Original Item: Only One Available. This is the very first of extremely scarce Soviet bayonet that we have ever owned and the second we have actually laid eyes on. The first belonged to the legendary U.S. Bayonet Collector, the late Dr. Jim Maddox.
Produced in the pre WW2 Stalin era for the AVS (Avtomaticheskaya Vintovka Siminova) automatic Rifle as the Model AVS 1936, this is fantastically hard to find. It features a unique attachment system to the front of the rifle whereby the entire hilt slides forward opening the rear slot to engage with the bayonet stand. The blade is a long, almost 13 inches in length.
This, the only example weve ever been able to purchase in 40 years has a somewhat worn and re-sharpened blade, showing at the very least was used in action. First seen in 1938 in the May Day celebrations it was used in the Winter War with against the Finns at the "Battle of HALHINGOL" in 1939. The performance of this first self-loading rifle was very problematic and production was terminated in late 1938.
This weapon was replaced by the much more successful SVT 40 Rifle in 1940.
The bayonet's scabbard is absent.
History of the AVS-36:
The AVS-36 (from Avtomaticheskaya Vintovka Simonova 1936 model; Russian: ?????????????? ???????? ???????? ??????? 1936 ????) was a Soviet automatic rifle which saw service in the early years of World War II. It was among the early selective fire infantry rifles (capable of both single and full-automatic fire) formally adopted for military service.
The designer, Sergei Simonov, began his work with a gas-operated self-loading rifle in 1930. The first prototype was ready in 1931 and appeared promising, and three years later a trial batch of an improved design was made. In 1935, a competition between Simonov's design and a rifle made by Fedor Tokarev was held. The Simonov rifle emerged as a winner and was accepted into service as the AVS-36. The AVS-36 was a gas-operated rifle with a short piston stroke and vertical sliding locking block. It was capable of both automatic and semi-automatic fire. The barrel was equipped with a large muzzle brake to reduce recoil. Ammunition was in a detachable magazine holding 15 rounds. A knife bayonet was issued with the rifle. A sniper version was produced in small amounts with a PE scope. The AVS-36 was first seen in public in the 1938 May Day parade in Moscow, when it was displayed by the marching 1st Rifle Division. The American public became aware when it was covered in an August 1942 issue of the American Infantry Journal, in an article by John Garrett Underhill, Jr.
Once in service, it quickly became apparent that the AVS was not a satisfactory design; the operating mechanism was overly complicated, and the problem was made worse by the rifle's construction which let dirt get inside the weapon. The rifle was also particular about ammunition quality. The muzzle brake design proved to be a failure the rifle was nearly uncontrollable in automatic fire. Some of the problems were traced to the magazine, which was deemed too long. Production of the AVS-36 was terminated in 1938 and a new design competition was held to which Simonov and Tokarev submitted their improved designs.
