Why Join? Welcome to our site. I’m guessing the allure of the Antique Bowie Knife brought you here. Well, we can’t blame you. We like them too! Whether you are a new collector or you have collected for years, you should consider joining our community. The Antique Bowie Journal. Three times a year we produce an exclusive full-color publication devoted entirely to antique bowie knives and their cousins, and every one we’ve ever published can be viewed on the members-only side of our website. It’s always a great day when the Antique Bowie Journal arrives! Joining the ABKA will help you avoid counterfeits. There are SO many fake Antique Bowie knives out there for sale, and sellers looking to prey on the untrained eye. These knives are made for one purpose: to deceive potential buyers and get big bucks for a modern knife that has been unscrupulously marked or aged to look old. Some are very convincing, and even experienced collectors can end up with them if not careful. I know from personal experience because I have done it. When I started, I was about to buy a knife for $13,000 that was previously on a well-known auction site. Well guess what…it was a total FAKE! The first place new collectors usually go to find knives is eBay, and a LOT of the “antique Bowie knives” there are fakes. One benefit of ABKA membership is that you can ask other members before you buy! You will meet great folks here that will be happy to give their opinions if a knife is legit or fake. You will have the luxury of being able to access our Forum, which contains valuable information how to spot a fake. This could save you thousands! Meet other collectors. The world’s leading bowie knife collectors, dealers, and researchers are all here. See the finest bowies in the world on the members-only side of our website or in-person at our meetings, and talk directly to the experts. Make new friends to buy, sell or trade with. Learn more about bowie knives and their history. The bowie is America’s great contribution to knife design, and like America itself antique bowie knives are like a melting pot of knives from other cultures. The bowie played a significant role in settling America’s frontier, in the Texas Revolution, the Mexican War and the Civil War, and in other historic events such as Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination. There are antique bowies associated with figures like James Bowie, Rezin Bowie, Davy Crockett, Sam Houston, and even Theodore Roosevelt. Come to our annual meetings. Attend one of our meetings to see displays of the finest bowie knives in the world, or to buy, sell, trade or just visit with our members. If you are going to collect antique bowies, you owe it to yourself to join!