kflach,
Thats a very good question, and one that may requre a lengthy answer LOL.
Balance is VERY important to the feel of a knife, especially one this big. Believe it or not balance has a much larger effect on how the knife feels in the hand and performs than the actual weight of the knife.
For instance, a heavy knife thats well balanced will feel "light and fast" in the hand, while a light knife balanced too far forward will feel awkward with little control.
Balancing the knife is something that to a large degree is controllable by the maker of the knife. For example 2 full tang 8" bowie knives with the same profile.
Knife #1 Is ground with a full length distal taper (taper in the width towards the tip) Which allows the maker to "adjust" how much weight he's taking off the front of the blade and moving the balance rearward. Now he can also taper the tang to do the opposite and move the point of balance forward. Many times additional holes are drilled in the tang to also remove weight to affect the balance point. With these combinations there is alot of ability to balance the knife the way you want. Say for this example that this knife balances right at the guard. It's gonna be light and fast in the hand and make a great Fighting Bowie that will perform ok in tougher chopping "machete" type tasks.
Knife #2 has no taper and a short hollow grind and a tapered tang. This knife is going to balance a good distance in front of the guard and feel slower and clunky compared to #1 but will excell at chopping and heavy "camp chore" type tasks due to the extra leverage applied to the cutting edge toward the front of the blade.
Learning how to get the balance you desire is to a large degree figured out from experience and is not an exact science as many factors come into play. Here are some other factors that will also affect the balance of the knife.
What is the handle material
Is there a rear bolster
Is there a lanyard tube or hole
how many pins, what size, and where on the handle are they placed
Full tang, hidden tang, or framed handle
Size (or more importantly weight)of guard or bolsters
Balance is ALWAYS applicable. I think many makers just make the knife and it comes out how it comes out and through experience and/or luck they come up with something usefull for the intended tasks of the knife or perhaps not, LOL.
I will however also add that many factors come into play in the design, construction, and end functionality of a knife. Cross section of the blade, thickness of the blade at the edge, angle and quality of sharpening, type of grind, shape of the blade for the intended tasks are all factors that are all equally important and need to work together to creat a really outstanding knife.
As to how this all applies to the Belduque, I like tapering my tangs from a design standpoint but decided not to on this blade due to the effect it would have on the balance and now I'm glad I didn't. I did put a distal taper on her but only from the start of the clip forward. She balances right at the front of the bolsters which makes her light and fast feeling but should also perform admirably at chopping tasks due to the thinness of the blade on the edge. To me this is a good compromise for a knife that would've most likely been the owners all purpose cutting, slicing, butchering, chopping, self defense weapon, and tool of choice for pretty much everything.
-Josh