Decided to purchase a USGI style M-7 bayonet for the AR.

Which one is the best quality?
Not into a perfect historical piece but an actual good quality grade piece.

I am a follower of the Buy Once - Cry Once school.

Mine says Germany so you know it's good.  

Already have an M9 and USMC current models.

No love for the old style M7?

I am no pointy stick expert but I did see Uncle Sam's Liquidation had surplus M7 and M9 bayos.  At least you know they're real and not chinese clones.

I like them.  I just don't like the Chinese clones that were/are so common.  The M7 is a straight up bayonet, the M9 is a knife bayonet, not just in name but in actual use.  The only downside is they made that m9 a bit meaty in my estimation.  The M4 style I think is pretty good, they look great with the older leather washer handles, they have a wicked and utilitarian look to them.  The black checkered grips that carried over through the M5,6,7 are distinctively styled to me.  

I have a lot of bayos;  M1905, M1's of most makes, M5's, M4's, M6's, a single M7 that I think is a cheep copy.

read this;
http://www.usmilitaryknives.com/bayonet_points.htm

Sarco has used M7 bayonets, with scabbard, for $30+shipping.

I got a new in wrapper Gen Cut M7 w/ M10 scabbard off eBay for $49

http://www.m9m4.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=engine&idcategory=1¤tpage=2

Don't forget that the ARMY bayo also has a sharpening stone on the back of scabbard.
Now, it's usefulness is debatable...

The M7 is based on the M3 fighting knife, and the blades on those things will sharpen up to one helluva scary sharp edge if you know what you're doing. I had one that I modified into an M1918 Trench Knife in Iraq, by cutting the latch off, welding a 1/4x20 bolt onto the tang and then installed it into the brass knuckle handle. It was entirely useless, but it was fun project and the Iraqis did not like it one. fucking. bit. Couldn't get it home because of Customs, so I gave it to a buddy of mine who was rotating in as we were leaving. As far as I know, that knife is still floating around in Iraq.

I made another one when I got home, just for something to do. Made it out of a bayonet that had seen WAY better days, but it cleaned up nice in the bead blast cabinet, and I parkerized it after doing the tang modification. I finished the brass knucks in Brownell's AlumaHyde black, and the scabbard in OD green.  think it turned out okay.



I have three M7s that I picked up for cheap when they were first surplused out, and they're all in great shape. I was going to make trench knife clones out of them, but they're in too good a shape to mess with so I'm a'keepin 'em.

The M9 bayonet is the worst knife I have ever picked up. It's basically just a metal bar with a very poor edge on it and a worthless "sawback" on the spine that doesn't appear to be functional in any way, except maybe as an ersatz cheese grater. The sheath is too big and busy to be comfortable for carry, and that's why nobody in my old unit wanted them when S4 tried to issue them out. I'm a helluva knife sharpener, but the only way I can think of the get a working edge on one of these things is to re-grind it and start over. I have one of the Buck/Phrobis copies, and it's in near-new condition, because I wouldn't think of taking this thang to the field when I could have a Spyderco Temperance that does ten times the work at one tenth the weight and bulk.

The Marine Corps bayonet is a little better, but it's more of a bowie style fighter than a field knife, and let's face it, most military knives will only be used for a limited number of things, such as opening MREs, cutting poles for field expedient shelter, digging holes or other such stuff. Going all stabby is so low on the list of possibilities that it's more sensible to carry a good pocket knife or small fixed blade for actual use.

The best bayonet I have is the Zero Tolerance/Strider bayonet, but while the blade is super sharp and seems to be made to handle whatever the world can throw at it, this sucker is so heavy in the ass end that you could use it as a boat anchor. It's very well made, and it was sharp as all get out when I got it, but you'd have to want to cut something real bad to be willing to carry this hoss all over the place. It would be neat if they made a plain pommel and ringless guard for it, to convert it to a plain old field knife, as well as maybe modifying the tang to lighten it a bit.

Ontario makes what appears to be a solid reproduction-

http://www.amazon.com/Ontario-6277-M7-B-Bayonet-Black/dp/B001CL8L9I

A little cheaper are military surplus versions that are plentiful at Numrich and Ebay.

Buck Phrobis, check ebay you will find some good deals. I got mine for $170.

I remember seeing a couple of those knuckle duster "half grips" way back when, but never bought one.

The Phrobis/Buck bayonet's worst problem is the tendency of the handle to snap off during hard use. I'm guessing that it has something to do with the little half rat-tail tang connected to the pommel/latch assembly by a long bolt. If that should come loose over time, I can see it creating enough wobble to cause breakage if you were to put some ass on it. Then again, a lot of Joes use their bayonets like edged demolition derby cars, so that probably accounts for some breakage incidents as well.

With a better edge profile, it might do good work as a field knife, but as a bayonet or fighting knife, it is completely outclassed by the old M7, which was lighter, sharper and more lively in the hand and on the end of the rifle.

If I can find a beat up M9 for the right price, I might send it to Tom Krein and have him put a "full Krein grind" on it. His Spyderco profiles are sweet as hell, and make for great slicers. I think it'd be neat (but sorta useless) to have an M9 bayonet with a full flat grind.

M7s are pretty simple, just make sure it is in fact made by a USGI contractor. Mine is an Imperial, I bought it from Model 1 sales about 10 years ago. I also picked up a few used ones along the way. The chinese ones never fit without modification, the ring isalways to small to go over the flash hider.

"MilParCo" is a USGI manufacturer that made great butter knives.  Every Imperial M7 I've handled was razor sharp.  YMMV.

Paladin

That's what I came to post!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/M9-PHROBIS-III-BAYONET-With-Scabbard-USGI-/381212957012?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item58c2101954


http://www.ebay.com/itm/Green-Grip-Vietnam-War-USGI-M7-Bauer-Ordnance-Co-BOC-1969-Bayonet-Knife-/161633764736?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item25a21f8580

Any USGI contract M7 will be fine. I have most of the AR bayonets, and I think the M7 is the best US bayonet. It's also the least impressive-looking. The edge will rust first because it isn't parkerized like the rest of the carbon steel blade. I keep a light film of grease on mine. The Marine OKC-3S is the coolest, but it's huge.
Here are 2 models I don't own which may be better:





OKC M7B with modern handle (There were some less-expensive "UAE" marked ones floating around. I think they were all tan.)





Eickhorn Bayonet 2005 (Canada issues these.) I have the older KCB77 upon which it was based. New model has better handle and scabbard. Wire cutter like M9, but smaller and lighter. It's probably the best available.