[Re titled] Designing 2 custom Bowie's to be built

[Coke]

Do you fancy this one at all Bacon? If I were after a large bowie, I would seriously consider this beauty with a 9.5" long blade:

9 1/2″ long by 2" wide blade of .285 thick CPM154. Top cutting edge 5" and sharpened. Handle 5″ ... Burl Ironwood with white spacers. Stainless steel hilt with lanyard holes. Made to meet the demand of a very heavy duty Bowie style knife for survival and/or military use.

Dulling the top edge would be easy for importing.


If NOT, is it still the 2nd profile you'd like?

 

[Karoi]

LOL!!! The eternal question... to be or not to be?

I'm getting to the point where I might just flip a coin to help me decide on 1 or 2 of the small details/features!

That's a nice blade you have there!!

Sorry if this was mentioned earlier in the thread, but have you guys made a call on what the spine thickness will be?

 

[Coke]

Karoi, it's Bacon's call being his knife. For the small one personally I'd go for anything between .20" and .25" thick, the bigger one, anything from .25 to .30" thick, and as usual, I wouldn't consider anything other than a CPM type steels with the exception of N690, M390-etc and ELMAX for the smaller one, but with N690, I'd go only for the .25" thickness.

CPM type Steels for me anytime Karoi... why eat chicken when there's rib-eye on the BBQ?

 

[ExtraBaconPlease]

Do you fancy this one at all Bacon? If I were after a large bowie, I would seriously consider this beauty with a 9.5" long blade:If NOT, is it still the 2nd profile you'd like?

That's a nice knife for sure but I really want to make this one my own. Plus there are a few things like thickness, handle material, even the pins/lanyard hole I want my way..if that makes sense.

Still the 2nd one as well.

Sorry if this was mentioned earlier in the thread, but have you guys made a call on what the spine thickness will be?

No thickness, grinds, materials or the like have been discussed yet. Just dimensions and overall design.

I'm thinking .25" for the smaller one and about .285 or .3 for the larger one. Distal tapers on both.

Of course, nothing is locked in yet.

As for the steel, CPM all day. I'll likely get these made of 3V

 

[Charlie Mike]

Tool steels in general are a good choice.

 

[Coke]

Download template here:


http://s000.tinyupload.com/index.php?file_id=04822721172168717244

Belanglo!

 

[d762nato]

Dang your good Coke nice designs, who made that bowie it looks really nice also. Pretty cool EBP I like where this thread is going, Congrats.

 

[Ebbtide]

Back to the first, smaller of the designs...
Will it be a framed handle?
Or full tang?
If it is a full tang the handle has to be smaller (shallower?) than the height of the blade or you won't be able to slide the guard on.
Unless you build it like a Loveless Chute, and have the guard go on over the blade.
Framed handle eliminates this problem.

For those unfamiliar with framed handles... old technique, still valid today
http://beknivessite2.homestead.com/cokebottlehandle.html

Another benefit is that you can have a tool steel blade and a nickel silver handle frame that won't tarnish, patina or rust from contact with your hands.

 

[Coke]

Framed, or full tang with a properly sandwiched guard... or change the coffin handle. There's one more way, but for most it would be too much work to bother with.

A centered mortise tang with the handle constructed to slide over it glued then pinned. That's why I included the 2 brass colored pins in the handle when I first posted this drawing on the previous page.

 

[ExtraBaconPlease]

Dang your good Coke nice designs, who made that bowie it looks really nice also. Pretty cool EBP I like where this thread is going, Congrats.

Cheers man. I sketched the design on paper as you can see on one of the pages back on this thread, Coke has taken the initiative to be a total badass and take my sketches and create scaled graphics for me. I didn't even ask. Very cool of him and very helpful.

.

Coke, ill print that one out and make some more revisions. The guard needs a clean up!

Thanks mate!

 

[ExtraBaconPlease]

Also lmao at the Bowies name. Imagine if one of backpackers pulled this sucker on Ivan...ouch!

 

[XtianAus]

So cool, nice design man! Have you decided on a maker?
And awesome work there coke, very visually & aesthetically pleasing.

 

[ExtraBaconPlease]

So cool, nice design man! Have you decided on a maker?
And awesome work there coke, very visually & aesthetically pleasing.

Cheers man! The design is not final at all. I'm currently sketching the likely final design and it has quite a few changes.

Still got to finish the design on this one, make some more changes on the smaller Bowie I thought of this morning, decide on materials and steel, let it sit for a few days in case I change my mind on something, then start looking at makers. haha, still a ways to get yet me friend SOON!

 

[ExtraBaconPlease]

Very likely the final design for the 12" blade Bowie;

I'm extremely happy with it.

I drew this to scale with one mistake, I drew the guard 1/4" too far forward into the blade. So the blade needs another 1/4" added to it in the flat spine/cutting edge to be to scale.
Also, while it is to scale, I don't believe it is actually straight from tip to butt. It's close but not perfect so some straightening up might be in need.

Specs:

18" OAL

Blade:
12" blade
2.2" blade width (1" flat from the spine to the saber grind. 1.2" from the saber grind to the cutting edge)
1 7/8" blade width at the guard
5.5" clip point
6.5" flat spine
4.5" belly (with less abrupt belly, more slight curvature)
6" cutting edge
1.5" choil (1" flat, 0.5" on a 40 degree angle towards the cutting edge)

Handle:
6" handle (including guard - guard is 1/4 thick)
1 7/8" handle width at the guard
1 3/4" handle width at the widest point of the coffin
1 1/4" handle width at the thinnest point of the coffin
the three lines that make the pommel/coffin are all 3/4 " long. Both of them are at 45 degree angles from the vertical one
1/8" or 1/4" chamfers along all edges of the handle - not sure yet.

Guard:
4.5" wide (1" on the top of the spine/handle, 1.5" on the bottom)
1/4" thick

How's that for specs....that drained my life. At least it's done now

 

[XtianAus]

That things going to be a monster!
When it finally is made/arrives, will it be a safe queen for shtf or a user?
And what steels are you currently trying to decide between?

 

[ExtraBaconPlease]

That things going to be a monster!
When it finally is made/arrives, will it be a safe queen for shtf or a user?
And what steels are you currently trying to decide between?

Thanks man it sure is going to be a big ass mofo

I'm not going to beat on it in the woods like I do my Busse's but it will definitely get used. I'll do some chop tests for fun, probably cut up some waterbottles, maybe even hack a leg off a lamb for the oven :thumbup:

Steels, honestly haven't put much - if any - thought into it. Thinking about it now, edge retention doesn't really matter. I would like to it be highly corrosion resistant. It would have to be very tough. Meh, that's about it. Honestly, it seems like 5160 would do the job. Always liked that stuff. 3V would be cool but the whole benefit of edge retention is pretty mute. I'll start thinking about steels for a minute until Coke get's back on then I'll focus back on design.
If/when we have a meetup, it will definitely be on my hip. You can check it out then

 

[XtianAus]

Awesome man. Keen to see this thing! Is it weird i get excited on your behalf? Hahaha
Ill be keeping an eye on this thread watching this thing come together

And im sure we'll be able to meet up one day to exchange blades and have fun messing around with each others tools! With Lawrie too.


And sweet as man, if i were going custom i'd definitely pick 3V or a stainless steel. But how come edge retention doesnt matter?
Btw isnt 5160 quite rust prone? I know its prettt damn stuff but if you're looking for a higher level of corrosion resistance wouldnt 5160 let you down?

 

[ExtraBaconPlease]

Awesome man. Keen to see this thing! Is it weird i get excited on your behalf? Hahaha
Ill be keeping an eye on this thread watching this thing come together

And im sure we'll be able to meet up one day to exchange blades and have fun messing around with each others tools! With Lawrie too.


And sweet as man, if i were going custom i'd definitely pick 3V or a stainless steel. But how come edge retention doesnt matter?
Btw isnt 5160 quite rust prone? I know its prettt damn stuff but if you're looking for a higher level of corrosion resistance wouldnt 5160 let you down?

Not at all weird bro, it's a big chunk of sharp and pointy steel! :thumbup:

And the meetup will be quite epic. Lawrie only lives 20 minutes away from me and he's got quite the collection! Going to head over to his again soon when I get my Urban Fudge and a couple other toys to thrash

Edge retention doesn't matter with this huge Bowie because it's not like i'm going to be making feathersticks all day with it or cutting cardboard...it's meant to be a big pointy "back up or lose your arm" kinda blade...aka it's not going to get used day in day out so I won't need to worry if it's a bit dull (which it won't be anyway)

The smaller Bowie will likely be used for more tasks and edge retention will matter far more. I designed it with a lot of belly so it can slice and even make some nice feathersticks if I want..You'll see that the edge of it isn't actually flat, the whole thing is curved slightly to the tip. I'll 99% use 3V for the smaller one.

And 5160 does rust, yes, but I have had no issues in my uses for it. Not saying I will go with that steel 100% but i'm considering it and a few others.

Cheers!

 

[Coke]

That things going to be a monster!

Why do you think I named it the Belanglo Forester? LOL!!

Bacon,

I'm with you on wanting a stainless steel, you made it clear from the onset that you wouldn't use it much if at all. I would encourage you to have a close look at a really thick slab of N690, it is an excellent SUPER Stainless steel for this purpose. If HT properly, which is easy to do, it's a quantum leap above 440C, it's crack/chip resistant, super stainless, holds an edge many times longer than 440C and S30V, can be sharpened quite easily and takes a very sharp razor's edge, and the best part for this type of knife, it's excellent for prying, very wear resistant and tough. It will outpry many other stainless steels out there. Numerous European Armies wouldn't use it if it weren't top self stuff, sure they have easy access to it there, but they wouldn't use it either way if it was crap, don't let the current low price of it fool you. It's really cheap when compared to any of its close counterparts, many times cheaper than S35VN and not all that much different in the real world. I use S35VN and N690 as well as M390 for all my fishing needs, from fillet knives to large spine cracking blades for making cutlets of big Snapper and Jewfish. In real terms from what I've experienced, they are all in the same class of steel, but I can tell you that the same thickness of N690 would outpry S35VN and M390, it's that good. You'll be seeing more of my future custom blades made with it because of it's excellent stain resistance for long term storage as well as all its other good tool-grade-like user attributes. It also has an inherent blue-ish grey-ish haze going through it that makes it look beautiful compared to all other stainless steels. I like it a lot, but that's just me.

I shall get to your mods later on today or tomorrow, I have a bit on plate today with another knifemaker who needs full templates for 2 designs he's making for me, and another knifemaker who needs full templates on a limited edition Randall 1960s trout knife he will be releasing soon. I'll give you one guess as to who's doing the templates for that?

So if you need or want to make any changes to the existing mods, post here and say it before you start doing them. I will check in BEFORE I start you current mods. If you post saying that you're making the mods, I'll wait till you post them.

 

[ExtraBaconPlease]

Why do you think I named it the Belanglo Forester? LOL!!

Bacon,

I'm with you on wanting a stainless steel, you made it clear from the onset that you wouldn't use it much if at all. I would encourage you to have a close look at a really thick slab of N690, it is an excellent SUPER Stainless steel for this purpose. If HT properly, which is easy to do, it's a quantum leap above 440C, it's crack/chip resistant, super stainless, holds an edge many times longer than 440C and S30V, can be sharpened quite easily and takes a very sharp razor's edge, and the best part for this type of knife, it's excellent for prying, very wear resistant and tough. It will outpry many other stainless steels out there. Numerous European Armies wouldn't use it if it weren't top self stuff, sure they have easy access to it there, but they wouldn't use it either way if it was crap, don't let the current low price of it fool you. It's really cheap when compared to any of its close counterparts, many times cheaper than S35VN and not all that much different in the real world. I use S35VN and N690 as well as M390 for all my fishing needs, from fillet knives to large spine cracking blades for making cutlets of big Snapper and Jewfish. In real terms from what I've experienced, they are all in the same class of steel, but I can tell you that the same thickness of N690 would outpry S35VN and M390, it's that good. You'll be seeing more of my future custom blades made with it because of it's excellent stain resistance for long term storage as well as all its other good tool-grade-like user attributes. It also has an inherent blue-ish grey-ish haze going through it that makes it look beautiful compared to all other stainless steels. I like it a lot, but that's just me.

I shall get to your mods later on today or tomorrow, I have a bit on plate today with another knifemaker who needs full templates for 2 designs he's making for me, and another knifemaker who needs full templates on a limited edition Randall 1960s trout knife he will be releasing soon. I'll give you one guess as to who's doing the templates for that?

I wanted a monster blade and am very happy with what I've come up with thus far. Going to be an epic "I.... think I just shit myself.." when people see it blade

Regarding the steel choice, I'm not a massive noob when it comes to steel. I understand the a fair bit but have been spoiled with INFI, thus not really paying attention to other stuff for a couple years.
N690 was/is on my shortlist of steels for the large blade, I was not counting it out, I just had to do more research on it. Thanks to your little write up, you've got me quite convinced it is "the one".
I want really nice corrosion resistance and just an unbreakable blade. Sounds like it will do the job. The only prying this blade would do be if it got stuck in someones rib cage like on the cold steel natchez bowie video LOL - love them vids
As long as it can handle that kinda stuff I'll be very happy. Obviously I don't want the edge to chip, crack, roll or what have you if I hit something hard like some poor blokes Rolex if I take his hand off either

Have fun making your custom designs, take your time - I'm in no rush at all here.

So if you need or want to make any changes to the existing mods, post here and say it before you start doing them. I will check in BEFORE I start you current mods. If you post saying that you're making the mods, I'll wait till you post them.

10-4

Cheers mate