Ed Fowler sheep stuff!

[2knife]

Guys I had a real nice double guard bowie boot knife from Ed maybe 15 years ago and it was nice. I ended up selling it which I regreted at the time but I needed the money. My point is as a maker one needs to experiment sometimes with and try different styles as Moran did with a jambiya/Arab style piece to keep things fresh. Ed's knives and style never really evolved it has stayed stagnant since I bought my first Fowler knife back in the mid 1990s. I still collect custom knives but I also collect antique tribal African,arab/Indo Persian knives to keep me out of the collecting rut. Change is good sometimes.

Welcome to the forums, Louie. I cannot speak for Ed, but I think it boils down to his philosophy.. He's stated before to me that he makes every single knife for himself. So, you might extrapolate that he doesn't really invest his energies suiting demands of a certain clientele. Especially the knife community, where collectors are frequently dictating every aspect to the maker.
It's a way to operate, find a style that suits and stick with it.

Even if you take Bill Moran's example, his knives are easy to spot. Very distinct style he created, especially the Persian Mediterranean inspired.. but, in essence it isn't about the variation, it's about the substance. I would disagree that Ed's work ever became "stagnant"- even if it appears that way to you. It never did, and still isn't the "same" knife. Just an observation..

Would love to see a photo of your old Bowie, or hear about it more.
Thanks,
David

 

[2knife]

Louie,
Also wanted to add, no offense meant. You are entitled to have that opinion. As everyone is free to decide for themselves... I know others who would support your position.
David

 

[Louieblades]

David

No offense taken. I just like variety in my collecting it's just the way I collect. Sorry but that little knife is long gone. The knife had a 4.25 inch slim bowie blade double guard. I picked it up in gun store in NYC the owner had six of Ed's knives I spent $300 for it at the time and I kicked myself for not buying the whole lot considering I saw Ed at the NYC knife show in the fall and he told me a new one would have cost three times what I spent. Btw here are two of historical (Tactical knives) pieces that were custom made for the original owners back in the 1800s. The top one is from the Sudan wars 1895-98 the other is from the Afghan wars of the 1870-80 the blade is wootz. Sometimes one needs to take a break from the modern stuff. If the pics don't fit in to the thread let me know I will delete them.

 

[2knife]

Thanks Louie,
A familiar tale! Sounds like a real drama at the time. Always fun to hear the stories..
David

*I just noticed your knife photos while posting. Great pieces of history, I will enjoy taking another look at these.

 

[Kevin Jones]

Thanks for sharing.
I enjoyed seeing them.

 

[Snody]

Sweet Photo..
Awesome Collection..

 

[2knife]

Thanks Mike, I appreciate it!

Here are more, these from Blade Show 2009.

 

[2knife]

A Marbles Woodcraft inspired style:

Large Camp & Fighter:

Big Camps (2005)

Jose Reyes collection photo:

 

[2knife]

MS Dagger, green horn

Jose's Bowie Grande

Bowie : G. McKenna

"Shannon" Bowie & yearling

 

[2knife]

Camp knife: 2002

Photo editing by PhilL

 

[2knife]

Some of Ed's knives from Blade 2010:

 

[Hmathews]

Good looking knives David! I have to admit though, the used one above looks the best to me.

 

[2knife]

Good looking knives David! I have to admit though, the used one above looks the best to me.

Harry, the adventure knife? I wouldn't argue with you. A real beauty! I haven't heard of any tales lately..

 

[SBranson]

Thanks for all those pics. It's really interesting to look at so many variations of the theme and see how the differences of line really make some appeal more than others.

I've been working my way through Ed's dvd series and it's fascinating how scientific his approach is to the blades. His performance tests are unbelievable.

 

[2knife]

A few stellar examples from Ed's protégée MS Bill Burke: (blade gallery photos)

 

[2knife]

Eldon Perkins:

 

[2knife]

Butch Deveraux

 

[2knife]

Audra Draper

 

[2knife]

A few more Ed Fowler knives: (found most of these online)

early knife, in stag (excuse photo quality)

 

[Lorien]

Is that Brad Pitt? Shouldn't he have been using a Fowler knife in Inglorious Bastards? Sheesh. Hollywood.