RAD & Teno Daggers

RAD Daggers or "Hewers" are often one of the first daggers your non collecting friends are going to be amazed by. Rightfully so, the RAD enlisted man dagger is really an impressive piece in hand. The initial pattern was introduced in 1934 and was worn by both enlisted men and officers. Later, in 1937 the second pattern came out which was regulated for only officers. By default, the first pattern became known as the enlisted man's or "EM" for short. The EM version can be found in in earlier solid nickel alloy or later nickel plated steel. Full stag handles can be found where the "beak" is stag and are very scarce. The leader or officers version was initially silver plated, while later versions were aluminum. The blade design of RAD daggers was intentionally made in such a way to be usable as working tool and weapon. Although it's obvious it was not practical for either and was more symbolism then anything. The blade motto is "Arbeit adelt" translated to "Labor Ennobles".

Both the Teno officer and subordinate daggers were available in 1938. The subordinate Hewer was bestowed upon specially selected full time members and was not available to every enlisted man. Both of these are usually found in near mint condition, leading one to believe they were rarely worn and possibly that large supplies were never issued at all. Both are still rare on the market and the highlight of many collections.