Ka-Bar JAB Potbelly, Biscuit View

[Guyon]

So I won a knife, a Ka-Bar Johnson Adventure Potbelly. Winning required me to pretend to be Brad Pitt, but then, of course, I have no real shame.
It came in the mail yesterday along with a bonus surprise. As I type this review, I'm enjoying the bonus surprise. Good stuff.



The first thing I noticed was the sheath. I like it. You could fit a small family of four in the pouch and still have room for a firesteel and a multitool. I have no idea how I'm going to fill it up, but I'm going to try. The Piggyback has its own liner, and the snap retention works well on the smaller knife.





A couple more pics of the knives while they were new. On the models I receive, the grinds are quite nice and symmetrical. Both blades came shaving sharp out of the box.





Yesterday, we had some lightning/hail storms come through the area, and I had a small pecan limb shaken loose by the wind. It had already snapped off, but had been hung up in some higher branches. I drug it around back and rendered it into pieces for the fire bowl. The Potbelly made quick work of the branches.





I took one of the pecan branches and did a little carving, making the bottom half of an L7 snare. In a choked-up grip, the knife carved well and had a good bite.





Then, I took a larger elm branch and did some chopping. I didn't have a lanyard handy, so I didn't get too crazy. I just went around the perimeter and then took out the middle with a few chops. The Potbelly has a good bite and the 1/4" spine gives it some nice momentum.





I started in batoning one of the elm chunks, but then I notice the scales were a little loose. Time out for some Allen wrench action. 3mm if anyone is interested.



Then I finished up with the batoning. The swedge/tip is almost sharpened, and is likely designed for folks who want a good pig sticker. In that capacity, it would excel. However, it does tear up a baton log pretty easily if you're batoning thicker branches.

Because the elm grain was so cockeyed, I wound up having to split it down the middle from the side. The curved belly of the knife made this chore quite simple.






The grip on the Potbelly is different from anything I've handled, and it took a little getting used to. But it does offer several good handholds depending on what sort of work you want to do. You can choke up for fine work, pull back for light chopping, or even grip it at the very end for heavier chopping. I would definitely recommend a lanyard with the latter grip.







Here are a couple of final shots, one showing the thick spine and the palm swell on the handle. The scales, a faux ray skin, are grippy, but I did find that my chopping grip (the middle one above) promoted a little bit of a hot spot on my thumb. Not bad though.





All in all, I like the knife a lot. I'm still getting used to it, but the design of the knife facilitates a lot of function, and you get considerable utility in a relatively small package. I'm not saying the Potbelly is a small knife. It's not. But it acts like it's bigger than it actually is, and that's a good thing.


.

[Murphnuge]

Outstanding review(as expected), I never paid any real attention to these knives until you, Moose and Bladite came singing their praises. I may have to entertain the idea of owning one. I especially like the fact that you had this thing out to play immediately after receiving. That's something my lazy ass hasn't done since getting my BK2 Tues.

[Bladite]

ooh a zombie hex tool

[upnorth]

Maybe the bonus fits in the pouch when expanded ? Mmmmm, on second thought, maybe not the best idea. I'm really upset with this review, not a single sliced and buttered biscuit to be seen !

[Guyon]

You know, I said I'd never handled anything quite like it, but the more I think about it, that's not true.
The grip contour is a little similar to the original Swamp Rat series of choppers (Ratweiler, Rat Mastiff, Rat Daddy).
However, the index curve isn't quite as pronounced on the Swamp Rats.
If I ever decide to mod the Potbelly, I might reduce the curve a bit and fashion some micarta scales for it.

[cccpull]

How does it compare to the BK9 as a chopper?

[BRL]

Great review! I gotta say, in photos the JAB scales look awful... a weird, super fake plasticy looking color and just generally cheap looking. I love the blade shape though and am seriously considering one of the folders.

[The Warrior]

Nice review. It really is an interesting looking blade. I like it. I didn't realize it had palm swells. From the side, it looks flat. Hmmm....

[Flexxx]

Can I have the Swamp rat?

Thanks

[cccpull]

Great review! I gotta say, in photos the JAB scales look awful... a weird, super fake plasticy looking color and just generally cheap looking. I love the blade shape though and am seriously considering one of the folders.

+1 In pictures those scales do look cheap.

[C_Tanner]

Darn it! You messed up that fine finish! Oh well....I SUPPOSE I'll let you donate it to me. I am willing to shoulder the inconvenience and take one for the team.

[shortwinger]

Great review and some nice pics Guyan! I think as a few more people take a leap of faith and buy this knife it will gain in popularity quickly. Especially when you throw in the Piggyback knife to do some of the smaller jobs. And with the BK7 sheath platform it really is a nice package.

I also agree with some of the handle comments but once it is in hand, that goes away. All that is needed now is some extended time in the field to see how they hold up and wear.

[Guyon]

The scales are actually pretty tough.
When batoning, my blade got stuck. And in beating it back out of the log, I pinched/torqued the scales against the wood.
A light scuff is all I had to show for it.

[Angus McGunnigl]

The more I hear about and see this knife, the more i like it. One question??
The pics on many sites show a completely smooth ricasso with no cutout like you have on yours. You found no discomfort when choking up on blade ?
That totally smooth transtion from blade to handle looks more comfortable than the ricasso on your knife. Knifecenters pics show smooth, Kabar site shows smooth, Newgraham shows cutout, Amazon shows cutout, OSO shows smooth. Does anyone now why the diff ??
Great review, thanks.

[DerekH]

Might just be me going against the grain, but I don't find this knife very appealing at all.

It might be the hollow grind, or the weird handle shape, but something about it puts me off. If it is as functional as other knives available, say a BK9 or something of that nature, and all that is left is aesthetics, then I am going to pass this one up. Good review though, and I think that if I had no choice but to get this one, it would probably do the job well. Just not my cup of tea as they say.

[Guyon]

The more I hear about and see this knife, the more i like it. One question??
The pics on many sites show a completely smooth ricasso with no cutout like you have on yours. You found no discomfort when chocking up on blade ?
That totally smooth transtion from blade to handle looks more comfortable that the ricasso on your knife.
Great review, thanks.

It didn't bother me, but after some Googling, I see what you mean.
Mine was a prize knife that had been sitting up, so my first thought is that it must be an older version.
However, the pictures of Moose's knife (acquired at Blade Show) don't support that idea.
Maybe someone who worked the Ka-Bar booth at Blade could say more about the difference.

My knife...



Moose's (just purchased) knife...



Pic on Ka-Bar's website...

[Guyon]

How does it compare to the BK9 as a chopper?

Two different animals. The BK-9 is a purer chopper, one of the best I have. I own, and have owned, a lot of choppers.
That said, the Potbelly is no slouch. It had good bite, and would consistently take chunks out of some hard wood with just a few swings.

Can I have the Swamp rat?

No.

[shortwinger]

Guyon,

I have a few recently purchased Potbellys that look just like yours. I would imagine this is the current production model.

[never too sharp]

Nice review, I'm glad it got put to work. As far as the cut out goes, the knife was relatively new when I got it from Toooj last summer. I'm thinking the smooth ricasso was probably a photo sample or prototype.
That wasn't the factory edge, by the way.
And I tried to jam that 1/5 into the pouch, but it just wouldn't go.

[Sword and Shield]

I just wish it were flat ground, but either way, looks like a winner.