US M4 BAYONET BY BREN-DAN
HISTORY
The Bayonet-Knife M4 was adopted in 1944 for use with the caliber .30 M1 Carbine. Patterned after the Trench Knife M3, some early examples actually used M3 blades. The basic M4 bayonet design became the basis for subsequent U.S. M5, M5A1, M6, and M7 bayonets. M4 bayonets were produced for commercial sale during the 1960s. Other countries also produced military variants of the M4 bayonet.
Bren-Dan, Inc. of Stamford, Connecticut was awarded contract DAAF01-71-C-0851 in June 1971. There were two orders placed under this contract totaling $184,000. Bren-Dan M4 production ran 1971–72. These were the last M4 bayonets produced for the U.S. government.
Bren-Dan had two other small arms-related contracts 1971–72, totaling $40,000, that could have been for bayonets or spare parts, but no documentation to validate what these contracts were for has been found.
Bren-Dan, Inc. was incorporated in August 1959. In 2022, Louis Conetta’s niece confirmed that the company was named after Louis Conetta's two children (at that time), Brenda and Daniel. The Conetta family continued bayonet production via Bren-Dan, Inc. following loss of Conetta Manufacturing Co. The Bren-Dan factory was across the street from the former Conetta factory.
ITEM DESCRIPTION
Good condition M4 knife bayonet clearly marked to Bren-Dan on the crossguard.