Hi Ariel and all,
The strange thing is, that I have found your answer (from 8th January!!!) only yesterday. I was checking the thread first 2 or 3 weeks after my question and no answer appeared. I even have sent you a PM. But let's return to discussion.
What is even more strange, is that you think, that Leibstandarte shashka is legit.
1. Its blade has the same factory markings as eBay one, and I think they are quite different from the Kulinskiy book.
2. Leibstandarte shashka is dated 1920 and has a USSR (CCCP) engraving. My school history lessons were so many years ago (yes, I am a former Soviet citizen, living at the moment in Germany), but I remember, that USSR was created in 1924. Before it was called RSFSR. That's why it is so strange for me to see USSR country name 4 years before it even appeared.
3. The Leibstandarte shop looks cool and claims to has good experts, but I have seen so called general's shin-gunto on the site, which didn't look at all like Japanese military sword.
So, I think that nowadays it is very difficult to tell from the pictures, if the sword is a real one. And even hard to tell when you see it in person, because to make a good replic of any military weapon is not so difficult. And what do you think?
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