M9 Bayonet and variations (original) (raw)

The M9 Bayonet

The current issue US bayonet for the M16 rifle although relatively new it already has a substantial number of variations both official and commercial. Take a look at http://www.m9bayonet.com/, which has a lot of information on the issue blades and their variations. For more of the trials and development models take a look at Homer Brett's book on Bayonets which shows many that are unlikely to ever be in most collections due to the very small number of them made. The information below is gleaned from a wide variety of sources, on-line, in print and through discussion on forums or with fellow collectors, any errors or omissions are mine. Many thanks for many on the M9 Forum for allowing me to use their information and pictures from their personal collections.

Military trials for a new bayonet for the M16 rifle to replace the M7 resulted in choosing the M9 that is the current (2009) issue bayonet for the US Army and Airforce, the Marines having their own bayonet. The trials produced multiple entries, including a modified version of the L3A1 bayonet in use by the UK for its SA80 rifle.

The winning design was that of Buck who took their 184 Buckmaster design of knife and militarized it by the addition of a muzzle ring and pommel catch for attachment to the rifle. The original Buckmaster had a heavy sawback design and two "spikes" that could be fixed to the crossguard, this latter feature was apparently due to discussions with Seal Teams and were to allow the knife to be used as an anchor for equipment. The new model the 188, had the modified cross guard, mounting points and a wire cutter design similar to that of the Soviet AK and UK SA80 bayonets, and a "sawback" along the top spine. The scabbard was given a quick release mechanism to allow its removal as the second part of the wire cutter.

The first few thousand Buck made M9 used a milled sawback, this was changed to a broached manufacturing technique fairly shortly after manufacture began

PRODUCTION ITEMS

Buck and Qual-A-Tec (the design company who designed the 184/188/M9) set up a separate company to handle production of the 184, this company was called Phrobis with the contracts for the M9 another company Phrobis III, Ltd was set up.

Note that it is almost impossible to tell an issue blade (in most cases) from a commercially produced one, they are made on the same presses, dies, molds etc. and have the same markings. It is possible to tell commercial ones in many cases as the markings are wrong/different, or they are in none issue colors - i.e. black, white, camo, orange etc. If it isn't Green it is not issue. But if it is green is still may not be.

PHROBIS Prototype XM9 the original trials bayonets used in the competition for the new bayonet
	All parts were marked to allow it to be tracked in the trials, the 29 on the ricasso is Phrobis's number in the trialThanks to Carlo for the pictures

BUCK Buck only marked knives are typically commercial, with the exception of Australian contract, Abu Dhabi Contract, Dutch Contract, two Japanese contracts and a USMC trials blade
	Australia bought the M9 to use on the Steyr Aug rifle, these were produced by Buck and had the war department arrow acceptance mark on the ricassoThanks to Lee Cousins for the top picture and Carlo for others
	In 1991, Buck made 5000 units for the US Marines these bayonets were used by the 2nd Marine Division for field trials. The bayonets are the Phrobis first generation style but have a Buck cutter plate on the scabbard. The blades are marked with M9-USMC and a plus (+) mark (Buck date code for 1991).
	Buck made 350 prototype M9 bayonets for the USMC in 1993. these are referred to as the "riveted Pommel" bayonets as half of were riveted while the other half had the tang drilled and threaded. These M9 bayonets were actually made in three distinctly different styles, two of which were submitted to the USMC for testing and of these knives most were destroyed during the testing. These were made of all stainless steel instead of a mix. The military wanted to buy the same bayonets for all services and the Marine version was discontinued.The pictures at right are of what is known as the full threaded tang variation (with thanks to Carlo for the use of his pictures)
	Holland bought a consignment of M16's from Diemarco in Canada, these were supplied with Buck made M9 bayonets, all the evidence is that these were standard 1994 stamped Buck knives, it appears that he Dutch then marked the right ricasso with a serial number prefixed with KLIn 1998 the Dutch went back to Diemarco for additional bayonets and scabbards, Buck had stopped making the bayonet so Diemarco went to LanCay. LanCay provided bayonets and scabbard components to Diemarco which were made up to match the original Buck supplied scabbards for the contract, all of these were hand altered to include a sharpening stone and the web pouch on the front.Thanks to Grardus Luppensfor the pictures of his Dutch M9 and Carlo for his Buck and LanCay Scabbards
No example	Abu Dhabi bought 1500 bayonets but I have found no further information on these
No example	Japan had two contracts for M9's these have modifications to the latch plates and a smaller run had modifications to the quillion.

The first M9's were produced by Buck for Phrobis III, and some of the more collectable M9's are these early production items, especially the Chevron marked items. There are several changes in blade markings, and manufacturing techniques that make the collecting field very large. I have a few of the variations, and would appreciate pictures of those missing from my collection. I shall continue to try and fill in the holes with my own additions but some are not that easy to come by.
1st generation Bayonets have a distinctive flat top to the M's in the M9 and carry the Buck date code of a Chevron after the USA only 1200 made
	One of the first M9's made, has the chevron mark date stamp put on by Buck, this was stopped after only 1200 were made. The last 166 of these were not issued but stamped on the reverse face sequentially, odd numbers were kept by Buck and supplied to members of the Buck Collectors, the others were given to Phrobis who gave them as presentation pieces or mounted them on barrels mounted on plaques and sold to the public. The other 1000+ were issued and are very collectable, although many are in used condition.Note Buck marked blades have the same chevron mark if made in 1987 but these are not the "Chevron" ,marked M9's as they are commercial 188's not M9's Thanks to Lee Cousins for the picture (cammo background) and Carlo for Ricasso pictures
2nd generation Bayonets still have the distinctive flat top to the M's in the M9 but no longer carry the Buck date code of a Chevron after the USA
	The original production M9's made by Buck had what is know as "The Crazy M", the top of the M shows the none standard original profile stamp which was replaced after only a short run, it also has a "lazy"9 with a curved lower portion to the 9 compared to later stamp fonts. This is the same stamp as on the chevron pieces but no longer has Bucks date code stamp.
3rd generation Bayonets have lost the distinctive flat top to the M's in the M9 and carry 3 lines of text, M9, Phrobis III, U.S.A.
	PHROBIS III three line issue blade 1992
4th generation Bayonets carry 4 lines of text, M9, Phrobis III, U.S.A., Pat. Pend. The USA is now in a narrower font than that used originally
	Phrobis M9 this has the 4 line Part Pending ricasso marking identifying it as a 4th generation bayonet. I am not sure of the significance of the serial number on the blade, but assume it is an issue mark as this is a "used" blade. I have not seen other examples similarly marked

After the initial contracts for the M9, the production of additional bayonets was put out to bid with the lowest price winning. Buck/Phrobis lost the contact to LANCAY, who took over the productionThe first contract for 20,500 M9 bayonets on 3/31/92 for the US Army with an additional 21,500 bayonets added during the contract. In an effort to quickly supply the Army with new M9 bayonets after Desert Storm, Lan-Cay contracted General Cutlery to provide near complete blades for assembly at the Lan-Cay facility
General Cutlery produced blade
	All General Cutlery produced blades are easily identified as they are stamped on the ricasso "M9 / LANCAY / USA" in block letters of equal size. This form of marking was used only on the General Cutlery made blades and will not be used again. There were a number of these made in 2002 from parts left over from the original contract, these will have later model scabbards with 1994-5 dates not 1992 ones, and usually have a marked pommel rather than an unmarked of the original production. They may also have flawed blades made from seconds rather than the quality of the original contract. The quarterbore forum has more detail Thanks to Carlo for his picture of a 2002 model)
When LanCay started producing their own blades the letter format changed to one in which the L and the C were larger than the rest of the text.
	Early production LanCay M9LanCay mark, other variations of the marking exist LANCAY, LAN-CAY etc. these help identify period of manufactureLater serrations have rounded base to serrationEarly scabbards had built in sharpening stoneScabbard shows large differences from later ones, with a double set of tie down areas, and the lack of a textured grip area when using as wire cutterThis blade came with original 1994 issue storage bag.
Lan-Cay Shallow Fuller (note all letters in LanCay should be in capitals just two sizes)During the early production run a change was made to the specification to allow a half depth fuller to be used on the bayonets, only 350 blades were made with this shallow fuller before the fuller was dropped from the design altogether. Apparently the fuller had been blamed for blade breakages that were actually a heat treatment problem. During this time the blades went from Forged to Laser cut.
No example	Original Fuller was 0.12" deep, a revision to a 0.06" �0.06" was allowed which then became 0.
Lan-Cay Saw back design changeDuring the first contract a change was made to the method of producing the saw teeth on the spine, these changed from sharp to rounded teeth
No example	Examples of tooth profile difference
Lan-Cay Color changeThe original blades were in the white with slight differences between manufacturers due to differences in shot type, after the first contract the blade finish changed to a black oxide one
No example	blade color difference
A further change in text added a hyphen between the Lan and the Cay.
see under commercial blades

COMMEMORATIVE ITEMS
	One of 75 M9 bayonets made to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Bayonet Collectors Network (BCN). Made by original manufacturer with a custom cut logoBayonet uses the latest ergonomic grips and not the early circular hilt of the first M9'sCustom stitched pouch with BCN nameBCN log and Xth anniversary markMade by Lan-Cay Even comes with notes added to issue M9 bayonets
	Phrobis International USMC commemorativeMany thanks to Carlo for pictures.
	Desert Storm Commemorative using Marto made bladethanks to Lee Cousins for pictures
	M9 collectors model with etchings showing the 4 units attached to SOCOM in Iraq.
	M9 commemorative made for Iraqi Freedom Number 430 of 500 made Ontario Knife Company initials in the hilt Presidential seal on the opposite grip Standard Military marks on ricasso With additional blade etching "sand" coloured scabbard matches hilt Engraved scabbard Ontario Knife company logo on the throat of the scabbard Frog is dissimilar to other M9's with a long strap, although it has the Bianchi catch
	Franklin Mint commemorative uses a Spanish Marto made bayonet. Flags are the countries on the allied side in the Kuwait war. For copy write reasons they had to drop the SPAIN off from under the M9 mark

Buck manufactured M9 bayonets for the commercial market, While Phrobis served the Military one. The commercial bayonets were identical to the military bayonet with one obvious difference; the left ricasso of the commercial M9 bayonet has the same markings as the military model but the right ricasso had Buck�s name and model number. When the military contract ended in 1989. having broken ties with Phrobis, Buck moved their company name and model designation to the left ricasso and the right ricasso was left blank.

Phrobis made commercial bayonets, particularly the M9A1 which were commercially sold when an attempt to produce an improved M9 for the military failed, many of these becoming commemorative items.

Taiwan has set up a thriving business making M9 look alikes, and there are a multitude of variations. Medrano was the first of these, but now S&W market a range of M9 look alikes under their name, as well as several other large commercial companies.

One of the biggest manufacturers of commercials is LanCay themselves, who produce a huge range of colors, and etchings and added styles. These are identical to the issue items but are not official.

Buck and Phrobis split and Buck kept the rights to the M9 in the USA. The Phrobis people set up a new company Phrobis International and got Marto in Spain to manufacture blades for them. These bayonets are marked on the left ricasso:M9PHROBIS INT'LSpainThese were made for commercial sales in Europe. Phrobis made commercial bayonets, particularly the M9A1 which were commercially sold when an attempt to produce an improved M9 for the military failed, many of these becoming commemorative items.
	M9 made by Marto of Spain for commercial sale in Europethanks to Lee Cousins for pictures
	M9A1 an improved M9 design by Phrobis that was not accepted by military, produced by Marto in Spain many of these became commemorative bayonets thanks to Lee Cousins for pictures
	M9A1 this version has a high wire cutter stop and tan colour and shows Spain mark as blades were made by Marto thanks to Carlo for pictures

Qantas Products Limited of Taipei Taiwan began to produce copies of the M9 using Russian and Japanese steels. Pedro Medrano imported 8 versions of the M9 which were marked with his name on the ricasso.The variations (in OD or black) are:Standard M9M9 with Buck style saw back bladeM9 with Bowie point M9 with double edged blade (thanks to P Medrano for information)
	Comparison of Medrano bayonets with Phrobis and LanCay versions, there are slight differences in blade profile and the pommel locking screws (thanks to P Medrano for information and pictures)
	M9 with Bowie point by Medrano
	Standard M9 profile blade sold by MEDRANO
	Buck 184 profile Sawback versionBianchi style belt clip, and front mounted ammo pouch are all from early M9 production
No example at moment	Double edged blade version

Lan-CayBy far the largest producer of commercial M9's. They produce in multiple colors, and produce several different blade inscriptions. All of these are made on the same tooling and with the same markings as the military issue items, the one point to remember is that if it isn't OD it isn't military (but even OD isn't a guarantee it is actually an issue item). Below are just a few of the variations available, and as the scabbards and hilts are interchangeable any color/blade marking combination is possibleNote that many of these blades are sold with the impression that they are trials, special forces etc. this is all a sales pitch or a lack of knowledge on the part of the seller. Color schemes so far known OrangeBlueTanClearWhiteGrey Forest camouflageBlackODUrban Camouflage (grey and white)Grey and white splinter Blade Etchings 101st Airborne10th Mountain82nd AirborneSpecial Forces
	Another LanCay color variation Tan
	Sold as an M9 for rescue services, the orange color being to make it easy to find in low visibility or smoky condition.
	The white variation is supposedly for winter troops, the blade M9 mark is the same on both the white and orange versions
	This is often sold as the blade used in the marine trials which eventually ended with the USMC using the OKCS bayonet This is the correct style Molle II scabbard as used on the trials bayonet, different from the more normal Bianchi mounted scabbardsWebbing includes a fabric pouch for the wire cutterand a crossguard strap to aid retentionresearch has indicated that the blade markings are incorrect, and there should be USMC and the anchor marks on the ricasso and not USA
	Commercial by Lan Cay without sawback. There was a trials version made like this but the blades were marked M9-FT
	Commercial by Lan Cay with grey and white splinter camo finish
	Commercial by Lan Cay with Airborne logo on the ricasso, made for collectors, these are not made specifically for the units they are marked for, no matter what people say.
	Another airborne commercial
	Commercial bayonets can be found in a multitude of colors, like this forest cammo variation. All use standard LanCay M9 blades, molds and scabbards so all parts are completely interchangeable and any version can be pieced together
	Grey splinter camouflage also called tiger stripe by some
	101st airborne marked
	Plain grey

A version of the M9 with a drilled blade, and with lighter materials used in crossguard and tang. often sold as a special forces version, this is another commercial bayonet at moment and has not been military issue
	The differences make a significant difference to the overall weight of the bayonet

Made by LAN -CAY (identified by Bill Porter)

	M9 Utility, another blade for commercial sale before the military issues became availableUS marking on left ricassoM9 Utility on right ricassoSharpening stone was standard on early bayonets Original round hiltbelt clip

AIRSOFTFor use on the AIRSOFT range of replica firearms there is an all rubber M9 replica
	And for Airsoft shooters there is a rubber version

Lan-Cay M11A knife version of the M9 made for Explosive Ordinance Disposal use

M11 EOD (explosives, ordinance, demolition) knife made by Lan-Cay, fitted with after market aluminum knuckle duster gripsPart of the M11 package is a large utility pouch attached to the scabbardblade markingsquick open pouch holds primer crimp tool, Gerber multipurpose tool and Mag lightpouch is substantialAfter market knuckles replaced original handle, reputedly made for issue to USMC but these are not official issuequick release buckle attaches scabbard to the belt

OKC3S
	Ontario made bayonet for the US marines, having a composite scabbard.USMC molded into the hiltother side has USMC Eagle, Globe and Anchorunlike the M9 this blade has no wire cutter or sawback, rather it has a serrated area immediately in front of the crossguard. the blade is very sharp from the factory on both edgesmakers mark