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**ORIGINAL**EX- WILKINSON’S TOOL ROOM PROTOTYPE OF THE RAREST SOE WEAPON**WW2 C1941-1942 McLaglen Peskett Multi Functional Close Combat Weapon (CCW) With Concealed Blade, Skull Crusher Pommel & Integral Spooled Garrote Wire. Sn 20336 - 20336 This SOE multi functional Close Combat Weapon (CCW) was invented by the British designers Sydney Temple Leopold McLaglen of London and John Edward Peskett of Harrow. See page 123 of Fred Stephen’s book Fighting Knives where an example is illustrated and described. Interestingly Fred who has been writing about and collecting Military knives for many years has never seen one of these devices ‘in the flesh’. The full name of the weapon reflected the names of both engineers. Their development was designated as a “melee weapon”, designed with the many needs of a British SOE (Special Operations Executive) intelligence operative or saboteur in mind. The CCW could be used to kill or incapacitate an enemy with three distinct methods. The first was striking with the alloy steel ball at the top of the weapon, like a blackjack. The second method was with a concealed gravity-activated spike which the operator could extend by pushing a retaining button on the weapon. The third method was with a coiled garrote wire, wrapped around the interior of the weapon. The garrote was 20 inches long when unspooled and was drawn using a ring in some models, and a steel ball in others. It appears the CCW did not catch on with its intended users, and no more than 100 were of our type were manufactured. Other weapons performed each of the three tasks more efficiently than this CCW. Nevertheless, it is an interesting look at the creative design processes that took place during World War II. Some sources indicate they were also manufactured for and issued to American OSS personnel. Legendary assassin and MI6 operative Peter Mason possessed one among his collection of unusual weaponry and donated it to the Museum of World War II near Boston, MA USA in the 1990s. Another is in the Spy Museum in Washington, DC USA. The weapons were made from British patent no. 559747 and prototypes were made C1941-42. Our extremely rare fully functioning example of the prototype was made by and obtained from the Wilkinson Tool Room by a previous owner (the weapon has a number of hand written descriptive labels attached explain the device and its provenance, they are illustrated & accompany the weapon. Our example has the correct machined steel cylindrical body with knurled surface for grip (when the weapon went into production the cylinder was grooved without knurled finish as a cost saving measure). It has the correct solid steel ball skull crusher pommel, which swivels to release and retain the spindled garrotte wire within the cylinder. The garrotte wire has the correct pull ring. The gravity release blade with bush button catch works as it should ( our example has the correct prototype blued 3 ¼” long blade with medial ridge,production models had longer blades as the prototype blade was considered to short). The cylinder has a swivelling ring with strap bar fitted with leather wrist loop. With blade extended the weapon measures 10 ¼” overall length, blade retracted it measures 6 ¾” length. As is common with SOE weapons there are no maker or date marks on the weapon. The price for this rarest of all prototype SOE close combat weapons includes UK delivery. Sn 20336 £4,750.00
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