Any Resident Bowie Enthusiasts On The Forum?

[Howard Wallace]

Yes, I too have become enamored of the quintessential American knife.

Several months ago Mr. James Keating turned me on to some of its possibilities. Then I had to pick up one of the Ontario Helles Belles. It's narrow blade and light balance lend it to fencing type techniques, while maintaining a decent chopping/severing ability.

I have a nice dirk with a false edge that handles bowie techniques quite nicely. Both my kids have matching dirks. Sambar stag handles, blades forged from a carriage spring.

My budget will not hold up to some of the elegant bowies turned out by well known ABS mastersmiths. However, I have found some good deals from lesser known smiths on e-bay. Now I have one handforged bowie, the handforged dirk, and the Ontario production bowie in my armory. Really that's enough for me to practice my backcuts with.

 

[t1mpani]

Ironwood- I think mine is second, before he started making the curved handle.

Ah yes, that beauty---was the look inspiration for mine, I just told him to curve the handle, lengthen it, and do an assymetric guard so it wasn't an out and out copy.

 

[DannyinJapan]

JP Moss, Texas Bowie Maker. Cool guy and friend of Clint Eastwoods.
He made the bowie knife used in "Unforgiven."

 

[Doug C]

I third Bill Bagwell's Hell's Belle,would prefer wider blade,though.Look at Bailey Bradshaw's work.

 

[RogerP]

Resident bowie enthusiast? That shoe fits. You certainly have nothing if not choice in this category.

Here are a few of the many great makers for you to consider:

Jerry Fisk:

Russ Andrews, Roger Massey, Harvey Dean, Don Hanson:

Russ Andrews again:

Burt Foster:

Bailey Bradshaw (pic from rehobothcustomknives.com):

Mike Williams (pic from knifeart.com):

Ron Newton (Newton photo):

There are MANY others, but I either own or have owned examples of the work of each of the above makers and they are all first rate.

The list goes on and on… Wheeler, Primos, Gatlin, Farr, John White, Barker, Fitch, Fogg, McIntyre, Caffrey, Camerer, Cashen, Jordan, Roberts, Lamey, Hudson, Filicietti, Walker, Winkler, J.R. Cook, Hancock – you an find a terrific bowie from $300 to $3,000 and beyond.

Cheers,

Roger

 

[RogerP]

For those who would like to see some Bagwells, this is a small part of what was a large collector's display of Bill's knives from the 2004 Spirit of Steel show:

Cheers,

Roger

 

[munk]

Wonder RogerP, and thanks.


I like the straight edged versions, very useful. And that last number is reminicient of HI's own Cherokee Rose.





munk

 

[Drdan]

I'm even more confused with my choice of knifemaker than before.

I have a lot of very good leads to follow. Unfortunately, a lot of these smiths have LONG waiting lists, so I might even pick up an available and already made blade. It's really amazing how many excellent knifemakers there are in North America. Most of them have great websites too, where one can glean lots of pertinent information.

RogerP... Thanks for the photos... You have excellent taste in Bowies! The photos you attached show my blade shape preferences.

 

[RogerP]

... Unfortunately, a lot of these smiths have LONG waiting lists, so I might even pick up an available and already made blade.

This is true, but if you get on a couple of those lists and try to space things out, you'd be amazed at how quickly the time flies and some excellent bowies land in your lap at straight-from-the-maker prices.

Plus, not all the wait lists are long. Burt Foster can make you a bowie in under 6 months and I believe Bailey Bradshaw is somewhere around a year or so.

Also keep in mind that a couple of these makers with HUGE wait lists (Fisk, Fogg) periodically make knives available on their web sites on either a first-come-first-served or a lottery basis.

But working with a reputable dealer can get you a bowie today for not a huge premium, if you pick the right dealer.

Roger

 

[munk]

Thanks for the good information, Roger P. Stop by more often. And bring the beautiful pictures with you.



munk