1976-89:
During this period of time, the bayonet went through some major changes for the US Military. In 1984, the M9 bayonet was adopted by the United States. It was meant to be not only a bayonet but also a multi purpose knife that could be used as several different tools that were needed by the military at the time. A company called Qual-A-Tec developed the M9 bayonet based on the design from Charles A. Finn, or Mickey as he as known to others, and then later produced the model under the Phrobris III name. He produced 325,000 of these M9’s under a military contract. Buck Knives also got into the action with a contract to make 300,000 of these that were a commercial version of the M9 not meant for military use. Many companies in other countries made their own version of this bayonet before a patent was issued to Finn. The rights to the M9 bayonet eventually goes back to the US Army after the contract for the 325,000 was complete. The US had many other companies make this bayonet so you may find them from several different manufacturers. The sheath for the M9 changed dramatically as well compared to earlier versions of bayonets. It was designed as part of the multipurpose tool and had a wire cutter on it. The shape is a bit different as well to include the other purposes for it. The M9 would also fit onto the Mossberg 590 which was a shotgun meant for special purposes.