Any old bayonet gurus on here?

[Biggsly]

I love going to Saint Louis. We always travel down to Ste. Genevieve Mo. I have family down in that area. When we go I always hit any garage / estate sales that I can find. You never know what you can find down there. Saturday I bought two old socket bayonets off of a lady. She said that they belonged to her late husband and that he had them for years. She did not know where he got them. I have a few old bayonets, so felt like I should add these to the collection. I do not no much about them and would love any help with the markings and info.
The bigger one is 25"long and triangle shaped. The smaller one is 23" long and X shaped.
Here is some pics.
Thanks for any help.
The sockets.

 

[Biggsly]

 

[Biggsly]

23" X shaped

 

[Biggsly]

25" triangle

 

[coolhandluke]

Both of these are prior to my area knowledge. I believe the longer of the two is an 1895 pattern Martini-Henry bayo. I'll have to do a little research on the other blade though to see if I can nail it down.

 

[Biggsly]

Both of these are prior to my area knowledge. I believe the longer of the two is an 1895 pattern Martini-Henry bayo. I'll have to do a little research on the other blade though to see if I can nail it down.

Thanks Luke.

 

[D. Hargrove]

Very cool, I cannot help answer any questions, but thank you for the pics!

 

[coolhandluke]

Rick,

You might take a look at the website below. I browsed all four pages, but didn't see the other bayonet right off the bat. The proofs should be a dead giveaway to anyone who has a fair amount of knowledge of European 19th century weapons, but unfortunately I'm not that guy. My gut said that it was possibly Belgian or French but that's just a shot in the dark.

http://worldbayonets.com/Bayonet_Identification_Guide/socket_bayonets/sockets_p1.html

 

[Biggsly]

Thanks Luke. I will check it out.

 

[scottb42]

I am no expert, but I do have a nice, heavily illustrated reference book on bayonets ("Bayonets: An Illustrated History" by Martin J. Brayley) so I can make believe.

The giveaway on the 25" triangular bladed bayonet is the Broad Arrow stamp (R over a wide arrowhead over WD) which indicates it is British. Poking through the photos I have of British bayonets it looks to me like it is either a Model 1876 or a Model 1895 (the 1895 is also referred to as an 1876/95). The 1876 was used with Martini-Henry rifles and the 1895 with the .303 Martini-Enfield. The book indicates that the 1895 is simply an 1876 with a bushing in the socket to fit the smaller diameter barrel of the Martini-Enfield. I can't see a bushing in the photos you provided but that might be the camera angle, take a look and that should help you decide which one you have. Both are spec'ed at 637mm in overall length, which almost exactly matches your 25" measurement.

The cruciform bayonet, however, has thus far defied my attempts at figuring out what it is. Still looking...