An investigation of the weights of pattern 1907 bayonets made in the UK around the First World War period

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dc.citation.epage222en_US
dc.citation.issueNumber2en_US
dc.citation.spage206en_US
dc.citation.volumeNumber14en_US
dc.contributor.authorBallard, J. M.en_US
dc.contributor.authorBennett, J.en_US
dc.date.accessioned2018-04-12T11:05:13Z
dc.date.available2018-04-12T11:05:13Z
dc.date.issued2017en_US
dc.departmentDepartment of Archaeologyen_US
dc.description.abstractThe standard issue bayonet of the British Army immediately preceding and during the First World War was the Pattern 1907. This was manufactured at different times and in varying numbers during that period by one official body, the Royal Small Arms Factory at Enfield, and by five private contractors. These bayonets were made according to published official specifications issued by the War Department and based on a ‘pattern example’ provided by the Royal Small Arms Factory. The specifications indicate, inter alia, the quality of metal used in making the bayonets, methods of inspection and proofing, and the required maximum and minimum weight range of the completed bayonet. However, examination of a series of these bayonets in a private collection suggested that their weights varied considerably from the mid-point values of the allowed weight ranges in the original and amended specifications (16.5 oz. and 17 oz., respectively). To establish if this was a common feature among this class of bayonet as opposed to a chance factor, the weights of other surviving Pattern 1907 bayonets were determined and compared to establish the degree of variance from the official specifications as originally set out by the Royal Small Arms Factory. Seventy-six percent of the 142 bayonets surveyed were found to be above the mid-point of the allowed weight range given in the amended manufacturing specifications, with many being at the upper end of the allowed range. This is a statistically unusual result. It is speculated that the target weight may have been deliberately set higher by the individual manufacturers to eliminate the possibility of rejection of any underweight bayonets by the Royal Small Arms Factory inspectors and so a refusal of acceptance and payment for the worken_US
dc.description.provenanceMade available in DSpace on 2018-04-12T11:05:13Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 bilkent-research-paper.pdf: 179475 bytes, checksum: ea0bedeb05ac9ccfb983c327e155f0c2 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017en
dc.identifier.doi10.1080/17416124.2017.1379786en_US
dc.identifier.eissn1749-6268
dc.identifier.issn1741-6124
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11693/37179
dc.language.isoEnglishen_US
dc.publisherRoutledgeen_US
dc.relation.isversionofhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17416124.2017.1379786en_US
dc.source.titleArms & Armouren_US
dc.subjectBayoneten_US
dc.subjectFirst World Waren_US
dc.subjectPattern 1907en_US
dc.subjectStatistical analysisen_US
dc.subjectWeightsen_US
dc.titleAn investigation of the weights of pattern 1907 bayonets made in the UK around the First World War perioden_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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