The five best bayonets still in use around the world

I was still in the Marine Corps when President Obama ran for his second term in 2012. He was debating with Governor Mitt Romney when he mentioned we didn’t use bayonets anymore since our military had changed. It became a running joke every time we drew bayonets from the armory. More than a decade later, bayonets are still widely used by the U.S. military and by militiaries across the world.

This is firstly because military forces are very slow to adapt and get rid of equipment. But it’s also because bayonets have evolved to also serve as general field knives, which are very handy to have. In fact, nowadays, they are mostly field knives you can equip to your rifle.

And there are some great bayonets used around the world today. So, we’ve decided to look at which we think are the very best.

Bayonet knife for the MSBS Grot rifle 

As the Polish military moved from AK-pattern rifles to something more advanced, it also transitioned to a modern bayonet. Poland’s new MSBS Grot rifle will be rocking a very modern bayonet that has a sleek modern look and a fairly compact design. 

The blade has a tip that mixes a spear point with a slip point; this allows the bayonet to be piercing, but also provides a nice belly for deep slices. A portion of the blade is serrated which makes cutting things like thick rope easier and quicker. The bottom of the grip features a glass breaker that doubles as a flat head screwdriver. The bayonet comes with a model polymer sheath.

The bayonet knife has a 6.1-inch blade and an overall length of 10.9 inches. The Polish retained the famed wire-cutting design of the AK bayonet.

MSBG Grot’s bayonet is a solid little field knife that turns your rifle into a spear. 

Bayonet Mk.I 

When the Czech forces adopted the BREN 2 carbine they also adopted the Bayonet Mk.I. This new bayonet aimed to be a better field knife than its predecessor.

The Czechs trimmed its weight and size and took inspiration from commando knives. 

The end result was a knife with an overall length of 11.5 inches and a blade length of 6.3 inches. The knife has a spear tip with a false edge at the rear of the blade. It’s an effective stabber but still has enough belly for slashes, if need be. 

The MK.I comes with a modern sheath setup for MOLLE use. Additionally, a file-and-saw blade can be equipped to the knife for field duty.

The MK.I looks and behaves more like a combat knife than a bayonet, which isn’t a surprise.  

Related: The Bren Gun – A tea-sipping LMG by way of the Czechs

Glock Feldmesser 78 

Besides handguns, Glock also made knives.

It’s not widely known, but Glock has long made the Feldmesser 78, a field knife that doubles as a bayonet for the Austrian Steyr AUG rifle.

The Glock knife has a 6.5 inch blade that combines spear point and clip point. The overall length is 11 inches and the knife saves weight by being quite thin – it’s almost dagger-like.

The grip and sheath feel a lot like the same polymer Glock uses for its guns. 

One of my favorite features of this knife is that it can work as a bottle opener. Joe will always have bottles to open so giving him a dedicated bottle opener just makes sense. The little knife is very efficient and effective and gives the AUG something to poke with. Best yet, it’s affordable and easily available. 

Eickhorn SG 2000 WC-F

The French adopted a new bayonet alongside their new HK 416 rifle. The Eickhorn SG 2000 WC-F is a unique-looking knife that seems to be extremely capable. It has a 6.8 inch blade and an overall length of 12.1 inches. It’s a beefy and weighs 11.29 ounces. 

The distinct square-shaped blade forms a tanto-like point. Tanto points are extremely strong and pierce hard material easier than others points. The Eickhorn SG 2000 WC-F also has some serration in order to be used as a field knife. The sheath and knife combine to create a wire-cutting device.

The Eickhorn certainly a multipurpose bayonet with a chunky overall design that’s well suited for combat use. It’s less of a field knife and more of a fighting one. 

Related: The M9 bayonet was dulled by its many problems

OKC-3S bayonet 

The OKC-3S is the best bayonet out there – and yes, I’m biased.

Developed for the Marine Corps, the OKC-3S perfected what the M9 failed to do and provided a knife that is effective for multiple roles and makes for an excellent bayonet. Arguably, it can be somewhat big for field tasks, but the blade length exists for a reason: it allows you to reach an opponent’s vital organs regardless of where you stab them in the torso; it’s devastating in a fight. 

The OKC-3S was modeled after the famed Ka-Bar fighting knife. Its clip point makes it very versatile and its belly is nice and deep so slashes are effective and you can cut quite a bit with its eight-inch long blade. The handle is thick and comfortable and there’s a knife sharpener built into the sheath. Part of the knife’s corrosion-resistant blade is serrated for extra efficiency. It weighs less than two pounds.

The OKC-3S combines the best features of field knives, fighting knives and bayonets without making a giraffe out of a horse. 

Bayonets are certainly inching towards becoming relics of warfare as newer rifles often don’t allow for one. They might not remain on the tips of rifles in the future, but troops will always need what a bayonet offers.

Feature Image: An OKC-3S bayonet at display at the Depot theater, June 2005. (U.S. Marine Corps)

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