Gil Hibben Highlander Bowie (production version)

C

Cliff Stamp

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Awhile ago someone asked me in email could you use one of the fantasy hibben pieces as a serious field knife. Yes the steel is soft, but its harder than wood, so just what would happen if you took it out. Would the edge roll after the first chop, could you not cut hard woods at all?

This isn't a full review, but mainly an attempt to provide some details along those lines. In short, to no surprise the edge is fairly limiting and rolls quickly on hardwoods even with a 20 degree microbevel, it consistently started reflecting light after a short period of time.

When used for harder work, limbing on heavy ingrowth the edge also readily took visible damage. However if used with care, a lot could be done with the blade.

As well, even when used for the hardest tasks, it didn't break in half, the handle didn't fall off. The damage it did sustain could be readily filed / hammered out.

More details :

http://www.physics.mun.ca/~sstamp/knives/hibben_highlander_bowie.html

-Cliff
 
Cliff, I've really enjoyed your reviews of mild steel blades -- first the tension bar knives you made, and now this ... um, whatever we should call it. Offers some very interesting insight, IMO.

This one interested me because some years ago, I bought a Hibben Highlander Bowie for next to nothing as a gift for my nephew. I was surprised that Hibben hadn't completely abandoned all aspects of sound blade design, and remember hefting the knife and thinking, "This thing isn't as bad as it might seem."

It turned out my nephew was very shrewd with the knife, which was some oddball variation called "Black Silver" as I recall, and he sold it, still NIB, to someone who collects these things for over $200.

Anyway, I feel like you've satisfied the unfulfilled urge I had to chop something with it. Thanks.

Dave
 
I used knives of this nature about eight years or so ago last I recall. I bought a few at a flea market being curious about their abilies. I gave one to my brother and used one myself. I found they would ripple far too readily. On the positive, in the years since then my technique has improved to the extent, as has my knowledge that I could use something like this in the field, with care and not have it harmed.

I would not however like to have to depend on it, because if stressed, or disabled, or otherwise technique limited, problems would arise rapidly, trying to be nice and fluid and consistent when its -30 and hailing for example, it a little harder when its around zero and there is a nice breeze, and no rain/snow.

There is also the issue of letting someone else use it, give this blade to a novice with more than average strength and little enthusiasm, and I don't doubt the blade would be rippled immediately and then torn shortly after.

It did bring up some interesting questions, mainly back to something I have wondered about before which is the limbing ability of a straight blade, recurve, or sloping profile (valiant golok).

This one, despite its fantasy nature, did well, raise up the grind (flatten it), modify the grip, and make it out of a decent steel and it would be interesting to see it work against the BM and a Golok patten. The big problem with such profiles though is that they don't fare well on thick wood work as the recurve presents the wrong profile to the wood.

It was in any case an interesting change from most of the knife work I do.

-Cliff
 
Tests like this well illustrate the point you made in your original tension bar knife review: "Geometry defines the limits of cutting performance, steel defines the limits of functional geometry." This insight in itself dispels a lot of myths ... and unfortunately raises a great many questions about the knife industry, and the way many develop and market their products.

Really appreciate your efforts, Cliff. Best free education I've ever received; better than some of that for which I paid some rather hefty tuition, in fact.

Dave
 
Thanks, it is interesting work in general, and enjoyable. I think everyone should work with some of these really low end knives on occasion, if for nothing else than to put the value of some of the better blades into perspective. While there may be problems with the steel requiring you to work with thicker angles than optimal, you can still learn a decent amount about handling, balance and so on. Plus there may be a time when you have to depend on tools other than what you would like to have, and unfortunately the lower end ones are far and above the most common.

-Cliff
 
This is a review that had to be done, with the lack of respect blades of this type get. Not everyone can afford a Hibben custom, and for the kind of use a fantasy/fighter Bowie gets in the real world, they certainly seem okay for the price.
It does make me wish they'd use slighter better stainless steel, because I really like some of Hibben's less flamboyant designs.
 
Yeah, on an interesting note, while I was using this blade I was thinking of several other knives I had used, lots more expensive and much better grades of steel which quite frankly I would not prefer.

Having a great steel doesn't automatically give higher performance, the geometry of the blade, balance, handle etc., all have to be properly designed.

-Cliff
 
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