5-11 Combo

W

Wolf_1989

Joined
Mar 30, 2007
Messages
3,654
We lost electricity when that bad storm hit us on friday June 29 2012. We were without power for eight days, in a heatwave.

After the 2nd day, it looked to me like it was going to be a while before the power company was going to make it out here into the hills so we'd be living in Frontier Timez for who knows how long. fortunately I have the first two weeks of july off, paid.

So for a test of real world "survival" SHTF use, I lashed the sheaths of my BK-5 and BK-11 together. Inspired by the set-up of a Khukri and Karda, it worked very well.

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Now I have a problem. I like this rig so much, I don't want to separate them. Now I need another BK-11 for EDC, and additional BK-11's for my other full size Beckers (although I might strap a BK-14 Eskabar to the sheath of my BK-9 Hog Hunter).


I also decided to give my latest tomahawk mod the test while I had the opportunity, and it served very well also.

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I have literally hundreds of various sharp & pointy objects but I wanted to try a minimalist approach because I know if the S really did H the F, I couldn't bounce off into the woods carrying all that steel. So for eight days without electricity, I only used the BK-5, BK-11, and my new Spike Hawk, and just the BK-15 horizontal on my belt when I had to drive into civilization. They all worked great.
 
Great job turning a tough situation into a learning opportunity. BTW, what do you see as the major differences between the 5 and the 15? I love the blade design, and one of the two will be joining the collection very soon. Just can't decide which...
 
Thumper99 said:
Great job turning a tough situation into a learning opportunity. BTW, what do you see as the major differences between the 5 and the 15? I love the blade design, and one of the two will be joining the collection very soon. Just can't decide which...
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Obviously, the difference is size.

The BK-15 is smaller, lighter, and more nimble. It's better for smaller and more detailed tasks. It's also more discrete to carry and doesn't frighten Sheeple as much as the BK-5 would. I think I like the 5 and 15 equally, just depends on what I'm doing.
 
Put it this way:

I've had my BK-5, my first Becker, for over a decade. It's been my main blade for butchering/slaughtering (I help out on local farms during slaughtering season) and for general purpose woodsy stuff. It might just be my all time favorite knife. It's rugged, lightweight and remarkably tough despite its thinnish blade. It's also sharp as a straight razor. But the drawback is sometimes that 8" blade is a bit too much, and I really don't like holding a slippery bloody blade with slippery bloody fingers while trying to do something more detailed.

For that, the BK-15 steps in with its smaller 5.5" blade. Perfect. So I carry and use both as a team usually.

Sometimes you need a sledgehammer... but sometimes you need a claw hammer.

If you're cleaning a shark, use the BK-5. If it's just a trout, use the BK-15. Round it out with the BK11 which is a borderline multitool, and you can take on anything.
 
Thanks for the clarification. I think that the BK-15 will better fill a gap in my lineup, but the BK-5 is just so damn sexy it is hard to say no...
 
Thumper99 said:
Thanks for the clarification. I think that the BK-15 will better fill a gap in my lineup, but the BK-5 is just so damn sexy it is hard to say no...
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One thing I can say about the 5... after many years I recently decided to upgrade it with the Kabar micarta handles. The micarta are little bit heavier than the standard hollow grivory handles. That tiny little bit of extra weight in the hilt completely transformed it. I like my fighters to have more weight in the hand than the blade. The old BK-5 is now what I consider a *perfect* fighting knife.
 
I agree completely. When I added the micarta to my BK2 it turned it into an entirely different knife.
 
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