Original Bowie Solingen Germany

S

Sam Bowie Knife

Joined
Jul 16, 2019
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Growing up I had some pocket knife folders, (Case and some Scout varieties). I have some clip point "Bowie" styles that have just been around as long as I can remember. One has an antler handle Original Bowie. The tang is a stick and sometimes the handle twists. The steel seems good and it has a good edge. I always took this camping and backpacking for safety. I don't use it for anything other than that - it is 10.5" long 6" clip point blade.

I have bought other functional knives - Benchmade pocket knife and BK2 "survival" knife. My Mora gets lots of use at camp along with a BK14. I have a Buck 110 in my truck and a Buck Vanguard. I use an old Rapala for fish. I have an old Western knife with leather disc handle that sits around in a box.

My question is this...I bring along my "Original Bowie" for protection. I am starting to wonder if this knife is up to the task. Anyone know about the construction and if this is legit or not. Lately I have been feeling like it is more of a toy and should be retired in favor of a real Bowie style knife. I live in Northern California and want some protection against black bears on hikes and any random psycho that may roam the trails. Thoughts??

Mike
 
Considering a knife fight with a bear using a poorly constructed knife, I have a good idea who the psycho may be.


Bear spray and a substantial firearm will a sufficient line of defense considering you are proficient with both.
 
Ahhh, the black bear
https://wdfw.wa.gov/species-habitats/species/ursus-americanus#conflict
And you have a slightly loose
knife handle, to fight of a bear you say???!
well, if it has a screwed down pommel,
can't see why that can't be tighten;
or maybe nothing a diy fix with
an extra layer of "leather washer"
beneath the pommel if it helps.
But even if that can't be fixed at all,
its better to have a knife than none at all!
Just don't turn you back and try to
outrun a bear sprinting towards you
at 35mph...
13729199_1101232969939531_717782835334164746_n-700x445.jpg

Yes bears do attack at times...
Some folks get lucky even with the shortest of knives.
https://shouldersofgiants.com/2016/07/24/ultimate-bear-story/
They survived because they fought
real hard for their lives and got lucky.
If you have totally lost confidence
in your current bear knife
My advice would be to immediately
find a replacement which you think
could help you to survive such an attack.
More importantly something which can
instil the greater warrior hunter spirit in you.
Remember,
220px-Uncle_Sam_style_Smokey_Bear_Only_You.jpg

will have to face that angry bear someday.
 
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My preference is a firearm, but not always feasible for everyone, everywhere. I have this:
5ZGzPex.jpg

PJkgAj3.jpg


It reminds me of a story a guy from Montana shared. He said a hiker went into a shop and said he had heard he should buy bells for his gear (presumably so one does not surprise a grizzly on the trail) and pepper spray. He asked the shop owner how to tell if there were bears in the area.

The shop keeper said, "You can tell by their scat. If you see a pile about 4-5 inches around, it is probably a black bear. It will be full of nuts and berries."

The hiker asked, "How about grizzly scat?"

The shop keeper responded, "Well, it will be a pile about 7 or 8 inches around, and it will be full of bells and smell like pepper spray."
 
Welcome.

I don't think that whether or not a knife is, in general, adequate protection from bears is really the question here.

The question is, "Is a knife with a loose, spinning handle adequate protection from bears?"

And the answer to that is "No." It's not really adequate protection from anything.
 
1) I'm going to give out some free advice

2) Remember that free advice is worth exactly what you paid for it.

3) Get a bayonet

4) Get the rifle that it attaches to

5) Practice with it

There's nothing wrong with carrying a knife to defend yourself against a bear, but (speaking as a town boy), I would want to level the playing field as much as possible, so that by the time the bear gets to me, it's got a couple of slugs in it, and the rifle barrel means that I wouldn't get immediately beheaded by an enormous, claw-tipped, paw. It would take, maybe, half a second longer.

If you're good, you might get one more point-blank shot off, after the bear knocks you over and dislocates your shoulder by jamming the rifle into it.

As an aside (and possibly more useful advice), self defense scenarios should be treated with a maximum of cynicism, because there are too many moving pieces, and too many ways it can go badly wrong for you, that make it impossible to say with assurance that any one particular edged- or impact tool will give you even a 50/50 chance of coming out the other side.
 
If it is like the one I owned , there is a key fitting at the end of the pommel to tighten the handle.
You have to be nuts to try to take on a bear with a knife. Make noise so you don't startle them, avoid if possible and bear spray would be my suggestions. But if you do take on the bear with a knife be sure to get photo's :)
 
Some great replies...I laughed really hard at the ..."stab repeatedly until you die..."

I am not seeking out bears to fight...LOL. The handle does have a screw key at the end. The horn has some small pins in it holding two halves together. The inside is hollow and not a lot surrounding the rat tail tang. I think I will just keep it hanging around at the house.

Pepper spray is a good suggestion as is a firearm. I will likely look into a Ka-bar USMC or a Buck 119 for something with a reliable handle.

Mike
 
marcinek said:
Welcome.

I don't think that whether or not a knife is, in general, adequate protection from bears is really the question here.

The question is, "Is a knife with a loose, spinning handle adequate protection from bears?"

And the answer to that is "No." It's not really adequate protection from anything.
Click to expand...

marcinek, you know as well as I do, there will be at least one person who claims they have a knife like that made on purpose because they studied superninjakungkwondo and they learned to fight with a knife like that.

Seriously though, he is 100% correct. This is not so much a question of "will this knife fail," because it has ALREADY failed.
 
I heard of a British Columbia forester who killed a young aggressive black bear with an ax. A better tool would have been a 12-gauge pump shotgun loaded with alternating slugs and 00 buckshot. Forget knives for self defense against bears and cougars.
 
Probably a decent knife likely made by Othello or Anton wingen, just because the handle is now loose doesn't mean it's no good, it can be repaired and kept in service if you really want.

As far as knives for bear attacks, i'd rather have a 12ga shotgun with slugs or a .44 revolver.
Maybe bear bangers for a flare projector might work, I don't really know but it could be worth looking into.
 
The handle doesn’t spin it was more of a twist 1/8”or so. It just seems the handle could be more robust but I don’t know much about building handles. I don’t use it for any camp chores or anything.

I snugged up he screw and will leave it at that.

I was hoping someone knew about the steel/tang quality before I wasted any time on the handle.

Anyhow thanks for the info
 
The tang is a standard stick tang, about the thickness of the blade stock, and about 3/8 - 1/2" as wide as the ricasso width. This pic shows the most common style, the drilled center hole is optional -

s-l300.jpg
.

With heavy use and age, they almost all develop handle spin. Some of the better makers will more precisely drill and use cutler's cement or epoxy to help slow it down, but it happens. Some of the older, more expensive models also used a mortised 4 pin handle like this old Marbles -
1919-23-marbles-ideal-pin-stag_1_0d473ca01fa21c04f265a3b90dbb0dc9.jpg
.

They don't tend to get the spin/shakes near as bad.

If the blade is carbon, it's probably the equivalent to 0-1. In speaking with old euro companies they tend to state that's the closest American steel. If stainless, 420 or 440a.
 
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TLTT, that is how it looks!! I am going to use this opportunity to look into handle construction. I have an old Western knife where the leather handle discs are loose, so between the two blades I might learn a few things about handles. I also opted to get a new Buck 119 Special in S30v.

Thanks,
Mike
 
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