A bent knife blade is more than just an inconvenience. It can render even bowie knives virtually useless, depending on the severity of the bend, as well as the location of the bend. Common areas for bends to occur are at the tip of the knife, as well as on the edge and even the midsection of the blade, itself. These are usually the result of accidental drops onto hard surfaces, or they might be the result of intentional misuse on the part of you or someone to whom you lent your knife. Regardless, bent blades are usually not covered by the manufacturers or bowie knives.

You do have a few options if you need to repair that blade. What are your choices? First, you need to determine just how badly bent the blade might be. A very, very slight bend might not be too bad – you might not even care. However, if you are like most folks, you will care very much. This means you need to look into knife repair for that damaged blade. Repairing a bent blade is possible, but it can be more difficult than you might imagine.

If just the tip of the knife is bent, you can try to bend it back as well, using a pair of pliers. Usually, this will result in the tip snapping off the blade, though. If this happens, it’s possible to use a whetstone to reshape and sharpen the damaged portion of the blade. Obviously, this is not a great scenario. While you will have a usable knife, it certainly will not look the same ever again.

Actually, you can repair the blade yourself, though you’ll need a high-powered flame torch, as well as a hammer and an anvil. If those items are not close to hand, or you don’t feel like giving your best imitation of a blacksmith, it is time to call in the professionals. A professional cutler will be able to cure what ails your knife in the majority of instances.

A cutler will ensure that the blade does not lose its heat temper and will also be able to ensure that the blade regains its proper dimensions. Conducting such repairs at home, on your own, can be an excellent way to ruin that knife blade through incorrect repair techniques.

Dave is the owner of an online bowie knife and glock grip extension store.

Isn’t a Bowie knife a hunting knife? The answer to that question is both “yes” and “no.” Why such an ambiguous answer? To understand this, you will need to look closer at the reality of the Bowie knife as applied to the realm of hunting. Most certainly, you can take a Bowie knife along on a hunting trip. In fact, it’s recommended. However, that does not make this a hunting knife.

Bowie knives usually have a blade with a clipped point. If you haven’t seen this before, think of a cavalry saber. The intent is the same. When this point is thrust at an opponent, it penetrates easily and can rupture vital organs with almost no effort. Hunting knives usually have much less severe points, as piercing organs can ruin meat by tainting it with urine and feces.

What Bowies and hunting knives do have in common is a sturdy blade. Bowies that are made of high quality steel can be as sharp as any hunting knife and, provided that the knife blade is short enough, they can be remarkably agile, almost scalpel-like. The clipped point may be intended for its lethality, but it is also a find cutting implement if the blade is sharp enough. This will come down to your steel. Stainless steel blades are harder and more durable, but much harder to sharpen. High carbon steel blades can be incredibly sharp.

You should also consider a few other differences between a Bowie knife and a traditional hunting knife. The average hunting knife rarely exceeds five or six inches in blade length. However, Bowie knives are usually at least 12 inches long, though there are designs that exceed eighteen inches in length. This large size is part of what makes this knife such a formidable force in the realm of hunting. Bowies are ideal solutions to solve multiple problems at the same time, enabling you to lighten your load on the trail.

You can most certainly use Bowie knives as hunting knives and there are many hunters who do. If they have a good quality blade and are of an appropriate size-meaning not too large-they make great knives for skinning and field dressing. Some of them have features such as gut hooks, which make them even more useful in this regard. If you want something different from a hunting knife, you may consider trying a Bowie.

Blake is a business consultant for an online bowie knives store featuring SOG bowie knives.

Those who were around before the safety blade was invented may remember their dad or grandfather sharpening their blade on their razor strap. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a razor strap. It’s called a strop, actually, but your father or grandfather was using one of the best tools for getting a very fine edge on a blade, which was probably a good thing if they were about to shave! These products are still used today for sharpening just about everything, including Bowie knives.

Better Sharpening: No matter what method you use to sharpen your blade, you will always find that the edge can be better. A strop is a great way to get the perfect edge on Bowie knives. A strop is nothing more than a wide leather strap, though you will also find canvas options on the market, as well. Using a strop is a great way to achieve an amazing edge for your knife, when you use it as part of your sharpening process. Once you have ground down the edge with your rod system, simply spend a moment stropping the blade and you will be surprised at the difference.

Better Polishing: In addition to sharpening, you will find that a strop can help you keep your Bowie knives looking great for life. Along with the sharpening, rubbing your blade against the leather will put an incredible shine to the metal. This is required care for straight razors, and is largely the reason that they look so new, even if they are decades old. Using a strop can help you keep rust from your blade and can help remove stain spots that even some chemical cleaners cannot eliminate.

Better Mid-cycle Care: Have you ever noticed that once you get a terrific edge to Bowie knives, a few uses will leave the edge noticeably duller? While your knife does remain quite sharp, it has lost that ultimate edge. A quick stropping can restore that edge in those times between regular sharpening sessions, which can make your blade last longer.

As you can see, a strop can be an excellent investment for those owners who like to keep a Bowie knife in pristine condition and as sharp as possible. It takes very little time to learn how to use a strop, unlike a whetstone, and the optional abrasive compounds used to help speed sharpening are usually affordable.

Blake is a business consultant for an online bowie knifes store featuring western bowie knife.

Bowie knives generally have several different parts to their blades. The most definitive elements of these blades are the Spanish notch, the clipped point and the false edge. There are other features sometimes found on these blades, as well, some historic and some modern. They all have different uses, which is a great deal of why these knives are still so popular. Some of the uses for these parts are largely apocryphal, while others are more or less obvious and have sustained their usefulness for almost 200 years.

The most distinctive feature on a Bowie knife is the clipped point. This is the part of the knife, near the end, where the spine of the blade is higher than the tip. This feature was originally intended to provide better stabbing power to the user in the event of a fight. In fact, this blade design can be seen on some cavalry sabers and other fighting knives of the Bowie’s era, and even on some modern knives. It allows for deeper penetration when stabbing and makes the knife a lethal weapon.

A Bowie knife always has a qullions, or hand guard. Traditionally, this was designed with the top arm facing forward and the bottom guard positioned over the holder’s knuckles. This is obviously a defensive asset in any fight. Some claim the top of the guard was used to trap a blade. Though this is possible, these types of guards were more often used to simply deflect a blade rather than to trap it. Today, the hand guard is principally useful as it prevents the user’s hand from sliding up the blade.

The blood groove is a modern feature. This is probably most associated with the Bowie knives manufactured for the US Marine Corps in World War 2. This adaptation quickly proved its usefulness as a technology of war. The blood groove prevents the knife from creating a vacuum when a stab wound is made. It allows the knife to be withdrawn easily and prevents the blade from stopping blood loss.

Bowie knives without hand guards are not truly Bowies at all. The hand guard’s purpose was obvious. The downward-pointing spike on the bottom of the handle protected the user’s fingers and hand, and the upward-pointing top spike provided a deflection, and possibly trapping, point for the opponent’s blade. They also have the handy characteristic of making it almost impossible to accidentally slide one’s hand up the blade while working, a useful trait in any era!

Blake is a business consultant for an online bowie knife store featuring combat knives.