General "gents" Bowie proportions

[deloid]

I have the mostly commonly discussed books on Bowies. There has been a shift in modern making (in my opinion) to a somewhat standard proportion for "Gents" Bowies.

I am not suggesting that the upper end Bowies look alike...just that there seems to be some consistent features that are usually not listed.

For instance- a classic contemporary Bowie of a bit over 9" in length tends to have a ricasso of about 1/4" thickness and a width of about 2/3rds of the blade width. The blade tip tends to fall in a centerline of the blade mass when bisecting the line to the mid ricasso. At least this is what I seem to see.

Is a ricasso of 1/4", 1 " width, .62-.75" length about right for a 9 1/4" blade length , 1 1/2" width (as an average)?

I apologize in advance if this post seems to ignore the variety and art of each individual maker. That is not my intent.

Thanks-
__________________
Dean Lapinel, MD
Member of CKCA, ABS & Idaho Knife Association

 

[Fred.Rowe]

I don't possess enough knowledge to offer an opinion on the makeup of the so called gent's bowie; but I will offer this: The ricasso of any knife is the beginning point, the foundation of all that happens forward and aft of that point. If the ricasso is oversized or undersized the rest of the knife will be out of proportion. I believe this is true across every dimension. I begin every knife at the ricasso, if I get that right the rest of the knife will flow in both directions.

Fred

 

[jdm61]

i try not to go over a 2 to 1 width to length ratio on the ricasso, even shorter on big knives.

 

[deloid]

i try not to go over a 2 to 1 width to length ratio on the ricasso, even shorter on big knives.

Beautiful knives on your welcome page Joe!
Would you do me the favor of measuring the ricasso dimensions on those as well as the blade width?
Thanks-
Dean

 

[deloid]

I don't possess enough knowledge to offer an opinion on the makeup of the so called gent's bowie; but I will offer this: The ricasso of any knife is the beginning point, the foundation of all that happens forward and aft of that point. If the ricasso is oversized or undersized the rest of the knife will be out of proportion. I believe this is true across every dimension. I begin every knife at the ricasso, if I get that right the rest of the knife will flow in both directions.

Fred

Exactly Fred. It seems the more I learn and the better I get at "seeing" knives, the less I realize I know. I'm at the point now where the ricasso and the play between it and the plunge, blade width and of course the diameter of the handle at this point is stunning me to immobility. What's the point of putting a couple of hundred hours into a knife if I get this proportion wrong. If I notice a bad decision in this area only after I am finished then... well I guess I start the next knife knowing a little more.

 

[Fred.Rowe]

Exactly Fred. It seems the more I learn and the better I get at "seeing" knives, the less I realize I know. I'm at the point now where the ricasso and the play between it and the plunge, blade width and of course the diameter of the handle at this point is stunning me to immobility. What's the point of putting a couple of hundred hours into a knife if I get this proportion wrong. If I notice a bad decision in this area only after I am finished then... well I guess I start the next knife knowing a little more.

Well said. I believe this is why it takes such a large investment in time and effort to become a proficient knife maker.