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hands down Mammoth laminate, it's not even a close race.
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Bladeforums - Best Bowie 2007 - Here are your finalists!
- Thread starter RogerP
- Start date
I voted for the Russ Andrews. I tried analyzing them and deciding what I liked about each one. Instead, I found myself trying to find something I didn't like about a knife, just so I could eliminate it from consideration. It came down to this. If I walked up to a table with all five knives on it, which would be the first I would pick up? It would be Russ Andrews' knife.
The ghosting created by the Foster laminate's carbon migration looks like ashi. I think the effect is stunning. It makes the knife in the same way the firestarter artifact makes the Hanson. On another knife it might not work, but as someone else mentioned the foster is a study of contrasts and it works really really well.
Culpeper
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Thanks for the compliment, Culpeper! Bowies are mostly a special order thing for us, and the customer usually has restrictions on what they like. The one in this competition was like that. The customer was nice enough to let us have it photographed by Coop before we shipped to him.
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Actually Harry, if all 60+ of the knives in the initial thread were on a table for all of us to examine rather than viewing them in photos perhaps these five wouldn't be here as the initial voting was very close with the exception of the Foster which had a decent margin.
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You got a couple of nice Bowies on your own site!
I agree Harry. You do have some nice ones. Surprised you are able to hang on to those. :thumbup:
Kevin, I agree completely. I have picked up knives that looked fantastic and after feeling it in my hand, wondered why I picked the thing up. I doubt I would have that reaction on many of the 60 knives that were pictured here, but the cream would rise to the top. I tried on several occasions to post my favorites and finally just gave up. Picking one out of the five finalist wasn't much easier. They are all fantastic looking knives that anyone should be proud of.
A thought I had when you mentioned having all 60 on a table is what kind of display of talent would that be, if all 60 of the knives could be shown together at the Blade Show on one or two tables? Shoot, even having all the pictures on the same table would be fascinating.
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My vote is for the Knight. Thanks to STeven I now have a "thing" about handle/blade ratio and the Knight is the only one that hits that squarely for me.
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Boy this has been a difficult decision .... there is not one of these knives that I would not gladly have in my collection, in fact there was not many in the original 60+ that were not worth very careful consideration.
My process for the final choice has been to look at each knife and consider if there is anything I would like different on it, the smallest of things that would bring the piece more in line with MY taste .... interestingly I realised something from this process, the more ornate or complex a piece the more there is to tinker with and adjust .... so by definition there will be fewer chances of making a piece that will appeal to a wider audience as there are more aspects that people would want slightly different, this does not reflect on the piece or the maker, but the different tastes of individual... but I digress.
My Process of elimination:
Dean Feather Diablo: This is a beautiful knife with a fantastic blade, but I think I am in the minority when it comes to this pattern, its just not my favourite. That being said if I was to have one it would be very similar, however my most significant modification would be to add a small front bolster or extend the guard up into the handle slightly, toghther with adding a little more contouring of the guard, rounding off the top surface to make it appear a touch thinner ( see I told you I was having to be real picky)!
Foster Laminate: Boy I love this knife and wil be in any queue when Roger is forced to sell due to the series of events I have instigated , when I showed the five pictures to my wife, this was the one she picked .... but the ghosting of the laminate is the thing I would change, by making it consistent on both sides of the blade, so it was either present on both sides, or absent on both sides, but not different.
Hanson Artifact Guild Show winner: Now this is really reaching, but there are only two things on this, the first being that I would really like to be able to examine the handle in the flesh as I am not sure if I wouldn't prefer a plain piece of ivory with a fluted pommel, or whether the artifact actually enhances the presence of the blade. The second is the smallest of all issues, and that is the slight inconsistent discolouration of the ivory at the ferrule!
Knight Maple and Steel: What would I change on this? Nothing, nada, zilch ..... Jason nailed it, I even love the richness and simple contrast in the maple ..... the gun greyed fittings are inspired .......... its only shortcoming is the the fact that it is up against a knife that could have been plucked from my subconscious .....
My choice is the Andrews Damascus and Stag As with the Knight, I cannot find anything I would want to change , however this one just connects with me .... its like a favourite colour, or your favourite meal, you can;t say why .... it just is! A truley timeless classic which I would love to carry everyday!
Cheers,
Stephen
My process for the final choice has been to look at each knife and consider if there is anything I would like different on it, the smallest of things that would bring the piece more in line with MY taste .... interestingly I realised something from this process, the more ornate or complex a piece the more there is to tinker with and adjust .... so by definition there will be fewer chances of making a piece that will appeal to a wider audience as there are more aspects that people would want slightly different, this does not reflect on the piece or the maker, but the different tastes of individual... but I digress.
My Process of elimination:
Dean Feather Diablo: This is a beautiful knife with a fantastic blade, but I think I am in the minority when it comes to this pattern, its just not my favourite. That being said if I was to have one it would be very similar, however my most significant modification would be to add a small front bolster or extend the guard up into the handle slightly, toghther with adding a little more contouring of the guard, rounding off the top surface to make it appear a touch thinner ( see I told you I was having to be real picky)!
Foster Laminate: Boy I love this knife and wil be in any queue when Roger is forced to sell due to the series of events I have instigated
, when I showed the five pictures to my wife, this was the one she picked .... but the ghosting of the laminate is the thing I would change, by making it consistent on both sides of the blade, so it was either present on both sides, or absent on both sides, but not different. Hanson Artifact Guild Show winner: Now this is really reaching, but there are only two things on this, the first being that I would really like to be able to examine the handle in the flesh as I am not sure if I wouldn't prefer a plain piece of ivory with a fluted pommel, or whether the artifact actually enhances the presence of the blade. The second is the smallest of all issues, and that is the slight inconsistent discolouration of the ivory at the ferrule!
Knight Maple and Steel: What would I change on this? Nothing, nada, zilch ..... Jason nailed it, I even love the richness and simple contrast in the maple ..... the gun greyed fittings are inspired .......... its only shortcoming is the the fact that it is up against a knife that could have been plucked from my subconscious .....
My choice is the Andrews Damascus and Stag As with the Knight, I cannot find anything I would want to change , however this one just connects with me .... its like a favourite colour, or your favourite meal, you can;t say why .... it just is! A truley timeless classic which I would love to carry everyday!
Cheers,
Stephen
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Allowing everyone a vote was the right thing, and this contest is most enjoyable and instructive. You're a good man, Roger.
The Knight bowie was the plain Jane contestant--no hamon, no fancy damascus, or laminated steel, no engraving, no primo stag or ivory--just pedestrian steel and maple . . . and perfect form and function. Bedazzlements are pretty, but pretty is not better. Form and function are better, and better is best, which is what we are voting on. Therefore, Knight is not a Knight but a king, and kings wear crowns. So, by the power vested in me by myself I crown the Knight bowie best of 2007.
Can you imagined that Knight bowie all gussied-up?
The Knight bowie was the plain Jane contestant--no hamon, no fancy damascus, or laminated steel, no engraving, no primo stag or ivory--just pedestrian steel and maple . . . and perfect form and function. Bedazzlements are pretty, but pretty is not better. Form and function are better, and better is best, which is what we are voting on. Therefore, Knight is not a Knight but a king, and kings wear crowns. So, by the power vested in me by myself I crown the Knight bowie best of 2007.
Can you imagined that Knight bowie all gussied-up?
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It was a tough call for me, as 3 of the 5 knives each had elements of my ideal Bowie knife. However, no single knife of the 5 exactly matched my own preferences, so I analyzed these knives based on 2 major characteristics: blade shape and overall standout. The knife I ultimately voted for was the Foster; it is stunning. It grabbed my attention over and over, more than the other blades. I also liked its blade shape more than the other 4 knives. All of the bladesmiths did fantastic jobs, though :thumbup:
I had a tough time and used process of elimination also. Because I'm not a fan of damascus, Russ's and Harvey's started off at a disadvantage.
Harvey's feather pattern blows me away. Not being a damascus guy in general and getting wowed by a damascus pattern gave it mucho points for me. Thing is, I don't like the general shape of the knife. Too stiff looking, for lack of a better word. The overall shape and flow just doesn't speak to me.
I love Russ's sense of design, flow, lines, simple and elegant detailing, etc. and the overall shape of this knife is probably my favorite of the five. The way he sculpted the guard is beautiful. But I keep wishing it was a plain carbon blade....My particular hang-up since I'm sure most members would say a damascus blade is preferable. I also don't like the color of the stag as much as I do a natural colored or amber colored stag. Those two things worked against it for my aesthetics.
Burt's laminate is really cool. But like the Dean, the blade was the one part that spoke to me while the other areas didn't really knock my socks off. I didn't dislike them, I just don't love them. Another contratrian taste I have is that I'm not as attracted to mammoth ivory (or ivory in general) as others. So while I can appreciate the handle material, it's an intellectual appreciation instead of a deep emotional attraction.
Don's piece is amazing overall. That length and how it flows is absolutely stunning. Although I don't really care about ivory one way or the other, I love that he kept the artifact nature of it. I love the overall shape. I don't really have any negative crits of the knife, it's just a matter of degrees as to how much I do like it compared to one I eventually decided to vote for.
Which comes to Jason's piece. The simplest of the five in terms of embellishment and the least expensive in terms of materials used. Yet the shape and flow of the knife in general just shouts out at me. I love the sculpting of the handle, my favorite handle of the five. The guard and spacer is my second favorite (next to Russ's). And the blade shape is as appealing to me as Russ's. I love the gray blued fittings. I think that its lack of premium materials vs. the others yet making it to the finals speaks volumes for the design and flow of the knife. And it's that overall shape without anything on the materials front that I don't like that won me over.
Harvey's feather pattern blows me away. Not being a damascus guy in general and getting wowed by a damascus pattern gave it mucho points for me. Thing is, I don't like the general shape of the knife. Too stiff looking, for lack of a better word. The overall shape and flow just doesn't speak to me.
I love Russ's sense of design, flow, lines, simple and elegant detailing, etc. and the overall shape of this knife is probably my favorite of the five. The way he sculpted the guard is beautiful. But I keep wishing it was a plain carbon blade....My particular hang-up since I'm sure most members would say a damascus blade is preferable. I also don't like the color of the stag as much as I do a natural colored or amber colored stag. Those two things worked against it for my aesthetics.
Burt's laminate is really cool. But like the Dean, the blade was the one part that spoke to me while the other areas didn't really knock my socks off. I didn't dislike them, I just don't love them. Another contratrian taste I have is that I'm not as attracted to mammoth ivory (or ivory in general) as others. So while I can appreciate the handle material, it's an intellectual appreciation instead of a deep emotional attraction.
Don's piece is amazing overall. That length and how it flows is absolutely stunning. Although I don't really care about ivory one way or the other, I love that he kept the artifact nature of it. I love the overall shape. I don't really have any negative crits of the knife, it's just a matter of degrees as to how much I do like it compared to one I eventually decided to vote for.
Which comes to Jason's piece. The simplest of the five in terms of embellishment and the least expensive in terms of materials used. Yet the shape and flow of the knife in general just shouts out at me. I love the sculpting of the handle, my favorite handle of the five. The guard and spacer is my second favorite (next to Russ's). And the blade shape is as appealing to me as Russ's. I love the gray blued fittings. I think that its lack of premium materials vs. the others yet making it to the finals speaks volumes for the design and flow of the knife. And it's that overall shape without anything on the materials front that I don't like that won me over.
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I just called Jason Knight. He was out shooting. Good 'ol boy that he is... 
:thumbup: He had no idea he was being talked about, or that this 'contest' was underway. (He's dialup) He sure was happy to know he was 'chosen' as a finalist, and will probably peek inside.
Anyway, the call was twofold: Giving him information, and getting MY foot in the door for the future. The system works: Good photo + buzz = more work.
Boy, the comments and insights have drawn me back to each image time and again. The writing is virtuous also. It's really interesting to hear what others see.
Coop
:thumbup: He had no idea he was being talked about, or that this 'contest' was underway. (He's dialup) He sure was happy to know he was 'chosen' as a finalist, and will probably peek inside.Anyway, the call was twofold: Giving him information, and getting MY foot in the door for the future. The system works: Good photo + buzz = more work.
Boy, the comments and insights have drawn me back to each image time and again. The writing is virtuous also. It's really interesting to hear what others see.
Coop
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I just called Jason Knight. He was out shooting. Good 'ol boy that he is...
Anyway, the call was twofold: Giving him information, and getting MY foot in the door for the future. The system works: Good photo + buzz = more work.
Boy, the comments and insights have drawn me back to each image time and again. The writing is virtuous also. It's really interesting to hear what others see.
Coop
he was prolly out shooting my damn gun! LOL
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Hi Charles and others: I do what I do because I love it and it's effective. I was flattered to see 'my' work in the first and second thread. Like everyone, I would rather handle these knives, too. Many I DID!Coop, don't think it went unnoticed that 3(4?) out of 5 of the finalists happen to be represented by your pics
I see that Burt doesn't need my help at all.
Thank you.
Coop
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Burt's photo is as impressive as his knife. Coop you been teaching this guy?