Folding Hunting Knives | Bowie Knives

Bowie Knives

Filed Under Bowie Knives, Folding Hunting Knives, Traditional Hunting Knives |

The Bowie knife is a specific type of knife created by James Black and designed by Colonel James “Jim” bowie. Commonly, any large sheath knife with a clip is called a Bowie knife. The original Bowie knife was not just one design but many designs improved upon over time by Jim Bowie himself.

The version that most individuals know as the original Bowie knife typically had a blade size of at least six inches in length with some even reaching up to twelve inches or more. The blade was broad and was typically an inch and a half to two inches wide.  This is not altogether dissimilar from the Folding Hunting Knives of today, but the key difference was the greater length of the Bowie Knives.

The historical Bowie knives were made of steel, and the back of the blade usually had an upper guard that was bent forward slightly at an angle and a strip of brass or copper inlaid for the purpose of catching an opponents blade. The knife contains a “false edge” which is the back edge of the curved clip point.

It was usually sharpened so that someone trained in saber fencing could pull off a maneuver called the “back cut” or “back slash”. There was a brass quillion attached for the protection of the individuals hands. The blade shape was believed to be derived from the Spanish navaja clasp knives that were carried in the American Spanish colonies an also in Spain.

The shape an style of the Bowie knife blade was chosen so that the knife could act as a camping and hunting tool and not just as a weapon. There were many Hunting Knives and daggers during this time period that served well as weapons and also many knives that worked well as tools for hunters and campers but there wasn’t a knife or tool that could be used in combination that did both jobs efficiently, so Bowie designed one that would.

The Bowie knife is popular with hunters and outdoors men even today- and many have even made spin offs and replicas of his design. The curved edge of the knife toward the point is designed to aid in the removal of skin from a carcass. The straight portion of the edge, closest to the guard is made for completing chores that include cutting slices, like in concept and design to a traditional Finnish hunting knife called the “puukko”- though the Bowie is much larger and heavier.

Typically the blade is long enough and heavy enough that if necessary the knife may be used like a machete or a hatchet. It isn’t too long, and doesn’t pose a problem or nuisance to the individual carrying it. Bowie knives with saw teeth machined into the backside of the blade were inspired by the Air Force survival knives since the 1960’s.

The serrated edge is intended to cut through a Plexiglas canopy of a downed aircraft. During the Vietnam war they were issued by the United States to soldiers in the helicopter crews to be used in the event of an accident, or downed helicopter.

Comments

• Recent Posts

  • Skinning Knives
  • Kershaw Hunting Knives
  • Bowie Knives
  • Buck Hunting Knives
  • Traditional Hunting Knives

• Categories

  • Bowie Knives
  • Buck Hunting Knives
  • Clip Point Bench Knife
  • Cool Folding Knives
  • Fixed Blade Drop Point Knives
  • Fixed Blade Hunting Knives
  • Folding Hunting Knives
  • Folding Pocket Knives
  • Gerber Hunting Knives
  • Gut Hook
  • Hunting Knives And Supplies
  • Kershaw Hunting Knives
  • Knife Handles
  • Skinning Knives
  • Swiss Army Knives
  • Traditional Hunting Knives

• Tags

  Bowie Knives Buck Hunting Knives Clip Point Bench Knife Cool Folding Knives Firestorm Fixed Blade Drop Point Knives Fixed Blade Hunting Knives Folding Hunting Knives Folding Pocket Knives Freeman Hunter Gerber Hunting Knives Gut Hook Harsey Fixed Blade Hunter Hatchet Hunting Knives And Supplies Hunting Licenses Kershaw Hunting Knives Knife Handles Knife Sharpening Leatherman Hunting Knives Machete Magnum Camo Multi-Tool Hunting Knives Navaja Clasp Knives Responsible Hunting Skinning Knives Stainless Steel Swiss Army Knives Traditional Hunting Knives

• Blogroll

  • Desert Rat
  • Marian’s Hunting Stories
  • NY Bow Hunter
  • South Florida Tarpon Fishing
  • The Shed Antler
  • Upland Feathers

• About

  Your guide to everything in the world of Folding Hunting Knives and finding the one that's right for you.

• Search

• Admin

  • Log in
  • Wordpress
  • XHTML