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Cpt. R. Applegate 1942 with F-S Dagger
Colonel Rex Applegate and his knives
Rex Applegate's biography (1914-1998) reads like an adventure story. He was the head of one of the oldest and most important pioneer families in Oregon. His uncle, Gus Peret, the famous Remington shooting artist, taught him to hunt and how to handle weapons.
He completed his studies at the University of Oregon just before the start of WWII and joined the army. His above average performance attracted the attention of Colonel "Wild Bill" Donovan, the founder of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Donovan personally commissioned Applegate to learn everything possible about armed and unarmed hand-to-hand combat. His experience was to be used in the establishment of a training camp for future OSS instructors.
Cpt. R. Applegate 1942 with F-S Dagger
Applegate was the right man at the right time in the right place. He founded the famous OSS training camp "Area B", which today is the US presidential retreat, Camp David. He also gathered experience in England, receiving training in the British "Commando" and the "Special Operations Executive" (SOE), the counterpart of the American OSS. Jointly with these "commandos", he carried out secret missions behind the German lines. During this time, he worked closely with British officers W. E. Fairbairn and E. A. Sykes, top experts in the field of military hand-to-hand combat. Fairbairn and Sykes jointly designed the legendary F-S combat knife, probably the most famous commando dagger of World War II. Before the war, both men were members of the Shanghai Municipal Police, the toughest police unit in the world.
With the help of Fairbairn, who was assigned to the OSS as an instructor, Applegate was eventually able to start a training program for hand-to-hand combat. At that time, Applegate was also a personal bodyguard to protect President Roosevelt. Together Applegate and Fairbairn designed improved versions of the F-S commando dagger and the smatchet, a blade-shaped weapon for hand-to-hand combat. However, the war was over shortly after that and the issue of both weapons was delayed.
OSS-Training Camp 1942 Codename "Area B"
Cpt. R. Applegate (background, 4th from left)
Cpt. W. E. Fairbairn (SOE) (foreground 2nd from right)
Decades later, both designs appeared as Applegate/Fairbairn Combat Knife and Applegate/Fairbairn Combat Smatchet in the commercial world of knives.
Rex Applegate authored a number of books on military hand-to-hand combat which are still considered as standard in many armies today.
After the war, he lived in Latin America for a long time where he was intensively involved with riot control and civil unrest. As a trainer in the Mexican army, he was promoted to the rank of general for a short time.
Today, Applegate's ideas can be recognized in numerous non-lethal weapons, such as billy clubs and pepper sprays.
During the past years, he attracted attention primarily with his training films on "Instinctive Shooting in Hand-to-Hand Combat". Although over eighty years old, Applegate never missed any opportunity to demonstrate his proficiency on the shooting range.
Lt. Col. (Ret.) Rex Applegate 1997
with Boker A-F Dagger
In cooperation with Böker, Applegate developed the current version of the A-F combat knife with partial saw-blade and quick-draw sheath made of Kydex, a high-tech material. Among his newest designs is the boot-knife version of his tried and tested A-F combat knife, developed during the mid-nineties, which can be carried as a concealed weapon. For this knife, Applegate placed special emphasis on blade design. He was inspired by 2,000-year old spear tips from Japan, which due to blade geometry need to be sharpened on one side only and have an enormous penetration effect, requiring half the usual strength. Made of 440-C-stainless steel with a Rockwell hardness of 58 HRC, they are guaranteed to keep an edge and have extreme capability. The ergonomically designed handle with slip-proof, lengthwise grooves is made of fiberglass-reinforced Delrin. Additional steel weights in the handle give the knife balance and handling comfort. Continuous numbering on the brass hand guard helps quality control. In order to avoid light reflection, all metal parts were bead blasted. The Kydex sheath can be worn concealed at different body locations by means of a clip and lengthwise slot openings.
https://www.bokerusa.com/default2.asp (R)
