Product Description

The S&W Big Bowie Fixed Blade Knife SWBB. The knife has a Mesquite Fibron handle. It has a 44OC stainless 10.25 inch blade. 16 inches overall and includes sheath.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #39866 in Sports & Outdoors
• Brand: Smith & Wesson
• Model: SWBB

Features

• 440C steel Bowie blade
• Mesquite Fibron wood handle
• 10.25" blade, 16" overall, 24 oz
• Leather Sheath Included
• Limited Lifetime Warranty

Customer Reviews

Wrong grind and too nose-heavy
For bargain-basement knives, it's hard to beat Taylor Cutlery, makers of Smith and Wesson, Schrade, and Elk Ridge. I've enjoyed most of their offerings. On the S&W Big Bowie, however, they've missed the mark.

It's a big, heavy, sharp, handsome, and impressive-looking knife with an awful lot of good 440-C steel and a nice, if thin, black leather sheath. On paper, it looks like a done deal if you like large Bowies. But get one in your hands, and it's a whole different story.

The first thing you'll notice is its heft. I have knives that I used to think were nose-heavy until I picked this one up. The handle is very chunky for my medium-sized hands. As a result, recovering the point after a snap-cut is just too slow to make this a good fighting knife, which is supposed to be the Bowie's strong suit.

A knife with such forward balance still might make a good chopper, but not this one. It's hollow-ground (that is, the bevel is concave), making the edge very keen but not very strong. Most Bowie knives have a half-flat (saber) grind, and a smaller number have full-flat or convex grinds. All are inherently stronger than the hollow grind, which is why you rarely see hollow grinds on heavy choppers.

This theory was proven the first time I hit a pine knot with the Big Bowie. The knot put a nice, round dent in the blade's edge. I also managed to chip out the edge in another place. The chip-out tends to confirm that 440-C is not the easiest steel with which to maintain a very thin and keen edge, especially in a heavy knife that you'll be swinging hard.

There are a few fit-and-finish issues as well. The steel spacers in the handle are not machined flush with the Fibron handle material, and the Fibron itself tends to craze and crack on the surface. Otherwise, the assembly is tight and seems rugged.

If the grind were changed from hollow to saber, and the point of balance were moved farther back, and the whole knife lightened a bit and the grip trimmed to a reasonably hand-filling chunkiness, then this would be a nice, inexpensive Bowie knife, and probably at no additional cost. As it is, I can't recommend it as a working knife. For less money, there are acceptable, functional Bowies imported by Winchester, Rough Rider, and Meyerco. And if you're willing to spend about twice as much as the Smith, which still isn't all that much, then you're into some nice knives, some of them American-made. Give this one a miss.

Smith & Wesson, well sort of
Yes, it's a big knife, and it looks good. But, it is a little dissapointing to me. It's not as heavy as I thought it would be. Worst of all, it says Smith & Wesson, but IT'S MADE IN CHINA!!! How sad is that?

Best Dang Knife for the Money!
This Smith & Wesson Big Bowie Knife and Sheath is everything as advertised. The quality, look and feel is superior. The sheath is very good and fits the knife very well. The shipping and delivery was as advertised and arrived in good condition, and within the timeframe expected. I HIGHLY RECOMMED the seller and will purchase from them again.