Kabar Large Heavy Bowie vs Ontario SP50?

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Wolfeye

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Apr 26, 2015
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Hey guys. I was wondering about a comparison between the Kabar Large Heavy Bowie & the Ontario SP50. I'm not looking to spend the WELL over $100 that the Kabar costs now, but I was just curious about the different pros & cons for both. It seems like the SP50 is better steel (in terms of solidity & edge retention- 5160 vs 1085) & also has a better design for doing fine work (has a finger choil, whereas the other one doesn't). Anyone have experience with either or both?
 
I don't have experience with either of these knives. That being said, I have the KA-BAR USMC and the Ontario SP1. I haven't beat the heck out of either of these, but the Ontario, despite coming with a duller blade out of the box, performs on par with the KA-BAR in every way, and uses a thicker slab of the same steel as the KA-BAR. With a price tag 1/2 that of the KA-BAR, I would have to say the Ontario was the better buy.

I know neither of these knives were a part of the OP's inquiry, but its a comparison of 2 very similar knives from the same 2 brands.
 
Properly heat treated both steels are tough so don't let that be your deciding factor. I do not own either but they are similar and look to be good designs.
 
I have both and think either is a suitable big knife for camp or the woods. I don't care for the swedge??? On the Kabwe. The false edge makes batoning more difficult. So the Ontario gets my vote for sure
 
Love my Ontario. Big hunk of steel for sure.

As mentioned above, they come dull out of the box, but once I got an edge on it, it has performed admirably (and I have used the heck out of it). Mostly chopping branches and small trees, with a touch of batoning though generally I think batoning is overrated. When searching for firewood in the woods I rarely take anything that I need to split. I just get stuff thats good for using as is, and the knife chops those diameters with just about no effort, too. If I'm at home there is always an axe handy, really just wanted to see how it would take the job. Quite well I must say.

Better than any machete I have used and stays sharp.

I do find the handle is quite large on the Ontario though, so I suppose if you had smaller hands this could be an issue? You do sacrifice a bit of f&f with the Ontario, but for much less $, and a knife like this isn't supposed to be pretty.

Though I admit I am a bit partial since the Ontario's are made an hour from my house. Can't go wrong, though in my experience.
 
I understand that the kabar heavy bowie is either out of production, or will be ending production soon. That should explain the higher price tag. It used to sell for just about $50, and at that price it was a great value. At 3x that... There are better knives available.

I'm not sure if you're set on the heavy bowie, or if your looking for a large blade on the cheap. But in that same price and size range, there are lots of options (Becker BK9 ~$95, ESEE Junglas ~$165, Ontario sp10 "marine raider" ~$55, some of the kabar zk lineup, etc).

However if your a collector or something, and want one... Then the other options really aren't options anymore.

All I can say is both companies make good products, and will stand by them. If it were me, I guess id be looking at an Ontario, Becker bk 9, or some sort of larger condor offering.

Good luck finding something that works for you :).
 
Spend a little more and get the TOPS sxb if you're considering something in the 150-200$ price range. Its an absolute do all beast. A little annoying to carry, but if you're already looking for a big bowie, you probably don't have a problem with that.
 
I have both and like them for what they are. I'd probably keep the SP 50 if I could only have one but I have both and many more. For me the difference isn't performance as much as which one feels best. The SP50 looks like it's finished better but they both perform close enough that it wouldn't be a deciding factor. To be honest now I'm old both are too darn big to carry when I can carry a 5 inch Koster in 3V and have it do whatever I need. Good luck.

joe
 
ocnLogan said:
I understand that the kabar heavy bowie is either out of production, or will be ending production soon. That should explain the higher price tag. It used to sell for just about $50, and at that price it was a great value. At 3x that... There are better knives available.
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I have the Kabar Heavy Bowie, and did buy years ago for 50 bucks. Man am I surprised what they are going for now. Totally other options at 150 dollars.

Wolfeye, Ontario makes a great blade at your price point. Another plus is their sheaths are better IMO vs. the Kabar sheaths with the heavy Bowie that are just bulky and clumsy.
 
The Mastiff said:
I have both and like them for what they are. I'd probably keep the SP 50 if I could only have one but I have both and many more. For me the difference isn't performance as much as which one feels best. The SP50 looks like it's finished better but they both perform close enough that it wouldn't be a deciding factor. To be honest now I'm old both are too darn big to carry when I can carry a 5 inch Koster in 3V and have it do whatever I need. Good luck.

joe
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Yeah, I think I walked the woods two times before I figured out a 9 inch blade was not for me. Made it near impossible to sit and rest to eat an apple.
 
The Kabar Cutlass machete runs about $50. Not a bad chopper. Just added this as an alternative. I don't have a preference on the two you mentioned other than I tend to favor Kabar stuff.
 
Thanks, guys. If I get one, I think it'll be the SP50. I thing the Kabar (if it were sharpened on the back curve) would be a better shape, but it's not & it's $150. Plus, I have more use for an axe with a pocketknife than a large blade. Still like the large blades sometimes, though.

Something I was thinking about: I truly think that the tradition of having a large blade for dueling purposes that can also be used as a general-purpose blade is a good one. Think about it: The small blade makes it hard to not get nailed in some way (since it's can be much harder to intercept), but the large blade is something that can be parried & such- if the fight is MEANT to be non-fatal, the bigger knife is oddly the better choice. If it IS meant to be to the death, it would certainly still be useful, but it makes the other option more possible.

I remember hearing that the Gaucho would duel in a way that wouldn't normally be a smart idea in a serious fight (flourishes, showing bravery by sticking their stomachs out, etc...). This is more possible with a long blade than a small one, since it's not quite so obvious what's going on in a fight with such small & fast weapons.

What do you guys think of this? I've got to assume there are people on here that know quite a bit about this subject, even though it's not currently "in vogue" in America.
 
Wolfeye said:
....Something I was thinking about: I truly think that the tradition of having a large blade for dueling purposes that can also be used as a general-purpose blade is a good one. Think about it: The small blade makes it hard to not get nailed in some way (since it's can be much harder to intercept), but the large blade is something that can be parried & such- if the fight is MEANT to be non-fatal, the bigger knife is oddly the better choice. If it IS meant to be to the death, it would certainly still be useful, but it makes the other option more possible.
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Knife fights are to the death or disabling the other opponent. I am no knife fighter and really don't care much about the subject one way or the other. But I believe the purpose of a large and small blade used in tandem in a fight is having a weapon in both hands with different characteristics. Large knife has further reach; smaller knife for close in. Due to the size, defending against either would be different. I also believe the you intercept or block the knife hand or arm, and not the knife per se unless you have to.
 
So question for owners of these knives. I see both going for around $80 ish on sale. At that price I can get a BK9. I have owned several SP series knives and although they are decent they are not the quality of the BK9 in that price range and the handle is just ok. So why would you spend more than $50 on one of these?
 
I'm with 22-rimfire and Cobalt on this one.

I'm not really into knife fighting, and don't ever really even think about it. So can't help you too much there. My gut feeling though is that slightly smaller/lighter blades would be more ideal (other than maybe the intimidation factor). Check out the BK7 (7in blade and longer swedge than the BK9, and is a functional replacement/evolution for the kabar USMC), or the BK5 (8in blade, but very fast/slicey). They both would be better "combat" knives in my mind, but are still totally useful in the field.

And as for the now $150 kabar large heavy bowie, I'd skip on that. At the $45-50 price point it was moderately interesting, but as Cobalt said, the BK9 is typically considered an excellent purchase in a price range not that far up from these two, and is worth the consideration.
 
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