Disassembly Of The M7?

[JOEMAMA79]

I AM IN THE PROCESS OF MAKING A CUSTOM SURVIVAL KNIFE/ BAYONET THAT WILL FIT AN M16. I THINK THE M7 IS A GREAT DESIGN AND PLAN ON BUYING ONE TO USE AS A TEMPLATE FOR THE GUARD/HANDLE AND ATTACHING HILT. I HAVE DONE SOME RESEARCH ON THIS STYLE BAYONET(THERE ISN'T MUCH OUT THERE) AND READ THE MANUALS BUT NOWHERE DOES IT SAY HOW THE BUTT END OF THE HANDLE IS ATTACHED TO THE TANG, IS IT SCREW OR WELDED? ANYONE HAVE ANY INFO I WOULD BE MOST THANKFUL. :smile:

[porterkids]

It all depends on which M7 you have. Some have a screw holding the pommel in place. This is fairly obvious by looking at the end of the pommel. Most have the tang extending through the pommel and then the end of the tang is peened over, locking the pommel in place. I have also seen them welded in place, but I don't think this is a common or from the factory method.

[JOEMAMA79]

Thank you for the reply. I was just wondering what i should expect going into this project. This is my first attempt at a bayonet style knife. Very excited. I guess I'll just have to wait and see what will work best. I hope to eventually post some progress pics for anyone interested. Thanks again and Merry Christmas!

[JOEMAMA79]

Well here is the finished product. It took a few months, but it was worth it. Thank you to everyone for your input and info.

[porterkids]

How about some pictures of the pommel and the new cross guard retainer you made?

[JOEMAMA79]

Well that sounds like a great idea. Don't know why I didn't think of that myself, after all that's why I came on this forum to begin with. ha ha . I will post more pics. Unfortunately I don't have any shots taken of those parts yet. But as soon as it comes back from overseas I will take some. Hopefully before June 2010.:smile:

[JOEMAMA79]

Ok I found a couple of ugly pics. This one shows a top view of the guard made of 3/8" 440c steel and hardened and tempered down to a rockwell hardness of about 47. When I get a chance I'll take a shot with the plastic handle off. BTW the handle shown is the original from the m7.

[JOEMAMA79]

This one kind of shows the pommel and yes it was peened onto the original. I had to drill it out and fit the new tang to the same size hole. This was one of the most difficult parts of the whole thing. The steel used for the blade had a high vanadium content, therfore was extremely hard. Infact I had to have a friend use a cnc machine to put the holes in the tang for the handle. Wrecked every bit i had trying to do it myself. Also had to temper down the handle end to be able to peen it into the pommel. Again better pics to come I promise!

[backbencher]

Mine's welded. Would be interested in a slightly longer version of an M7 - but would need a scabbard to match.