The 1983 Western Brand W36 Bowie Hunting Knife, in Mint condition.

This specimen was never carried or used, and was stored outside of the molded leather sheath, insuring the 5 1/2" flat ground carbon steel blade was free of pitting or corrosion.

The obverse tang is stamped "WESTERN" over "USA W36" over "G", where the letter G represents the manufactured year of 1983. Western started using the alphabet system to identify the year of manufacture in 1977; A=1977, B=1978, C=1979, and so forth.

With an overall length of 10", Western billed this as their Heavy Duty Model W36.

Western was purchased by Coleman in 1984. Camillus Cutlery Company purchased Western in 1992, which then subsequently closed in 2007 due to bankruptcy.

This knife sold in May, 2015 for $130.00