~ Second Pattern AK47/AKM Bayonet 6X3/6h3 (1960–1964) ~
The crossguard is stamped CB. This is one of the issues of the second Pattern.
Bayonet 6X3 (1960–1964)
The next type of bayonet for the Kalashnikov assault rifle was adopted for service along with the modernized AKM assault rifle. This bayonet received the designation 6X3; its mass production began in 1960 at two enterprises: Izhmash and the Tula Arms Plant. Later, the 6X3 bayonet was equipped with AKMS assault rifles and Dragunov SVD rifles.
A characteristic feature of the 6X3 bayonet is the introduction into its design of a device for cutting wire in the form of a mechanism connecting the bayonet blade and the metal tip of the scabbard into an articulated “scissors” type structure. For this purpose, an oval hole is made in the middle of the blade for the passage of the connecting pin of the sheath tip. The bayonet could cut through live wires. Electrical insulation of the shooter from the current source was achieved by using handle linings made of non-electrically conductive fiberglass or thermosetting material AG-4V. A leather strap was introduced into the design of the bayonet, passing through a hole at the base of the handle and secured with a buckle through a hook-shaped hook under the crosshair. The strap was intended for additional fixation of the bayonet on the fighter’s hand during hand-to-hand combat, when the bayonet-knife was not attached to the machine gun. A saw for sawing wood and steel appeared on the lower surface of the 6X3 blade. The 6X3 handle pads were made of fiberglass or AG-4V press material and could differ in shape and color. On early bayonets there are dark cherry-colored linings (fiberglass). Later linings from AG-4V, which had an angular shape at the rear end, had an orange color, which is typical for 6X3 of the second type produced by Izhmash.
The Tula Arms Plant did not produce bayonets with handles from AG-4. The fastening of the linings on the blade shank was carried out in the same way as on the bayonet of the previous 6X2 model – with two screws and nuts. The holes of the handles with the screws tightened were plugged with plugs made of textolite to match the color of the linings, after which they were filled with glue. After this, it became possible to disassemble the bayonet only in a workshop during repairs; disassembling bayonet knives in everyday work with weapons was not intended. Inside the assembled handle there is a hollow cylindrical tube made of getinax, forming a passage for the leather strap. Also inside the handle was a latch assembly with a button and a spring. The top of the latch button was made of fiberglass, which had the color of the overlays. The 6X3 bayonet is not interchangeable with the 6X2 bayonet and can only be installed on the AKM assault rifle. Installation of the 6X3 bayonet on the AK74 and AKS74 assault rifles is impossible due to the specific shape of the handle pads. The sheath for 6X3 is traditionally considered to be a steel sheath with a rubber insulator. But according to some information, in the late period of production, some of the 6X3 knives from the previously manufactured stock were equipped with AG-4 sheaths from a new type of bayonet knives – 6X4.
