This knife was recently sold for about $3,000. I missed out on this knife and somewhat regret it because it is a pretty unusual bird….
1963 front
1963 back
It almost certainly dates from mid-1963 based on the etched Randall made Orlando stamp, sheath, etc. But most importantly, the blade shape combined with the blade manufacture is pretty unusual. Sawteeth (ST) were developed by experimenting with Solingen blades in early 1963. ST prototypes initially used m-14 blades from the original order of 500 Solingen m-14s. These had the horizontal stamp on the ricosso. This was before the creation of the etched stamp in 1963.
The Solingen ST blades originally took on the “humped” teethed profile because of the technique used to hollow out the top edge to enable cutting teeth. During this time in 1963, there were not a lot of m-14s being made in the Orlando shop and ST were not a listed option for the m-14… so this knife, m-14, Orlando carbon blade, w/ST…. AND
an Orlando blade that retained the humped shape of the Solingen ST is unusual
(this before even mentioning the brown micarta handle, end cut).
But why is this knife a special attraction to me? Well, it's because I collect only blades that could have been carried in Vietnam, mostly m-14s. Furthermore I tend to like beat-up, worn examples that show use in the field rather than pristine sock-drawer queens…. Why?...The better to imagine the stories the knife could tell. And this knife could have been a champion addition in one category.
Category? Category? WTH?.... To illustrate how insane collectors can be, I have decided there were eight distinct m-14 blade types made by Randall during the Vietnam period. I have accumulated at least one of each of these types. Everything else about m-14 knifes that other collectors prize are associated with the handle, not the blade. Frankly, I’m much less interested in what the handle material was compared to the actual blade... .
So… here are some of my personal examples of each of the eight categories of blades and you will see why the above knife would have been a nice addition… I just could not pay the price since I already had a good example of the type blade ... oh well…
Solingen Carbon m-14
Solingen Stainless m-14
Orlando Carbon m-14
Orlando Stainless m-14
Solingen Sawteeth Carbon m-14 Please note that carbon blades and Vietnam were not a very happy mix. Hence the damage to this example.. I still like it... a lot. If I were going back in time being deployed again to Vietnam, I would probably opt for this knife, the Solingen carbon with ST rather than a Solingen Stainless that I actually carried. Carbon Solingen's take a really good edge compared to Solingen stainless which generally suck at being sharp. The sawteeth could be useful for scaling fish or something, and I like the pointy shape of the ST Solingens better than the ST Orlandos.
Solingen Sawteeth Stainless m-14
Orlando Sawteeth Carbon m-14 I like this example but the knife first posted above would have been a cool addition.
Orlando Sawteeth Stainless m-14
This game of "blade types" can be played with several different Randall models. But for the Vietnam era, these m-14s are the acme of Randalls carried in country.