A Little Shop Time With Bill Bagwell Some Informal Testing And Rare Hunter

JParanee

JParanee

Joined
Dec 23, 2006
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Back in December when I was out hunting with Bill I had some time on my last day to spend with him in his shop.

Bill had decided to make the Ranch Manager Harrell a hunting knife as a present for the good time he showed us.

Fantastic gesture on Bill's part and Harrell is the type of guy to put a handy knife to good use.

Bill does not do many small blades these days and prefers to concentrate on what he is known for. Bowie's.

He had a small billet of his cable damascus so as soon as he had his forge hot he had at it and I was amazed at how quickly it started to come together. At least the forgeing out and shapeing part.

We where pressed for time due to only being able to post 10 pics on a post this is going to go quickly

Here we go
Bill by his forge
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It was in the 20's that day and Bill's shop is not heated
Rven forgeing out this small blade quickly buried the thermometer in Bill's shop
I did not take this pic for a few minutes after the forge was shut down so it was on it's way down

I can not imagine working in the Texas heat when this room must get unbearable
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Here is the finished piece pictured with one of Bill's Sharp's and a cartridge belt
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We had a little more time before we had to go to the airport and Bill happened to have an 11 inch or so Bowie blade that when he made his mark the stamp jumped so with a smile he said ya want to beat it up a bit.

So we had some informal testing

Here we hammered it thru a penny
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It still shaved in the same spot the penny was cut with
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Then we played put a big pipe on the knife and give it a pull
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Again guys this was all just for fun and that I had in spades on this trip

Thats me on the pipe and when I let up on it the knife returned

Thanks Bill and thanks for looking
 
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sweet thread, Joe:thumbup::cool:
 
That's a very cool gift--looks like a useful knife, too. Strong, tough blades and good times--thanks for the photos.

Will
 
Thanks for the pic's. It's always interesting to see these great smiths at work. I am sure the new gift will be appreciated as well, thats a sweet knife.
 
That was a nice gesture from Bill - no doubt that knife will be treasured by its new owner.

Roger
 
Great thread.
Thanks for taking the time to post, Joe ! :thumbup:

Doug
 
Nice Post! I thought I'd add a bit to this thread, and doing so has left me a bit bummed.... Sometime during the mid 90s I met Bill as at that time he and I shared a penchant for fast motorcycles. (Sorry Bill if that was a secret). He and I became friendly, and even though we lost touch, I fondly consider Bill my friend. As we zipped about east Texas and we talked about knives, firearms Buckskinning, Bills Bear hunting expeditions (armed with a Hawkins, black powder pistol and one of his knives) and such I was invited to Bill's home.

I only visited once but recall it as if I just left. We toured his forge and played with a couple of his knives, slicing a free-hanging 1" hemp rope in half in a single slice with little effort. At the slash of the Bagwell, the bottom bit of the rope simply fell straight to the ground. Quiet impressive!. Bill is very endearing, and at the time I did not grasp that I was in the company of a true artist and craftsman.

I purchased a .58 cal Hawkins Replica from Bill, complete with a hand crafted kit and all the trimmings. Posting this message has reminded me of what was lost when the kit was stolen as it contained a 4" Bagwell and other hard to come by items.. The Kit had been removed from it's hiding place as I was re-supplying, but fortunately the Hawkins was hidden. It is depressing to recall the theft of the kit as I will never be able to replace it.

Bill is truly a gentleman, and I am going to attempt to reconnect with him.
 
JoeDawg said:
Nice Post! I thought I'd add a bit to this thread, and doing so has left me a bit bummed.... Sometime during the mid 90s I met Bill as at that time he and I shared a penchant for fast motorcycles. (Sorry Bill if that was a secret). He and I became friendly, and even though we lost touch, I fondly consider Bill my friend. As we zipped about east Texas and we talked about knives, firearms Buckskinning, Bills Bear hunting expeditions (armed with a Hawkins, black powder pistol and one of his knives) and such I was invited to Bill's home.

I only visited once but recall it as if I just left. We toured his forge and played with a couple of his knives, slicing a free-hanging 1" hemp rope in half in a single slice with little effort. At the slash of the Bagwell, the bottom bit of the rope simply fell straight to the ground. Quiet impressive!. Bill is very endearing, and at the time I did not grasp that I was in the company of a true artist and craftsman.

I purchased a .58 cal Hawkins Replica from Bill, complete with a hand crafted kit and all the trimmings. Posting this message has reminded me of what was lost when the kit was stolen as it contained a 4" Bagwell and other hard to come by items.. The Kit had been removed from it's hiding place as I was re-supplying, but fortunately the Hawkins was hidden. It is depressing to recall the theft of the kit as I will never be able to replace it.

Bill is truly a gentleman, and I am going to attempt to reconnect with him.
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Nice post if ya need his # email me at JParanee@aol.com
 
Thank you for several things. It was the writing of Mr. Bagwell that triggered my collecting interest in Bowies, enabling me to understand a bit about them. Now, with your photos, I know the appearance of a man I admire.

Thank you as well for keeping the memory of the great Phil Hartsfield before us. May he indeed R.I.P.
 
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