DLV Fliers Knife by Helbig – D998
It’s always a challenge to find one of these wicked looking little edged weapons which has; all the leather intact, excellent enamel to the swastikas, leather hanger still on the scabbard ring, all topped off with a minty blade. If you’ve been looking for such qualities in a DLV dagger, take a peek at the example in this offering.
The Moroccan blue dyed leather covering this handle is in wonderful condition, being void of any dry rot, splits, pealing, or major slices of missing material. It is covers the inner wood core super tight as well as snug, and truly is about as nice as it gets for one of these flyer knife grips. The hardware component fittings consisting of the crossguard, ferrules, and pommel, have taken on a beautiful muted patina over their surfaces. As nothing has been cleaned nor polished on this edged weapon since being returned home as a souvenir from WWII. The enamel to both the obverse and reverse swastikas on this crossguard remain in stunning condition, and display a fantastic contrast to this entire hilt in the most striking way.
A fine looking scabbard accompanies this early manufactured DLV knife. Like the grip, the leather covering the shell remains in outstanding condition, void of any splits, rips, tears, or missing chunks. The lower nickel chape is in good shape and tight to the shell, in spite of one smaller crack to the seam where the 2 halves were wielded together. Both it and the upper fitting are dark with patina and age, exactly matching that which is shown on the hilt hardware components. Though not shown in the photos, the upper lip of the scabbard is stamped with the wing/swastika/propeller emblem, representing this early flight club organization which was the precursor to the Luftwaffe. Finally, the proper short original hanger completes this scabbard assembly.
The blade to this Helbig fliers knife is a beauty! It remains full length, straight, tight in the fittings, and void of any sharpening, tipping, or cutting edge chips. A beautiful crossgrain adorns both sides, from crossguard to tip. The surface exhibits just a few specks of storage age, and truthfully very minimal at that. As this entire edged weapon would satisfy even the most discriminant of collectors in my opinion. Lastly, the blade washer is intact, and solid up against the butt plate of the crossguard. On the reverse in a horizontal etch is the trademark of the F.A. Helbig edged weapon firm.
It’s hard to find one of these early fliers knives produced in 1934, with as much going for it as this one has. SOLD