James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
1918 Trench Dagger Knife | World War I Army Replica Weapon | Brass Knuckle Guard
1 min read
This knife was developed just a little too late for WWI and never actually saw action during that particular conflict. The 1918 combat knife became the American military standard for decades after WWI — even to the early years of the Vietnam war. The 1918 WWI Trench Dagger recreated here embeds a 6-1/2-inch double edged high carbon stainless steel dagger blade in a solid cast brass handle. Obviously not an ordinary knife, the design features several interesting fighting perks.
The knuckle guard shows the pattern chosen by military hand to hand experts for knife and brass knuckle combat action and weapon retention. Even when the owner falls unconscious, the knife stays in the hand. Sharp points discourage grappling and disarming moves and add to blunt force damage. The spiked brass nut fixed to the end of the concealed steel tang doubles as a skull-crushing blunt instrument. The dagger styled blade of the 1918 knife was actually toned down a bit from the model really used by troops in WWI. The original trench knife was more spike than knife, with a three-sided blade that American soldiers found deadly in close combat but awkward for camp chores. Feedback from the troops prompted manufacturers to substitute a practical cutting blade.
Though the 1918 was eventually replaced by less cumbersome fighting knives like the Ka-Bar, some fighting experts still prefer this old style, lethal in so many instinctive ways. For civilian use it’s a bit heavy, and hunters or fishermen might find themselves doing the same modifications soldiers made in WWII — sawing off the guard first, then the knuckles, and eventually replacing the heavy brass handle with one that makes practical sense. Then you grab a Ka-Bar, first chance you get.
The 1918 WWI Trench Dagger is a piece of history. We have better, now, but this is where those better knives began.
James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
This knife was developed just a little too late for WWI and never actually saw action during that particular conflict. The 1918 combat knife became the American military standard for decades after WWI — even to the early years of the Vietnam war. The 1918 WWI Trench Dagger recreated here embeds a 6-1/2-inch double edged high carbon stainless steel dagger blade in a solid cast brass handle. Obviously not an ordinary knife, the design features several interesting fighting perks.
