V-42 stiletto V-42s procured by the U.S. Navy were the only known V-42 knives sent to a unit or branch outside the First Special Service Force. The V-42 was depicted on the badges of the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command, Canadian Forces' Joint Task Force 2 and one of the United States Army Special Forces badges. W. R. Case & Sons Cutlery Co. manufactured a post-war version from 1989 until 1993. The V-42 weighs , with either a or long blade and handle, for a total length of approximately . Its features included a double hollow-ground, stiletto-type blade equipped with a thumb-imprint
Stiletto which was shaped and turned on a lathe. The stiletto blade was usually hammer-forged into a dense rod with a narrow, triangular cross-section, without any sharpened edges. However, other examples of the period have emerged bearing round, square, or diamond cross-sections. The Italian word "stiletto" comes from the Latin "stilus", the thin pointed Roman writing instrument used to engrave wax or clay tablets in ancient times. The stiletto began to gain fame during the late Middle Ages, when it was the secondary weapon of knights. Originally designed as a purely offensive weapon, the stiletto was used to finish off a