The men who fought under the flag of the CSA were known to carry prodigious Bowie Knives. This knife is as close as I have to a Confederate Style Bowie. Hand forged by Brett Gatlin, this fighting knife is a monster with a hair-shaving-sharp, 13 x 1.5 inch flat ground blade. The back edge is fully ¼ inch thick. The gracefully sweeping blade leads to a nearly five inch, unsharpened, clip point. There is no distal taper so this Bowie is definitely tip heavy. This is a positive attribute for chopping but it does slow down back-cuts due to the inertia of such a long blade. The 6.5 inch handle is made from one piece of incredibly dense ebony. The well contoured handle is gracefully shaped with a large palm swell. The handle also has a stainless steel tube liner for a thong. My first impression was that the handle was too long aesthetically. Having worked with the knife some I have decided it is just fine. The extra handle length allows you to slide back on the handle for added reach if you so desire. Gatlin fitted a nice steel “S” curved guard backed up by a set of thin brass and a thicker steel bolster. Fit and Finish of all of the parts is perfect, typical of Gatlin’s workmanship.
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6 comments:
Dave,
It is hard to visit your blog and look at these beautiful knives because most of them are so damn expensive! I see this one doesn't even mention price, always a bad sign! I confess to never having heard of Gatlin, so I visited his website, and wow he has some beautiful knives up there, including the "Loveless Style Dixon Fighter" with a 6" blade that looks fantastic. Gatlin doesn't provide prices either, you have to contact him, so -- bad sign.
Please give your readers a short break and talk about some knives that are under $200!
Haha sorry Jeff. I cannot remember the last time I bought a knife under $200 unles it was a folder. I am buying fewer knives although my wife might not think so. A few years ago I bought a Gatlin Slim Pickens which is also a very nice smaller bowie. I did buy one small "divers knife" for $45 and if I could sell it for $25 I'd be happy to get rid of it. It was a mistaken ebay bid.
by the way folks don't forget to click on the photos for a larger version.
Well you are in the privileged position of a collector, while I am still struggling to just own a few good knives of various sizes for working purposes. I recently discovered the Ka-Bar BK2 as a good candidate for a camping/field/survival knife. About $70. Needs constant attention or it will rust, but I'll probably pick it up for my BOB.
I'm still struggling to find a good fixed blade "fighter" in the 5 - 6" range for under $200. I like the japanese style curved blades that are good for cutting more than the dagger style blades, and damnied if it isn't hard to find a commercial, mass-produced model that fits the bill.
Anyway, keep bringing us these expensive great knives, it's an enjoyable kind of pain.
Jeff I would recommend a cold steel Oda or Recon tanto both with san mai blades for the price range you are looking for. Some people don't like Cold Steel (for whatever reason) but the knives are pretty decent. I would not buy a katana from them but a fighting knife, heck yeh. I'll keep thinking on it.
Thanks, Dave I'll check them out!
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