Heer Officer’s Dagger by Eickhorn – D661
Yes, with more 3rd Reich army daggers available than any other edged weapon produced during the infamous era, collectors always have plenty of these blades to chose from. That aside, finding a nice one among all of the beaters is always a hunt. Here is an excellent untouched example in this offering.
The grip on this army dagger is typical of what we see during war time construction. It is an off yellow in color, in good shape, and void of any damage that I see. This handle is a little bit loose, and since the pommel appears to be frozen to the tang, it will not tighten down to secure the hilt assembly. I believe that using a needle type oil syringe applicator, the lubricant can be dripped to the tang to release the adhesion between it and the pommel nut. You can find these fine oil applicators at certain hardware stores in the tool section. In any event, it doesn’t hurt any thing the way that it is, but if the next owner wants to try to secure the hilt better, this little trick may work. Finally the crossguard, ferrule and pommel remain all untouch, as this edged weapon has never been cleaned since being returned as a souvenir from WWII.
Like the hilt fittings, the scabbard to this dagger has a dark matching patina over it’s surface. It is straight, void of any hits, splits, or dings, and is in excellent condition. In shaking the scabbard back and forth, it has the typical loose runner jingle on the interior that so many of these 2nd type Eickhorn scabbard do. I’ve even see this flaw with Government Official scabbard manufactured by this same firm. It’s quite interesting that in the large percentage of these Eickhorn shells with this inherent runner flaw, the actual blades tend to be rather mint. The reason is because of the runners have not rested on the surface in a way to trapped moisture or dirt. Both scabbard bands are tight to the shell, and hold the hanger rings properly. Attach to those rings are the original set of deluxe hangers that this edged weapon came with. Certainly a nice little extra bonus with this army officer’s dagger offering. The hangers are complete with all of the proper hardware which functions properly. The bullion fabric straps do show wear, age and period repairs.
Above, I mentioned at times about the excellent condition of some blades correlated to the loose runner scabbard flaw. Case and point; the blade to this edged weapon is drop dead stunning and stone cold mint. It is perfectly straight, drawn to a needle sharp tip, with a gorgeous luster running down the length of both sides. A beautiful crossgrain graces both obverse and reverse, hilt to tip. Finally, the logo of a black burnished squirrel holding a downward sword, proclaims the trademark of excellence of the edged weapon firm responsible for this stunning blade….. Carl Eickhorn.
An excellent entry 3rd Reich Army Officer’s dagger, perhaps for a new collector to get started with. SOLD