Need a Custom Maker of "Lively" Bowie Fighting Knives

A

Anthony

Joined
Jun 11, 1999
Messages
47
Hello Everyone,

Recently I was down at my favorite gun shop here in Dallas and they had one of the production versions of Bill Bagwell's "Hell's Belle" in the case. So I asked to see it. When I took it in my hand I finally understood what people mean when they say a knife feels "lively" in the hand. In fact, it felt incredibly light for a Fighting Bowie with something like an 11 to 13 inch blade!

After much deliberation I am interested in finding a custom maker who can supply me with a large bowie knife (11 inch blade range) optimized for fighting. It must feel "lively" in the hand like the production version of the "Hell's Belle."

Before anyone suggests it, I have spoken with Mr. Bagwell. I'm very impressed with his knowledge and the beauty of his knives; however, I am not particularly keen on his two year plus waiting period. If waiting that long is what it takes I'm prepared to do it, but I'm interested in looking at the whole playing field of knife makers to see what is available first.

As I am very new to the custom knife arena so I need lots of help on this. So please be generous and specific with the information.

Thank you for the assistance.

- Anthony
 
Hello,Anthony and welcome to the forums.There are many fine Bowie makers and I`m sure you will get many recommendations.I have only owned a few custom Bowies but the one I liked best is my Lamey concealment Bowie.Matt turns out a full range of Bowies from small to fearsome.Heres a link:

http://www.lameyknives.com/

Good luck in your search.
 
Jerry Hossom makes a full line of lively fighting knives. For such large blades, they are deceptively fast and lively in the hand.

There are many "forgers" who make a more traditional bowie. If you want something specifically for fighting, look in the Knife Reviews and Testing forum. Use the search feature and look for work by Hossom and Beknives to start with. There are some serious hardcore knife reviews there done by folks who really know what they are talking about.

Something to be considered as well, is your price range. There are different price points that will open up different options. ~$350 range is where you start to see newer custom makers producing really good work (there are lesser known folks making the same quality for less if you can find them). More well known makers go up from ~$350 (whether forged or stock removal). When you are looking at >$1,000, you generally are buying more then just a basic knife - you are getting work from a legend, or a knife with exhibition grade embellishments or, similiar upgrades.
 
Nov29_01BocoteHandleBowie.jpg


This is just one of many examples of large, "lively" fighting knives that you'll find when following this link to Bruce Evans' website. I think he'd be able to make exactly what you're looking for at a great price and with a reasonable wait time.
 
I don't own a Hossom yet...someday I will.
I do own 2 Bowies by Bruce Evans.
You can see pics of them in the Brutal Bowie thread, general forum, a coupla pages back.
Excellent work by both of these gents, and they are a pleasure to deal with.
 
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