He's right you know!

Let me help you out a bit.

In Service, bayonets were never "matched", you had "rifle "A", They had a bayonet "B" from Gawd knows where, but it is the right fitting for Rifle "A".

They loaned it to you.

(U.K. squaddies never "owned a Rifle", it was generously loaned to you by Her Britannic Majesty, so you could Defend The Realm as a Duty"), something your NCO would pointedly remind you of if you messed up with one somehow! Trust me I wuz one of They.

This makes your life much easier because you can have any Pat 1907 bayo & its perfectly "correct"!

The ones retaining the "hookie" are worth much more because HM.GOV in it infinite wisdom took tens of thousands of them & ground it off. Survivors are rare & so expensive.

If its a Pat '07 & there's no Hook, go for it! If you really want to create a period rifle (nothing wrong with that) The SMELLIE was in service for many decades, you just need to pick one & stick with it. If its a MkIII, or a MK III* would limit you a little though.

if , on the other hand you like things matched you can look for an ausie marked version - this limits you a lot in what you might easily find in affordable range , these will often be of WWII vintage tho in my experience here in the states , 

if you like to date match the rifle and accessories - very unlikely occured in supply chain , you limit yourself even more but its a fun search , in this case you can go by era - a very early rifle would need one without the clearing hole later rifles would want one with that added or manufactured that way , details , bayonet collectors would notice , 

then there are those that need a specific maker and that really limits your search but it can be very fun as well , there are some eras when bayo production does not match rifle production tho , 

i have a hookie - 1910 mole mfgr and will attest to they being the expensive vavarient of these - expect to pay ten fold for a real one - warning there are fakes out there [ https://www.by-the-sword.com/p-12489-british-1907-smle-no1-mkiii-bayonet-sheath.aspx?gad=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwo9unBhBTEiwAipC111uHqcyXbKnmKGbB9vnANKETu4lQ26kjJD4IbvchC4MYP60r" rel="nofollow - https://www.by-the-sword.com/p-12489-british-1907-smle-no1-mkiii-bayonet-sheath.aspx?gad=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwo9unBhBTEiwAipC111uHqcyXbKnmKGbB9vnANKETu4lQ26kjJD4IbvchC4MYP60r ] - and they would only be period correct to WWI and before as the removal order was 1915 IIRC without looking it up , id not part with mine ....well over $1500 to consider it as id never find anther in my lifetime and i have a mkIII it lives with these days , 

but ive digressed ......you can find the bayos in that $110+ range bot mostly without scabbard as mentioned above , expect to pay more for the set - condition will always drive the price , 

one dealer i trus is -  https://oldguns.net/catedw.php" rel="nofollow - https://oldguns.net/catedw.php

isnt listing one at the moment but ask - john might have one not listed on his page - he gets things in all the time and takes time to get them up on the site , he always treated me well , 

 

WARNING - the pattern 1914/model 1817 will not fit your rifle they are for the pattern 1913/14 [no3] and model 1917 rifles  and trench shotguns , they look the same but have two cross cuts in the grip scales to differentiate at a glance , 

It would be date matched to that SMLE of yours...

Is the rifle a Lithy?

If so then probably as I don't see many Brit made ones gong to "Down Undah"?

A few more photos

later WWI with the clearing hole added , nice original scabbard - if im seeing correctly it has the earlier almond shaped stud for the frog , the later ones were round buttons , 

does nit appear to have been sharpened - thats great - and the finish looks good as well , wilkinnson made a lot of them but they mage very nice ones , you did well , the grip scales are in excellent condition and do not appear to be replacements , keep a littly light oil on the push button stud , that assembly is prone to getting a little sticky , 

for what its worth my mkIII is a brit BSA made rifle in 1915 , but its also marked to the ausie 3MD so it served in both world wars and its home guard service in OZ might have been its last service but the hookie looks right on the rfle to me as it probably was issued with one , 

i think you did the right thing seeking out what you found for it as the D-arrow would not have dictated the bayonet issue , that would have depended on what was in stores and some of those might well have had blood on them from previous service , everything got reused once deemed serviceable , 

that goes for both rifles and bayonets ,  there was a very real threat to austrailia in the second go round , 

im not overly familiar with production in OZ for their bayonets , i do know they were a major producer in WWII as most other commonwealth were into the no4 production of rifles and bayonets - except india of course but i often overlook and fail to mention them in discussions , 

the far right one in my photo was a lithy P07 dated to 42 and it has post war scales after re-arsenal , not sure whay they did that then released them from service ....but they did 

Nice score, very similar to mine. Your scales are in better condition though.

A word of advice don't be tempted to sharpen it! Originals were NOT sharpened & you'll trash collector value if you do.

Mine was kind of ratty when I got it but a couple of light, don't overdo it, coats of Neatsfoot oil to replace what had dried out & then some black Kiwi shoe polish & it looks much better.

The scabbard looks good too! Now all you need is a nice frog. (belt attachment). The canvas "37" is fine, but if you want a bit of extra pzaz you could get a good leather reproduction. Research the details though if you go that route there are some "fantasy" ones out there.

Its a repro, I believe of a South African Cavalry or Light Horse style?

Yes that looks like the original they copied, pretty much.

I'm told by those far more expert than I, that there's some error with the rivets in some way, either position , size or quantity?

 

Oh yes. I like leather partly because with some minimum care it can last fore ever!

I've never outworn leather in a jacket, although I have outgrown one or two of them!

How times have changed.

The British never saw a use for the bayonet, other than "Sticking it in the Hun"!

There's actually an old (B&W) Movie about the "Boffins,", the R&D guys in the background, where there's a running gag about it.

I think it was called "The Backroom Boys" or something similar?

The humorous releif behind a fairly serious look at development of Secret Weapons during a war, a bunch of "Guest Cameos" from 2 who are developing "The Most Superior Bayonet". It a kind of wacky "Swiss Army Bayonet" with more & more increasingly daft functions, every time it appears.

Finally the chief boffin loses it & bellows at them:

"Have you GENTLEMEN ever considered the ONLY thing "Tommy Atkins" wants to do with a bayonet is to open a can of bully beef"?

I am reminded of this every time I look at my No7, Mk1 with the swiveling pommel!

Shortly before I finish my time I obtain a few AK bayonets for free. Shortly before coming home I was given a bayonet for a M16. 

I do like bayonets but never used one in the Army.

i have the one for my M16 and my M14 with the rifles and my hookie with my mkIII as well as my M17 with my trench gun , so ...i keep the FS with my day pack/go bag as utility