The Blade Parts On Bowie Knives

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.

A Bowie knife of modern vintage oftentimes has a saw blade implement included on the spine of the blade. This sort of modification is more suitable for a multipurpose tool than it is for a hunting knife. Obviously, the saw on the back of the blade could make cleaning meat relatively difficult. In the past, a soft, ridged strip of copper or brass was sometimes added to the spine of the blade to provide strength.

Bowie knives also tend to have a Spanish notch near the end. Some claim that this was used by master knife fighters to trap the blades of attackers. This is probably legend as the notch is so small that it makes this scenario very doubtful. In reality, the notch is excellent for cutting cord and sinew and provides a handy guide as to where the blade begins.

Some Bowie knives have what appears to be a dent which runs almost the entire length of the blade. This is referred to as the blood groove. The blood groove is also a part of a blade which provides more usefulness when the knife is used as a weapon of war. The groove prevents the creation of a vacuum when the blade is used for stabbing and causes more bleeding from the wound. This is a rather modern innovation which was added to the knife in the 20th century.

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!

by: Blake Benson

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