Why Modern Bowies?

DaveH

DaveH

Joined
Dec 2, 1999
Messages
12,249
I need a little help understanding this, to me modern bowies at the custom level are essentially art knives. That is they don't seem like they would be particularly useful or if they would be useful, they wouldn't be used because of the cost.

So are these just art knives and that's the reason to buy them?
 
In a sense they are too expensive to use,but basically they are a tool and you could take them out and chop a tree down with them.Or take them with you for protection in a nice IWB sheath and scare the bejesus out of anybody that screws with you.Get it? :p
They are also very artsy fartsy and mine will never see the light outside my safe. :D
Randy
 
It depends on what you consideer to be a bowie. There are lots of custom bowies that are made with Micarta handles and are designed as camp knives. There are also bowies with blades in the 6 -7 inch range that are very useful as hunting knives. Price wise, I have seen custom bowies for as low as $200.00. That puts them easily into the user range.
 
I agree with Randy, big bowies are impressive and demonstrate a maker's skill.

While many bowies are constructed to handle hard use, few knives see much work. I have a couple high end bowies, every once in a while I will cut some soda bottles or branches, but I wouldn't take one into the woods; not only are the finishes and materials very well done, they're too big and heavy to be carried comfortably.

On the other hand, a 7" bowie/camp knife is a very handy tool. The knife is large enough to do some heavy work and small enough that it isn't encumbered by weight or difficult carry. The smaller bowies are also capable of intricate work, at least by comparison :).

There are always exceptions though; many makers produce large bowies with "working grade" finishes and materials. While still heavy and burdensome the user doesn't have to be concerned with marring finishes or damaging handles.

Taking all that into account, the enjoyment of simply picking up a high end bowie greatly outweighs any lost utility ;).

Matt
 
I agree with Matt.
Nothing like a large Bowie to brighten your day.

Randy
 
The other way to look at it is that even in past times, the prettiest bowies (or swords or daggers for that matter) were accessories, never meant to be used.
 
Didn't we have a thread here about "using expensive custom knives"? :)

I'd have to agree the 6-7" blades are rather handy for a wide range of tasks. Just because the handle is ivory instead of micarta, doesn't mean you can't use it.

To answer the origional question better, I honestly don't have much use for a lot of Bowies made today either. I won't buy or make blades in the 8"-12" range, with rare exceptions. A great big knife in the belt and a folder in the pocket cover my needs much better than a compromise blade. Cost? That in itself is not really the issue with me. If I'm buying a knife to use, I don't mind paying for pride of ownership at the same time. Scratches and scars from honest use are not the same as scratches left by a poor polish job (from the maker). If I am specifically looking for a knife to be pretty and stay that way, that's a different issue.

Big and Heavy are relative terms. I carry a rifle every day I'm at the farm; even a big knife is light and handy in comparison. The bowie I carry is two feet long and 28 ounces. But you know what? The length and weight don't bother me near as much as the top of the double guard digging into my "love handles" over the course of a day. It's one of those design features I plan to address with future knives. Usually when I hear complaints about weight and comfort, it's really a problem with how the knife/gun/tool is carried, rather than the tool itself.
 
To me, a modern Bowie is a reflection of a part of American history that dates back over 140 years. A Bowie knife has soul, something that is not always the case with many tactical knives that are on the market. I would agree that an 8-inch to 12-inch blade is not always practical when camping, but a Bowie grabs your spirit.
 
Good discussion from all above. I starting collecting knives less than 3 years ago. When I first started, I couldn't justify spending $300 for a knife. In about a year, I changed my mind and $300 to $400 knives were OK to buy but I still hated to actually use one. Just a week ago I purchased my first mastersmith knife from Mike Williams - a 10 inch+ bowie. It is the most expensive knife I have bought to date. Now those $300 to $400 knives have become OK to use. I hope to purchase more mastersmith knives in the future, not to use but as art and as I see it, a kinda investment. Would you rather have $1000 in gold and silver, or $1000 in forged steel? I rather have forged steel by a mastersmith. Would you rather have $30,000 in a SUV that depreciates the moment you drive it off the lot or $30,000 in forged steel? Again, let me have the steel. And if someday I needed to use that piece of forged steel, I know it would work unlike a painting or sculpture.
 
Don't look for logic as the reason to purchase a bowie knife in the 21st century. Most aren't even purchased because they are "artistic." All that damascus and wood gets kind of boring and certainly is derivitive. For the reason to buy a bowie knife in the 21st century, look to Sigmund Freud. :)

As a lad, I carried a 10" bladed bowie while camping. I carried it for about 2 years on about 15 trips. It sure impressed my brother boy scouts and annoyed the boy scout leaders. (There was no rule about large knives in the boy scouts back then.) It was not convenient and does get in the way. As an adult, I carry a 4" fixed blade and when needed a hatchet. Never miss the bowie in the woods. However I use the bowie all the time to split small pieces of hickory for the BBQ and it sits by the front door in case we get goblins looking for meat.
 
I take them hunting, fishing and camping. An affordable custom Bowie by Brett Gatlin, or many other knifemakers here is quite useful in the woods. You can often get away with using a sturdy folder or a hunter, but sometimes not. I used to carry a Kabar before I got Bowies. I wouldn't want to be chopping branches to free my fishing lure with an SAK.
 
Do you mean a clip-style blade when you say "bowie"? The term bowie knife is sometimes used loosely, but it is usually associated with a clip- compared to the "camp knife" which has no clip. The importance of it, just as Michael B. says.. is tied up in our American heritage.

Interesting thought, I was told by a man who is my mentor that the first "Bowie" knife was made solely for one reason.. for one man to kill another. And, it makes sense.. you will notice many "fighter" knives having the clip, I guess it's logical to believe a sharpened top clip might give it the added advantage in combat.
David
 
DaveH,
I agree with you about the "art knife" comment... more jewelry out there every day. People like it and buy it. That's why. Romance :eek:
David
 
1830's America:

Young Southern Gentleman : " ...... a knife like Bowies" ...... " I would like you to make me a knife like the one James Bowie used to kill that Major with!"

Blacksmith: "What does it look like?"

YSG: .......... "I'm not real sure, but it was big and he used it to fight real good!"

A week or two later:

BS (fingers crossed and tongue firmly in cheek): " Heres what I made for you, a friend of mine said he saw it once"

YSG: "Thats it ....... thats Bowies knife, thats a real Bowie knife!!!"
 
Not all custom bowies are High end Art knives.Brett Gatlin's prices are low enough that I would use one.I've got a Lamey bowie that I use to chop the overhanging tree branches that are threatening to fall on my Girlfriends Rose bushes.I tend to stay away from the "Art" knives for the most part.Also,like 2knife said;bowie knives are for Fighting,not camp knives.At least that was the original intent :cool:
 
I like Buddy's usage :). A bowie is a lot of fun when you can walk out of the house and take a few swings in the back yard. Regardless of price (to an extent at least :)), chopping some branches, rope, or soda bottles is a blast. A bowie can be pretty handy clearing brush and weeds around the house. As far as "short range" use a bowie is a great tool to have.

As I've said before the size and weight of a bowie outweighs the utility on an extended trip in the woods. I certainly don't want to imply that a bowie is not usefull or superfluous; they can be very handy tools. Altough, the size and weight should be taken into consideration before you cart it around the woods.

Some bowies are expensive, but some of the lower priced pieces are great "users." I'm not crazy about using a $2,000 Crowell to open a bag of manure, but it wouldn't have any problems.

I'm starting to repeat myself :).

Matt
 
The same reason Japanese smiths keep making swords even though they will never be used in combat of any sort, its a connection a more dramatic and turbulant past. I do get disappointed when people turn bowies into camp or hunting knives. Bowies are weapons like a sword or dagger, turning them into outdoor tools was an attempt by makers to make them more acceptable to an increasing soft populance in the late 19th and early 20th century.One would not use a bowie to chop wood as one would not use a katana or broadsword to clear brush.
 
I've just gotta jump in.

The definition of what a Bowie knife is very very loose. And I like it that way. Although many of the original Big Knives that marked the early days of American (and Australian) "white" exploration were guardless pieces, my idea of a Bowie is a relatively large knife with a double guard, substantial handle and accompanying sheath to be worn on the belt. Effectively - a large multipurpose knife, easily accessible to the user, generally best suited to heavier-duty tasks like chopping, piercing and I suppose, some prying too. Most folk who carried a large bowie would also carry a smaller knife - most likely a small folding knife, for the more delicate chores.


The focus on self-determination and personal responsibility in a wilder, freer (but sometimes much more cruel) world, meant that INDIVIDUALS had to be self-reliant to a large degree, whether this was for hunting, food preparation, home-ground maintenance, or even for self-defense and preservation of the home and family from assailants. The Bowie knife did this well

The Bowie forms one connection to such a heritage common to most of those who have some sort of "European" origin. Even to myself, of Asian descent, it is a hint of some of the struggles of the ones who came before us. Please note that the same concept applies across most cultures. In different places, parangs and goloks, leukus and puukkos might apply.

Like any other item of necessity, art takes over once functional aspects have been covered. Its always been the way. I don't consider the huge market for "modern bowies" to be any different from "modern slipjoints" or collecting Royal Doulton, fine crystalware, jewellery or expensive cars, for that matter. Those with a disposable income (and even some without...) have the privilege and opportunity of owning something that is sentimentally significant. Logic and practicaility often have little to do with pride of ownership.

Bowies are no different to any other culture-specific knife, in that it can, and does, form the canvas for an artist to express their creativity. You only need to look at modern Japanese swords, Scandinavian knives and Middle-eatern patterns to see that this urge to embellish a working tool, is a very human thing, and very widespread !

OK, enough. Back to sleep now... Jason.
 
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