are marked on the blade with “Sterling” inside a rectangle. |
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No. 7 Mk. I/L | The No. 7 Mk. I/L was a very innovative and complex design, with a unique swiveling pommel. Part knife bayonet and part socket bayonet, the No. 7 Mk. I/L would mount to the Lee Enfield No. 4 rifle, the Mk. V Sten machine carbine, and the Sterling L2 submachine gun.
The No. 7 Mk. I/L (number seven, mark one, land service) was intended to address a number of desires: 1) Replace the No. 4 spike bayonet (that nobody liked); 2) Utilize the clip-point blade of the No. 5 Mk. I bayonet (that everybody liked); and, 3) Serve a dual role as a fighting knife. Despite all of it's ingenuity, the No. 7 Mk. I/L came to prove the old adage that a camel is a horse, as designed by committee. Although capable of mounting to the No. 4 rifle, these bayonets were not issued as such, only being used with the No. 4 rifle for ceremonial purposes. The grip scales are made of a resin impregnated cloth composite, Paxolin, and have deep finger grooves to allow use as a fighting knife. Examples are also found with black grips. 176,000 No. 7 Mk. I/L bayonets were produced. The design was perfected by the Wilkinson Sword Co., who produced 1,000 bayonets in 1944. Mass production was carried out by four manufacturers from 1945-1948: Birmingham Small Arms, Ltd. - 25,000; This example was produced by Elkington & Co. of Birmingham. Elkington & Co. are one of the most important names in English silver and certainly the most important in silver plate - they invented the electroplating process in the 1830s. |
7.875 | 200 | 12.25 | 311 | .885
.595 |
22.5
15.1 |
Ricasso: "No. 7 Mk. I/L" and broad arrow proofmark and "M-78"
Pommel: "M-78" and broad arrow proofmark. B.S.A. marked theirs with their dispersal code, "M47B". Elkington marked theirs with their dispersal code, “M78”. ROF, Poole marked theirs with a “P” inside a small circle. I haven't discovered ROF Newport's marking.
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No. 9 Mk. I | Socket bayonet for use with the .303 caliber Lee-Enfield No. 4 rifle. | 8.00 | 203 | 10.125 | 257 | .595 | 15.1 |
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No. 9 Mk. I | This example is unissued, coated with PX4 mineral oil (grease), in a bright green waxed "primary pack" paper wrapper. | n/a | n/a | n/a | Label:
Rifle.No 4. |
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No. 9 Mk. I | This example is unissued, sealed in PX15 hard wax coating. The paper wrapper is waxed on the inside, but is not brightly-colored like the previous example. This preservation method was used only briefly, during the 1980s, but proved too costly. | n/a | n/a | n/a | Label:
BI. CR 46A |
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L1A3 | Knife bayonet for use on the 7.62 NATO caliber L1A1 variant of the FN-FAL assault rifle.
This example was made in 1959 at the RSAF, Enfield. It was repacked in 1990 and was never subsequently issued. "9600257" is the NATO stores number for the L1A3 bayonet. The L1A3 introduced the recessed press stud, whereas, the L1A1 had a protruding press stud. Australia used a slight variation, designated L1A2, which has the protruding press stud.
The No. 5 scabbard is interesting in having the "broad arrow" mark on the frog stud and in having a squarish finial that is separate from the scabbard body. |
8.00 | 203 | 12.00 | 305 | .585 | 14.9 | Ricasso: broad arrow proofmark and superimposed "ED" followed by "59"
Right Grip: "L1A3 9600257 and superimposed "ED" Pommel (Left): broad arrow proofmark and "B" |
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L1A3 Short Fuller | This example was made in early 1967 at the RSAF Enfield.
In the mid-1960s, the L1A3 blade fuller was shortened, creating a very long ricasso. It was perceived that the fuller extending almost to the crosspiece weakened the blade. However, as shown below, the L1A4 was produced in the 1970s with the long fuller. Late L1A3 bayonets also introduced a simplified crosspiece, lacking the "waist" found on earlier examples. The L1A4 also used the simplified crosspiece. |
8.00 | 203 | 11.875 | 302 | .585 | 14.9 | Ricasso: superimposed "ED" followed by "66"
Right Grip: "L1A3 9600257 and superimposed "ED 67" Left Grip: "L1A3 9600257 and superimposed "ED 67" |
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L1A4 | This example was made in 1973 by Hopkinson Ltd., Trimils Works, Sheffield, Yorkshire.
The L1A4 differs from the L1A1, L1A2, and L1A3, by having the pommel secured to the tang by rivets. The pommel was brazed to the tang on earlier marks. The "H" inside a diamond is the Hopkinson Ltd. Maker's mark. "S.M." identifies the Hopkinson contract for L1A4's and "9600259" is the NATO stores number for the L1A4 bayonet.
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8.00 | 203 | 12.00 | 305 | .585 | 14.9 | Ricasso: "H" inside a diamond. And "73"
Right Grip: "L1.A.4 9600259 S.M." Pommel (Left): "R" inside a square Pommel (Right): "C" inside a square. |
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Scabbard No. 5 Mk. I | The No. 5 Mk. I scabbard was used with British knife bayonets for over 40 years, from the No. 5 Mk. I in 1944 through the L1A4 in the 1980s.
Like the No. 9 Mk. I bayonet above, the label lacks a NATO stores number, indicating packaging prior to 1951.
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n/a | n/a | n/a | Label:
Rifle. No 4 |
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British Belt Frogs | Examples of World War II and post-War British belt frogs are on the Bayonet Belt Frogs Pages. | n/a | n/a | na/ | ||||
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