- Model: Rambo: First Blood Part II
- Product Code: OWNRAMBOII
- Location: Kathmandu,Nepal
Available Options
A Hand-Forged Rambo Part II-Inspired Bowie, Built the Way You Want It
Choose the blade finish, the handle wrap, the fittings and the scabbard, add your engraving and choose where it sits — then we forge that exact knife. Every selection updates the preview on screen. There are 720 possible builds before personalisation, and each one is a knife our smiths in Kathmandu make routinely.
Underneath every combination is the same blade: 11.5 inches of hand-forged 5160 spring steel in a clip-point Bowie profile with a smooth, heavy spine, on a full tang that runs unbroken through a 6.5-inch leather-wrapped grip. At 17 inches overall it is the largest knife in our Rambo range. It is our unofficial tribute to the survival Bowie carried in Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985) — forged as a working knife rather than a display replica.
Your Choices
Blade length and construction are fixed on this pattern. For a different size or a design of your own, use our custom forge service.
The Knife from First Blood Part II
The Part II knife, which its maker called the Mission, was designed by Jimmy Lile, the Arkansas knifemaker who had built the original First Blood knife three years earlier. The 1985 design was his second and last for the series: longer, heavier and far more imposing on screen than the 1982 blade, with a clip point, a sawback spine and a hollow handle carrying a small survival kit under a compass in the butt cap. Lile declined the third film, and Gil Hibben designed every Rambo knife after it.
Collectors still argue about which of the five film knives is best, but the Part II is the one most people photograph. It is also the reason a generation of survival knives were built with hollow handles. Our blog covers the history of the Rambo knife across the whole series.
What We Changed, and Why
Ours keeps the silhouette and the scale, and changes two things on purpose.
Full tang instead of a hollow handle. The steel runs unbroken from point to butt, with the leather wrap over a steel core. You lose the survival kit and the compass in the cap; you gain a knife that will take chopping, batoning and prying loads that crack a hollow grip. On a 17-inch knife with that much leverage, this is the change that matters most.
A smooth spine instead of a sawback. Serrated spines look the part and saw wood poorly, because the tooth geometry is wrong for it. We keep the spine solid for strength and clean batoning. If you want the sawback, we will cut it through custom forge.
If what you want is the 1985 design reproduced feature for feature, with hollow handle, compass and sawback, licensed reproductions exist and are the right purchase. What we make is a working knife in the same design language.
Which Blade Finish Suits It?
Wrap, Fittings and Scabbard
The grip is a steel core wrapped in leather, which is what gives this knife its weight and its hold in a wet hand. When the wrap eventually wears, it can be stripped and replaced, so the handle outlasts its covering. Six wrap colours are offered, and six scabbard colours in the same leathers.
Matching the wrap to the scabbard gives the coordinated, kitted-out look, and black or brown is the closest to the film. Contrasting them — a black wrap against a red or green scabbard, say — reads as a custom piece rather than a replica, which is the point of building your own. The fittings are the guard and pommel: black iron is the most tactical and disappears against a black coated blade; bright iron is the traditional steel look; brass is warm gold; copper warmer still, and it darkens fastest with handling.
Engraving: Your Words, on the Blade or the Scabbard
This build carries a personalisation field. Type a name, initials, a unit, a service number, dates or a short line, and it is engraved before the knife ships. You can also upload a crest, an insignia, a logo or a photograph for us to reproduce.
Then choose where it goes. On the blade puts it on the widest flat in the range — 11.5 inches of steel gives room for a detailed crest or a longer inscription. On the scabbard keeps the steel plain and the inscription visible while the knife is sheathed, which is what most collectors choose for a memorial or retirement piece. Choose No for an unmarked build. The preview shows the placement before you order, which matters, because engraving does not come off.
Want the Sawback, or a Different Size?
A sawback spine, a hollow handle, a shorter blade, a matched pair with another Rambo-series knife, or an original survival design of your own — anything outside this option list goes through our custom forge service, where we quote your build individually.
Request a Custom Forge →Why This Knife Works
Standard Build Specification
Blade, handle and overall length are fixed on this pattern and do not change with your selections. Because every piece is hand-forged, small variation in weight, dimensions and finish is normal.
An Honest Note on This Knife
An honest note. Three things worth saying plainly. First, this is an unofficial tribute, not a licensed replica: it has no hollow handle, no compass and no sawback, and it is not a measured copy of the original. Second, 17 inches and 950 grams is a great deal of knife. It is magnificent on a wall and useful in a wood pile, but it is not a belt knife you will carry comfortably all day, and several countries restrict importing fixed blades this size — check your own rules first. Third, 5160 is not stainless. It will surface-rust if left wet or stored in a damp scabbard; wipe it dry, keep a light film of oil on it, and it will outlast you.
This Knife Suits
- Film fans who want a forged working knife rather than a stainless display piece
- Collectors who want the biggest blade in the Rambo range, built their way
- Memorial, retirement and service gifts, with room for a detailed engraving
- Buyers who want to see their exact combination before it is forged
Look Elsewhere If
- You want the hollow handle, compass and sawback reproduced — buy a licensed reproduction
- You want a knife you can carry all day — see the smaller Rambo-series blades
- Your country restricts large fixed blades
- You want a stainless blade that tolerates neglect
How Your Order Is Made
Caring for Your Knife
Wipe the blade dry after use and after handling, and keep a light film of oil on it; mineral, machine or food-grade camellia oil all work. An 11.5-inch blade has a lot of surface to cover, so run the cloth the full length rather than the middle third. Do not store the knife in its scabbard for long periods, because leather holds moisture against steel. Condition the handle wrap and the scabbard with leather balm every few months, and re-wrap the grip when the leather finally goes rather than living with a loose handle. Touch the edge up on a medium stone at the angle it came with.
Shipping, Returns and Warranty
Every piece is prepared at the forge in seven to ten days, and shipping adds a further seven to ten days. Orders to the USA and Canada travel with FedEx; everywhere else ships on a DDP service, which means duties and taxes are settled before the parcel moves so there is nothing to pay on delivery. Every piece carries the Everest Forge manufacturer warranty against defects in forging and heat treatment. Because a configured and engraved knife is made to your specification, it falls outside our standard returns window except where the blade is faulty — full terms are on our shipping and returns page. Several countries restrict importing large fixed-blade knives, so check your own rules before ordering, or contact us if you are unsure.
Explore More Everest Forge Blades
Questions About This Knife
Is this an officially licensed First Blood Part II replica?
No. It is an unofficial, hand-forged tribute inspired by the survival Bowie from Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985). It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or licensed by the film's rights holders, Sylvester Stallone, the Jimmy Lile estate or any licensed knifemaker. Licensed reproductions exist, keep the hollow handle, compass and sawback, and are the right purchase if faithfulness is what you want. Ours is a working knife in the same design language, built to your specification.
Who designed the original?
Jimmy Lile, an American knifemaker from Arkansas, designed both the 1982 First Blood knife and the 1985 Part II, which he called the Mission. He declined the third film, and Gil Hibben designed every Rambo knife after it. Our Rambo knife history covers the whole series.
Does it have a hollow handle and a compass?
No. The grip is a solid steel core, part of a full tang running from point to butt, wrapped in leather. That is a deliberate change: a hollow handle is the weakest point on a knife this long once you start chopping or batoning with it. You lose the survival kit and the butt-cap compass; you gain a knife that will not fail at the grip. If the hollow handle is what you want, a licensed reproduction keeps it.
Why is there no sawback?
Because a serrated spine saws wood badly and weakens the back of the blade. The teeth on film-style sawbacks are shaped for the look rather than for cutting, and they leave a line of stress risers exactly where a big knife takes the most shock during batoning. We keep the spine solid. If you want the sawback anyway, we will cut it through custom forge.
Should the wrap and the scabbard match?
Match them for the coordinated, film-accurate look, and choose black or brown for the closest to the screen knife. Contrast them if you want the knife to read as your own build rather than a replica. The preview shows both together, so try a few before deciding.
What can I have engraved, and where?
Text typed into the personalisation field — a name, initials, a unit, dates, a short line — or a logo, crest, insignia or photograph uploaded as a file. Then choose the blade or the scabbard as the placement. The 11.5-inch blade gives the largest engraving surface of any knife in our Rambo range, which suits detailed crests. Choose No for an unmarked build.
How does it compare with the Rambo III builder?
Size and grip. This Part II is 17 inches overall with an 11.5-inch blade and a leather-wrapped steel handle. Our Rambo III builder is 18 inches overall with a shorter, broader 12-inch blade and a choice of solid grips in wood, horn, bone or leather. The Part II is the more cinematic silhouette; the III is the one most people mean by "the Rambo knife".
What is the difference from your wood-handle Part II?
The handle only. Our wood-handle Part II Bowie uses a timber grip on the same blade: warmer in the hand, more traditional, and it develops a patina with use. The leather-wrapped steel grip on this page is the film-accurate one, grippier in the wet, and it can be re-wrapped when it wears. This page is also the configurable one, so the finish, fittings and colours are yours to choose.
Can it actually be used?
Yes. Full tang, forged 5160, hardened and tempered, sharpened before it ships. It will chop, baton and handle camp work, and the weight does much of that job for you. It is not an axe, so for felling or splitting large seasoned rounds use the right tool, and do not pry with the point.
Can I get a blunt version?
Yes. For cosplay, stage use or countries that restrict sharpened blades, add "Stage combat build — rebated edge, rounded tip." in the order note and we will build it that way; our stage combat standard explains what changes. At 17 inches, check your event's weapons policy as well as your country's import rules.
Will 5160 steel rust?
Yes, if you let it. 5160 is a high-carbon spring steel, not stainless, and that is a deliberate trade: it is far tougher than the stainless used in most film replicas, at the cost of needing care. Wipe it dry, keep a light film of oil on it and do not leave it in the scabbard for months. Black coated and acid wash reduce the upkeep.
Can I order a different blade length?
Not in this configurator, which keeps the blade at 11.5 inches. A shorter build carries and stores far more easily, and any length can be quoted through our custom forge service.
Everest Forge makes hand-forged interpretations inspired by film designs for collectors and outdoor users. This knife is not affiliated with, endorsed by or licensed by Lions Gate Entertainment, MGM, StudioCanal, Sylvester Stallone, the Jimmy Lile estate, Master Cutlery, United Cutlery or any film studio or licensed knifemaker. Film titles and names are used for descriptive identification only. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
