The Cutting Properties of a Bowie Knife

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The Cutting Properties of a Bowie Knife

A Bowie knife is one of the most versatile of outdoor knives. There are limitations, however, to even the most flexible of cutting tools. The size, heft and thickness of the blade all play a role in this. The materials of which the blade is made play a significant role, as well. There are advantages to a Bowie which make them more flexible than other knives, however, and which work to the user's advantages.

A smaller bladed Bowie knife will generally have higher quality steel and will be able to be sharpened to a more precise edge. Small Bowies, of 10 inches or less, are very popular with hunters and fishers. These knives also have a clipped point, which makes them very precise near the tip of the blade. When one needs to do rough work around the camp, however, these knives will be relatively without practical application. For the larger jobs, a larger blade is what's needed.

Larger Bowie knives are great tools for very rugged work. Provided they're made out of a very durable metal, such as straight stainless steel, they can provide years of use, laugh off the worst of tasks and keep on going. These knives will not take as precise an edge as will the higher quality, generally smaller blades. Purchasing these knives in high-carbon and other expensive steels will generally be very expensive, as one might expect when purchasing 12 inches or more of expensive metal.

If one remembers the old advertisements where a knife is first used to cut something hard, like a pipe, and then used to cut vegetables flawlessly, they're remembering a nice fantasy. A Bowie knife will be much more specific in its usefulness, as will any knife, depending upon its materials of manufacture. High-carbon steel means a very sharp edge and ultra-precision cutting. Stainless steel means a duller edge but a knife that can survive very severe abuse. A stainless knife may not cut much, but it will hack just about anything.

Likewise, using large Bowie knives for precision work presents its own hazards. Controlling the large blade while making very painstaking cuts may end up resulting in a wound due to slippage or other control issues. At the very least, ones fish or meat will mostly likely not end up filleted in any artful way using one of these knives. It's best to exercise some common sense and, if one's knife seems outmatched by the task at hand, to switch knives or tools.