GUNS Magazine Steambow K1

The Steambow K1 is cleanly styled, mid-sized Drop Point that lets its Bohler N690 steel do the talking. The K1 here is shown with the light stonewashed finish.

Steambow is an Austrian archery manufacturer specializing in crossbows and also offers knives in their accessory line. The manufacturer has offices in Denver, Colo. and we’re featuring their Steambow AR-Series K1 fixed-blade here. The K1 fixer was manufactured in Italy, factory undisclosed, but when a manufacturer contracts with an Italian cutlery company, it is typically for their excellent quality.

The first thing that hit me when I laid eyes on the Steambow K1 was its sanitary styling. No curb feelers here. At 9.0″ overall, the K1 is a mid-sized fixed-blade capable of a variety of tasks without being unwieldy. The 4.3″ business end is upscale Austrian Bohler N690 Cobalt-enriched stainless steel known for being both tough and stain resistant. The K1 blade — available in a light or dark stonewashed finish — is a gently-sloped, V-ground Drop Point with a saber grind along the rear spine. There is 2.25″ of jimping splitting spine-time between the blade and rear handle. The 4.7″ handle is topped in black polymer scales with a modest bit of palm swell while Steambow also offers optional colors in Orange, O.D. Green and Sand or you can opt for genuine Walnut.

The company took a unique approach to the sheath with swappable main housings for both right or left hand carry options and, just like the K1, the whole system is sparing in design.

The K1 comes with two sheath housings designed for right or left hand belt carry. All the necessary parts and hardware are included as well as an Allen wrench for assembly.

The Steambow K1 is a crossover cutter just as comfortable as an urban fighter or a field workhorse. Indeed, in the cutlery industry Bohler N690 stainless steel is found on both urban EDCs and for tough field chores. If you don’t care for a bunch of jujubes hanging off your knife, you’ll really like the K1’s clean styling. MSRP for the crisp, clean and capable Steambow K1 is $179.99.

Steambow.com

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