03 Jan 10 Bowie Knife Designs

There are several different variations on the basic Bowie knife design available on the market. There are, however, essential characteristics of these knives that must be present before a knife can be called a Bowie. The knife did have some design changes during its early years. For example, some of the early Bowies have blades which aren't as clipped as modern versions.

The end of a Bowie knife has what's called a "clipped" tip. This means that the point of the knife lies below the spine of the blade. This characteristic has its origins in fighting. A blade of this style has excellent penetration qualities. It also lightens the blade and makes it more agile when used for skinning and cleaning animals.

A Bowie knife always has a hand guard. Traditionally, this guard had a forward-swept quillion on the top of the handle. Today, this hand guard may be modified somewhat, and the knife to which it is attached may still be called a Bowie. The famous Marine combat knife of World War 2 is clearly a Bowie-style knife, even though it has an essentially straight hand guard. The curved hand guard provides better protection in blade-to-blade combat and, thus, was favored by Bowie when he designed the original knives.

A Bowie knife is always a big knife. Subtlety cannot be said to be among their characteristics. These knives range from 6" to 12" in length, in most cases. There are longer models available, but they're generally designed more for looks than for practical use. Like most fighting knives, the longer variants of Bowies approach the length of some short swords. These knives are formidable in appearance and efficient weapons, but that was only part of their advantage.

A real Bowie knife always has a wide blade. In fact, this is a defining characteristic of these knives. When these knives were designed, the frontier conditions meant that any tool had to be versatile and tough. The heavy, wide blade of a Bowie meant it could stand up to a great deal of punishment and that it could perform chopping tasks, in addition to cutting tasks. Before steel was of a modern quality, softer metals such as brass and copper were sometimes used to reinforce the blades via a strip along the spine.

Dylan Sabot is the owner of an online bowie knives store featuring SOG bowie knives as well as humidors for storage.

Related posts:

1. What Qualifies a Knife to Be a Bowie Knife? Knives have always played a prominent role in human affairs....
2. What are the Different Parts of a Bowie Knife Blade Used For? If you have just purchased your first bowie knife, or...
3. How to Sharpen a Bowie Knife If you own a Bowie knife, you'll certainly want to...
4. Can I Use My Bowie Knife as a Punch? Your bowie knife is a very handy tool, indeed. It...
5. What Are Bowie Knife Handles Made Out Of? When it comes time to choose that new bowie knife,...

Tags: bowie knife, bowie knives, camping, fishing, Hobbies, hunting, hunting knives, outdoors, recreation, Sports & Recreation, Survival