John Cohea Frontier Style Bowie, Sheath and Disiplay

HTMD

HTMD

Joined
Feb 15, 2002
Messages
1,705
I learned something important while making these images. If the fringe looks right then the picture is tight!
Yup, it's all about arranging the fringe "in a pleasing manner" which is easier said than done, Illtellya. :mad:

Nice work by John Cohea. :thumbup: I hear he's got a DVD out now. ;)

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WoW! :eek:

Man-o-man has John found his niche. This is a pleasure to admire.

The stand, the fringe, the twisted steel, the steel, the handle. It's all so 'OLD'.

Very captivating display. Your second photo, in particular, sends it over the center field wall.

I love that little plate with the Western engraving. What's going on with that crazy little tooth latch? Where is that found?

John: Nicely done.
Buddy: Smartly finished.

Coop
 
John's work is the best, and just keeps on improving! His period work is among the best in the industry, on par with Daniel Winkler and Karen Shook....from the hand of one very talented artist!!!!!:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::):):)
 
Beautiful bowie/sheath/display set.
I feel the best frontier or period pieces are the ones which look authentic or naturally like old museum pieces, not like the maker tried to make look as such. John is successful at obtaining this look.

Buddy's images are outstanding.
 
John all I can say is that is a TRUE work of art. It is plain beautiful. It is a totally different type of knife comming out of your shop.You are a true artist .Dont forget how you made it because I might need one in my collection of your works Thanks for showigf. KT
 
Way to go John that is sweet I love your stuff and this is my favorite one of your so far as it is very clean and still comes across as an old world pice . your work just keeps getting better
 
SharpByCoop said:
What's going on with that crazy little tooth latch? Where is that found?
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Good point, Coop. I didn't make that clear but it's at the bottom of the belt-loop on the back of the sheath. That would be a small bear claw, I think. Hopefully John will clarify. Also, I should add that the OAL is 15 3/8 in. and the handle is 5 1/8 in. There is a very nice distal taper going toward the tip of the blade. Coupled with the non-tapered full tang and handle slabs these features make for a perfectly balanced big knife with quick blade movements. :)
 
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Thanks guys, and thank you Buddy for the post and the absoulutely fantastic pics!Buddy gave the length, now I will fill in the rest of the blanks.The blade is forged from a bar of 5 bar turkish twist damascus, forged by one of my best friends Chad Nichols, and forged to shape by me.The bar is made from two bars of small alternating twists on either side, with a larger bar in the center, and the steel was specially made for this knife.The fittings are structral wrought iron, and was salvaged from a grain mill in Wisconson that was built in 1872, and in it's heyday was a major international export mill.The spacer is actually the head of a large wrought iron bolt, the guard and handle frame is flat bar, and the sheath prop on the stand is a twisted square cut wrought iron nail.The liners are coined nickle silver, frame is wrought iron, and the scales are pre-ban bark elephant ivory.There are two exposed nickle silver pins, with 10 hidden pins in the handle construction.
The sheath is my usual rawhide over veg-tan, with deerskin fringe, and a concho and spots.The claw in question is a coyote claw, and it is present on all my rawhide sheaths in basiclly the same spot, at the end of the belt loop.I started doing this early on as a maker's mark of sorts, to distingish my sheaths from those of other rawhide sheath artists such as Karen Shook and Jeannie McDonald.The only time you won't see the claw is on a sheath going out of country, to avoid a hassle with Customs.
The stand is weathered barn oak, driftwood, forged mild steel, and as mentioned, a twisted wrought iron nail.
This set was a commision by one of our own, whom I'm sure will chime in later.It was a real pleasure to make this set, as it gave me the chance to show off a little bit:DI also need to thank my good friend and ABS Mastersmith Terry Vandeventer, for answering any "technical" questions I had, on this piece and others, as well as I'm sure many more in the future;)!
 
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I guess I will chime in now. First Buddy as usual thank you for the wonderful pics. I really love the way you have presented the package.
John it was a blast working with you on this one, well worth the way. I have patiently waited my turn for one of John's pieces and he has certainly exceeded my expectations. So much so we have another in the works as soon as John's schedule will allow. This has everything I anticipated and more. I cannot wait to have this home and will display it with pride.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!!

Thank you so much John!

Jon
 
I had a great time working with you on this as well Jon, and hope you enjoy it for a while to come. Looking forward to the next project as well:thumbup:!!
 
Thats some really cool steel, but of course I had to stare at the ivory for a while. Nice work all around.
 
KT, I actually have a Chuck Ward photo of another damascus bowie to post in a few days.Jon Brand, I got this set of scales shortly after I saw your post looking for a set, but by that time Jon K had laid claim to them for this project! They are VERY hard to come by, and I hope you eventually find a set!
 
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WOW!! This is stunning in every detail. GREAT work by John and super pictures by Buddy!

Pleasure seeing them,
Peter
 
I am always tickled to death to see your work John. The total package is just outstanding. Every element compliments another. This is the kind of "primitive" I love, not the ones that are "half-finished" and called a primitive or period piece. A true period piece probably takes twice as long to complete properly as would your traditional custom Bowie or such. All the time and hard work is worth it though as John proves here again. Buddy, those pictures really bring out the proper look for the piece. Just fantastic work all around. Thanks for sharing this.
J.
 
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