Opinions On This Bowie Finish?

Greg Covington

Greg Covington

Joined
Oct 28, 1999
Messages
1,563
I forged this Bowie from 1/4" thick 1084. It is full convex ground, 9.5" blade, edge quenched.

Guard and ferrule are mild steel, beadblasted and blued and the handle is black walnut, stabilized with wood hardener.

The finish on the blade is beadblasting followed by heat blueing the spine.

I wanted this knife to have a serious "business" look. The knife was designed as a pure fighting Bowie with maximized backcut ability....and it does that better than any Bowie I currently own.

Let me know what you think of the finish and overall look. Be brutal!!

Greg Covington
Bladesmith
 

Attachments

  • heat.jpg
    heat.jpg
    34.6 KB · Views: 454
It's great! I love the finish. I'm gonna stop putting so much work into finishing knives, myself. When I do that I'm afraid to use them. I'm also one of those people who loves the way old blades look. I like to see a knife that looks used. Gives it character. Very pretty bowie.
 
I like the overall design, but I do not like the blade finish.
I think it would have looked a lot neater with a handrubbed blade. Just my opinion. I am not criticizing your workmanship.:D
 
Mike,

Thanks for the opinion....that is what I want.

The really cool thing about bladesmithing is that you get the opportunity to try out new finishes, designs, etc at very little cost to yourself.
 
Greg-

I really like your style and that's one mean looking knife!

I think that in the picture the finish looks cool, but just personally, I really don't like bead-blasted finishes. Most especially on simple alloy steels because of the rust factor.

I've heard the argument that the tiny recesses caused by blasting form "oil pockets" but I don't buy that. The smoother a finish any steel has, the less prone to corrosion it is.

That's just personal preference though...I'm with Mike a hand-rubbed blade is on the top of my list. But I also understand you were going for a down and dirty work-horse here.

Either way, it's a fierce bowie!
Nick
 
Greg:

Overall design is very pleasing to my eye - it flows. I especially like the dropped handle. A hand rubbed finish would no doubt look great but for a "utility" fighter this fire bluded finsh looks appropriate. I might prefer the fire blue finish if the blade was not initially beadblasted. Just out of curiousity, what approximate price are you asking for a similar piece?
 
Now thats a COOL way to dress up a blasted finish for a BOwie..If you keep it oiled up all the time rust shouldn't be a problem...I prefer hand rubbed and polished blades but allot of people like the blasted finish as you can tell by how many people do it to there working knives..
Bruce
 
Well....I like it. The design and workmanship are great. I like the handle and guard. It's a first rate fighter. Everyone has different taste and a lot of it depends on what you build a knife to do. I do a lot of cutting on cutting dummies. My fighters are built to fight period and in that respect I have to agree with Nick. A polished blade cuts better....period, so in that respect you have decreased the effective purpose to some extent. Now the other side of the coin....the bead blasted does not reflect light and that is a plus for someone hiding in the bushes. I have never felt the need to hide in the bushes with my knife but some do so I make bead blasted finishes for them.:D

Anyway...It's a beautiful knife and very well made. It has that long lean look that I like so much in BE's Bowies. Give yourself a big pat on the back!
 
Greg,

First of all, I love the handle material and blade shape!!

I love color on knives, so the ehat bluing is 100% kick ass. I haven't made up my mind about the bead blast at all. I wonder what a lower grit hand finish (400 say) that is heat blued would look like? Maybe something to try and compare side by side.
 
It's something different and that is great. I would
not have bead blasted the blade, the fire blue on
the spine is a good idea, then hand rub the rest of
the blade on a diagional from the chiol to the point
where the clip starts. Gib
 
I like it Greg.I just had a similar experience.I had a O-1 blade that had been sitting on my bench for awhile and had started rusting.I cleaned it and then HT it.After handsanding I was not happy with the finish.Too many stains from the rust I believe so I ran the knife through 4 etches and blued it.I then handsanded with 600 grit.It looks incredibly old but surprisingly good to me.I'll post a pic when done.Dave :)
 
You want Brutal eh I got your brutal right here:p

Naw can't do that the other half just came in an slapped me upside the head!

I like the blade design for sure.
Overall look fits.
I like to do my handles so they are the same width as where it meets the blade. Hard to tell from that angle maybe yours does.
Bluing for a fighter hey why not. On this blade it fits.
I don't care for bead blast but thats just a personal pref. Looks fine on the style you made.
I like doing an etch, then blue followed with a 000 steel wool for each dip in the Etch and for cleaning off the Bluing.
There is some stuff available from Brownells that does heat bluing/case hardening???
It uses Charcoal powders and the steel comes out with multi colors when done. That although more of a pain would set the fittings on this blade perectly IMHO. Just my 2cts.
 
I vote double thumbs up on the finish. Beadblast and heat blued- unique and great looking. Nice job- I want to see more like this!
 
For some reason I like bluish tints and hues on blades, so in other words, very nice. I personally like straighter handles though, I find them less restricting, more sure and free. That's just my personal opinion though, cannot really elaborate or tell you why, just me I guess. Very good work all around though man, very good.
 
that handle would give a lot of leverage like a gurkka kukuri. i like the bluing but would pass on the bead blast. i blued one that i took to 400grit i liked it and so did the guy that bought it. buy the way guys i dont use oil at all any more. wax is the way to go! ren wax or plain carnuba car polish works great. and i live two blocks from the ocean. also flitz makes a rifle and gun wax that does the job for wood and metal.
 
I want to thank everyone for their comments.

It really is fun to have and idea pop into your head and then try it out.

I gave the handle alot of drop so as to increase the leverage and mechanical advantage while executing backcuts. It works very well for me.

I built this knife to test alot of ideas, design considerations, etc. It will see some hard use in the days ahead.
 
Greg, "Be Brutal" are you serious?

First off....I like the knife. I like the finish especially for a working knife. If I was going to buy it though I would want a pristeen hand rubbed 1500 grit finish. I love the guard and beadblasted blued finish. The handle is nicely bent but needs a palm swell for better grip and less hand fatigue. Also I would prefer the spine just ahead of the guard be lowered to match the handle height.

I hope I wasnt too brutal. Beautiful work.
 
I love it Greg, I thinks its is a very viable finish option for many people. I think a knife with a non-glare or rustic finish just begs to be used.The heat blued spine is a nice touch for an overall beautiful execution.Just send that baby on to my house and I'll really let You know what I think.:D

Mark
 
Ok Here is My Brutally Honest Opinion !! The Down Swoop on the Handle I Don't Really Care For, The Guard Look's A Little Out of Place In a Oval Shape And the ''Nose''/ Tip of The Knife Should in My Opinion Come Up a Bit More !! A Palm Swell is Great on a Handle with a ''Big Blade'' I Am Sorry to be so Brutal !! I Welcome The Same on Every Knife!! Brutal Judgement, Sometime's it Hurt's Other Time's it Heal's
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top