Maurice M
627 Lakeview Blv. Apt. 422/78130

Sep 25, 2015

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Sheath/Scabbard, Materials, Finish, Blade Sharpness

Cons: None

Cold Steel Bowie Machete 12" Great!

Love it! Best buy on a knife I ever made. I marvel at the quality I got for the price. It's as sharp as a razor. I have a heavier made Bowie of Damascus Steel that I paid a $100 for, and it is junk compared to this knife. Knife Center does a good job of getting it to you. I bought one, put braided rawhide, (which it doesn't need), on the handle and sent it to a friend. Had a little burr on the blade which was easy to get rid of, and now sharp as a razor.

Jash
Australia

Dec 30, 2017

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Sheath/Scabbard

Cons: Blade Sharpness

That’s not a knife....

THIS IS A KNIFE! Definitely the best value large knife/small machete money can buy. This is what you want in your hands if you come across a wild pig while out hiking or camping. The blade will sharpen to a razors edge with a bit of work on a stone, and being a machete it will take a beating that would destroy other large and more expensive knives. For the price I cannot think of a single other blade that will match it on value for money. It doesn’t have the best finish, but it’s a tool, not a showpiece. Buy it, use it, love it!

Joey
Virginia Beach Virginia

Nov 25, 2013

Pros: Weight, Overall Quality, Sheath/Scabbard

Cons: None

bang for the buck

if you want a heavy duty field knife that will chop anything this is the blade for you, well priced and with just a little touch up took an edge nicely.

David M
oklahoma

Jun 19, 2013

Pros: None

Cons: None

Great light chopper, great thrower, sharper than expected, strong durable blade, easy to cary on long hikes worth every penny

Stjohnso
chicago

Aug 21, 2014

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Sheath/Scabbard

Cons: Weight, Blade Material

I bought three

Delicate handling and solid power. I use it for gardening. The tip is thin and delicate enough for poking and weeding. I pick and sort with the tip, the blade tip easily inserts into dirt 4 inches and its stiff enough to torque or do roots. No cap on handle so you cant't hammer it in but a little light baton on the cap is OK. 1055 Blade is what I call dead. I don't especially like 1055 for edges but that's just me. I like AUS 8a and spring steel. The Bowie Machete does not sing like my 1095 imacasa double edge machete which I can make evil sharp in no time at all. Being short and stout the Bowie isn't really quick enough to cut tall grass and bush leaves but it's ok for stiffer twigs and vines. A bit tip light, and heavy in the belly it sort of seems like a light hatchet. However, it doesn't seem likely to cut firewood or big pine trees. Your elbow will hate you. No wild limbing and slashing through willow thickets like the long old army latin style ontario? machete I had in Alaska. Not for building tree forts but the bowie can handle cutting in tight areas where the latin machetes don't have room to swing and are long and clumsy. All in all, I consider it a machete bowie more than a bowie machete. But hey..I bought three!

Resident
Guam USA

Jun 22, 2013

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Materials, Finish, Blade Sharpness

Cons: Sheath/Scabbard

My blade came with a convex edge. The cutting edge of the blade is rough because the factory sharpening did not take the time to remove the feather left by this sharpening technique. Remove the feather by stroking the blade edge very softly backwards away from your stone instead of into the stone as normal. It is essential that only the tip of the edge touch the stone. Also, to help remove the feather, when you rock the edge until it meets the stone, raise the back of the blade slightly, light touch on stone and the feather will come off. This is a very fine blade and grip. I will however, wrap the grip with tennis racquet grip tape and cut down an old GI plastic machete sheath to length. I keep all my machetes in these sheaths. Much better safety and protection. You won't be sorry! 1055 carbon steel at 53-54 Rc is as tough as blades get.

Texas John
Texas

Aug 30, 2016

Pros: Weight, Sheath/Scabbard, Blade Sharpness

Cons: None

Great price from Knife Center and the expected quality product from Cold Steel. Cutting edge is sharp and clip can be easily sharpened. Light weight makes it easy to carry and use for all camping chores. Good length for a hallway:)

Yosemitesam
Pactolus NC

Feb 12, 2015

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Materials

Cons: None

12" Bowie Machete Review

This Bowie machete is exactly as described and expected. There were no surprises. The balance and heft are appropriate for light chopping, clearing vines or light brush, and if you take time with the edge it's pretty good as a knife. Being that it is all black, I highly recommend tying it to the sheath, a belt or belt loop, something, so it doesn't get left on the ground somewhere. I would like to see an option for a LH sheath. I did not list finish or blade sharpness as pros because finish of a machete is unimportant to me and I feel the edge on a machete is my responsibility to get it to my liking.

Nick G
NE pa

May 31, 2013

Pros: None

Cons: None

needs work but worth it.

if youre willing to put a few hours work into sharpening this blade ( out of the box cant even cut paper) , you will have a short machete shaped like a bowie that takes a razor edge, is super light, and chops like a madman. mill file first, then stones: coarse - medium - fine. and you can literally shave with this. it can effectively replace a large knife and a medium machete. keep the edge oiled or it will rust (one drawback of carbon steel). overall welll worth the 18 bucks.

Boone
West Virginia

May 27, 2015

Pros: Weight, Blade Material, Blade Sharpness

Cons: Finish

Worth the price

Would be a 5 star except the grind was uneven.

Jimd
Indiana

May 30, 2013

Pros: None

Cons: None

Great camp knife!

I bought this machete for a camp knife and it will work very well for this, the only problem I had was getting the sticker from Cold Steel off of the blade...small problem.

Guy
italy

Nov 24, 2017

Pros: Blade Sharpness

Cons: Blade Sharpness

hog and hogs

good for everything

Mihalachi A
belgium

May 06, 2013

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Blade Material, Blade Sharpness

Cons: Overall Quality

Cold Steel Bowie machete

Hello dear friends. I'm happy to be the first to leave a review about the new small machete from Cold Steel. All of you are probably looking at a price of 17.95 US dollar and immediately thinking. What can you buy for the money? Or. Is it for the money you can buy a normal knife for hiking and traveling? You know, maybe. And a knife in front of you. And it's Bowie Machete 12 "Carbon Steel Blade. Believe me, I do not work for Cold Steel, and not even on the Knife Centrum. Simply express my opinion. Upon receipt of the box we obtain twelve inch large knife. Made in South Africa. Rubber grip. An ideal and comfortable for weight and length of the blade. The blade is black, coated with resin. The blade is perfectly smooth, but very rough and poorly sharpened. And what we expected for 17.95? But with normal hands and a great love for knives, this piece of poorly trimmed with metal handle can be turned into a beautiful and comfortable knife for all occasions. Personally, I first washed with acetone all the paint. Then, picking up a good file, made the blade smooth and perfect. Then re-plated blade with black lacquer. And at the very end sharpened to a razor blade under the condition of 21 degree angle. It turned out not even bad. And believe me now does not look like a knife to 17.95. So that's it. Some work to do and you get a utility knife for all occasions. Buy, do not hesitate. All you get, and everything will be OK Hello everyone. Thank you. A. Mihalachi

Mike S.
rhode island

Jul 11, 2014

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Sheath/Scabbard

Cons: Blade Sharpness

cold steel bowie machete

i bought this bowie as a purley defensive tool. and it does that job very well. it could have been a little sharper. but what do you want for twenty dollars? it has a pleasing heft to it but at the same time it is Quick. penatration is outstanding. could have used a handguard (quillion) when used in conjunction with a tomahawk it makes an outstanding defensive package.

Kelly S
Rolla, Mo

Mar 05, 2019

Pros: Handle Material, Overall Quality, Sheath/Scabbard, Finish

Cons: Blade Sharpness

RENDEZVOUS BOWIE

I will be using this for my Mountain Man Rendezvous. I've a very long, think & large deer antler that I'll use to replace the handle. NO shiny stainless steel; I'll antique it a bit. Knife came fairly sharp but had some metal burrs on edge. Doesn't matter to me; I sharpen all new knives I buy. If used for camping, this would be great for batoning firewood, although I've not tried it. Would have liked a finger choil, but it's not necessary; I can make one if I want. Nice handle with a solid grip for those who want it as is. PRICE CAN'T BE BEAT FOR THE SIZE AND QUALITY OF A MACHETE BOWIE THAT WILL BE A CAMPFIRE CHOPPER AND A KNOCK AROUND CAMP KNIFE.

Anonymous
US

Jul 17, 2020

Pros: None

Cons: Finish, Blade Sharpness

It’s okay

I bought this to toss in the pickup and use in case of emergencies. Out of the box the Bowie machete needs work fixing the uneven grind and sharpening the butter knife dull edge. The 1055 is soft and doesn’t hold an edge very long. If you plan on taking the Bowie machete into the woods and actually using it be sure to bring something to sharpen the knife with,cause it requires frequent sharpening due to the soft steel.