Bark River Kephart and Kephart Companion Review.

[Diomedes Industries]

Full Tang Kephart:

Steel: A2
Rockwell Hardness: 58 Rc
Handle Material: Black Paper Micarta
Overall Length: 8.805
Blade Length from tip to Ricosso: 4.097 Inches.
Handle Length from butt to Ricosso: 4.728
Ricosso Length: 0.186
Steel Width at Spine of Ricosso: 0.144
Steel Width at blade in front of Ricosso: 0.124
Blade Height at Ricossa: 0.988
Handle Height at Butt: 1.044
Handle Height at Center Pin: 1.005
Handle Height at Front Pin: 0.901
Handle Height at Finger Guard 1.227
Handle Size at Butt: 0.834
Handle Size at Center Pin: 0.786
Handle Size at Front Pin:0.684

First Impressions:

This was one of the best looking knives I have seen out of the box, even from Bark River. Everything about it was just about perfect. I am anal when it comes to fit and finish with any knife that I buy of this expense. I go over every part of the grind, the handle, the rub, the edge, and the polish with great care before I sharpen or use the blade.

The black paper micarta was a high polish when I got it. The pins and lanyard tube were perfectly contoured and matching. The only cause of trouble was up by the finger guard. The micarta was not ground to match the metal and some fit issues arose because of it.

I used some baking soda on the micarta to get rid of the super high polish (and waxy slick finish from the polishing compound). It took the polish off a little too well - and I ended up buffing the handle a little bit to make it look better (hand rubbed with green compound)

The blade had a great finish on it and the logo's were even, straight, and the darkest I have had come from BRKT. Mine is a first production run - so it says that on one side of the blade. The only issues I took with the blade were that grind gets a little off line closest to the ricossa. This makes for the edge to not be flat.

It is a slight error in the grind - but one that I will likely fix. It is little stuff like this that drives me a little crazy. A few more seconds on the grinder could have fixed the handle and the blade and made them perfect. Overall however, I would say this blade came from the factory in the best shape I have seen. Nothing from BRKT that I nit pick has ever effected performance - that is great - but I would remiss in not mentioning the little things.

Sheath:

It is a Sharpshooter type A sheath. It is great. It is Sharpshooter. Here are some pics.

I would wager that is 'nuff said'.

Using the Kephart:

I have used this knife all week. It is a great blade. It slices much easier than my Aurora (thinner stock and a total convex grind) and was plenty sharp. I took the knife over to my bench and put my edge on it. It was very little work as this edge was neat, even, and finely ground. I used a worn 600 grit piece, then moved to a worn 1000, and finally to a worn 2000. I then stropped the edge on Black, Green, Pink compounds and finished on a plain leather strop. It wiped away hair at that point and I could tell very little that I had done to the blade. The companion was not this way - and I was happy to see that this was a fluke.

There is little this knife cannot do - and I wonder how much I will use the companion after all. The round handle makes multiple hand holds very easy as well as allowing you to choke way up on the blade without any finger swell to get in the way. I did get some hot spots with the handle after heavy use - but I cannot tell why this is. It is right at the meat of my palm where the thumb connects and I am not sure why this would be. It may simply be because I was making many heavy cuts with little assistance on walking sticks I was making. It may be that the Aurora can make these cuts easier and that is what I am used to - and it may be that I am not holding the knife the way it needs to be held - and am holding it like the Aurora. The handles are the greatest difference between these two knives and there are great things about both... I need more time to figure the blade out and how to use it best.

The A2 holds an edge very well and sharpens easily. The smaller stock makes a different sound when being used (than the Aurora) but other than that you can tell little difference. One odd thing about the design is that it gets a little fatter at the tip. The blade is about 1 inch at the ricosso but fattens almost 1/10th of an inch toward the tip. This was in the original Kephart, so it is true to his design - but I am not sure why this is or what advatage it gives.

One thing about the hande is that it does not power cut (grab the blade and simply cut away at something) as comfortably as the Aurora (which is contoured for this position very well) but does nearly every other cut more comfortably than the Aurora (which has contours that can get in the way a little in less used positions).

The knife battons well, not as fast as the Aurora (thinner stock) but very well. It sizzles through wood when slicing. It grabs everything you put in its path and wants to slice it. It makes thinner curls than the Aurora (less steep grind) and has a better square on the spine for a fire steel. The one thing I did notice is that this knife seems to be made to make a bow drill kit. It makes good fat dimples for the hearth and handhold. It push cuts into the hearth for the dust notch with ease and makes great spindles.

The knife is fun and would be nearly an ideal bushcrafting knife.

Final Thoughts: The Kephart and the Aurora are nearly the same knife. There are slight handle difference, a little difference in blade length, and a little difference in thickness of the blade. One of these knives will need to go soon - but I cannot decide which one. It may be arbitrary when the call is made. It seems to me that if you are looking for a bushcraft blade that you want to slice more than batton, a thinner rather than thicker blade, and a more versitle handle - the Kephart is probably one for you.

UPDATE:

I sold the Aurora - and kept the Kephart. Mostly however because of buying a few other BRKT knives that I have purchased. I have come to simply LOVE the Kephart. It is one of the best knives I have owned.



TF

 

[Diomedes Industries]

Bark River Kephart and Kephart Companion:

Kephart Companion:

Steel: A2
Rockwell Hardness: 58 Rc
Handle Material: Black Canvas Micarta
Overall Length: 6.757
Blade Length from tip to Ricosso: 2.697 Inches.
Handle Length from butt to Ricosso: 4.060
Steel Width at Spine of Ricosso: 0.140
Steel Width at blade in front of Ricosso: 0.125
Blade Height at Ricossa: 0.889
Handle Height at Butt: 0.862
Handle Height at Palm Swell: 0.779
Handle Height at Finger Swell: 0.640
Handle Size at Butt: 0.680
Handle Size at Palm Swell: 0.649
Handle Size at Index Finger Swell:0.574

Overall Impressions:

This is my second BRKT knife so I have come to expect a certain amount of quality with their knives. Although I picked this one up pre-owned it was unused. I personally do not understand people that collect BRKT knives as I feel they are meant to use - but hey - that is me, and I am sure collectors get enjoyment out of examining their horde!

I was not disappointed as I examined this knife for the first time. The scales melt into the steel and the pins fit perfectly. I know there is likely to be some shifting in this material over time - but a little shifting is to be expected.

Then I got the knife - the first thing I did after inspecting the craftsmanship was excellent. The only thing that I noticed with this knife, as I did with my Aurora, is that there has been no stropping to the edge of the blade.

I am not sure you can see it in the picture above - but the edge was a little rough. It is a total nit pic, and the edge was smooth the thumb nail, but I do with they had one person sitting with a strop and some compound to make the edge nicely shined and sharp when it comes to you.

The first thing I did was to sharpen the blade. I love to do this to get to know the knife, get to know the edge, and put my edge on it. I ran it on 600 grit wet dry to set my edge, then 1000, then 2000. I brought it over to my JRE Strop Bat and ran it on Black, Green, White, then blank leather.

This took about 20 minutes because of one rough spot in particular on the blade. This was simply a slight angle correction and I did not have to remove a lot of material to do so. I love taking my time when I do this - it is just nice to spend some time with your new steel.

Here is what it looked like when I got done with the edge:

I also cleaned up the handle with some baking soda as the polishing process can make the handle really slick. This was no exception - but after just a little cleaning I had a grippy handle. It makes tiny swirl marks on the rivets - but again - this is a user.

It was ready to be tested at that point.

Using the Companion:

I ordered this as a true companion to the Kephart FT that I have coming in. With that said - this knife is a capable little knife. There are two important design additions that really make this knife work like a knife much larger than it could.

The first thing is the butt of the knife. The butt has rear quillion that allows your palm to grab this plunge when making a hard cut. When you cut a lot of material, some smaller knives can feel like they want to slip out of your hand because the butt portion of the knife is either even to the rest of the height of the handle or it even tapers. This knife, using the rear quillion at the butt allows for a very good grip.

Another thing that I liked about this knife is that the front quillion leaves the handle and becomes part of the Ricosso. This Ricosso / front quillion allows you to get your full hand on this small knife (I have size L gloves) and make larger cuts than you normally could.

When you put your hand on the knife and try to make a large cut the knife always requires that you put your thumb along the spine to add pressure to the blade going forward. In this configuration you can make larger cuts than you should with a small blade. It is not comfortable to do for a long time - but in a pinch this knife would get through many a problem.

Because of the thinner blade stock (in comparison to my Aurora and I would wager my FT Kephart) the blade really slices easily. I used it to take the bark off of a piece of wood and it did so very easily. The Aurora can take more material and it able to hog material off easier, of course, but the Companion was quite capable.

Where it really excelled was in the fine work. I cleaned up my trap portions with it, sharpened sticks, and made dimples with it. I even battoned the little guy when making a shelf for my split stick deadfall.

This is where Horace was really thinking. This little knife gets into all those places where a larger blade cannot. The spear point makes drilling, cutting, and fine work a breeze. It also means that you have more control because the fine portion of the knife is closer to your hand. When your thumb is on the back of the spine, you can really see where the fine details are made easier and with a lot of control.

The edge retention is excellent and after a lot of work still sizzled through paper. A little strop and it is good as new. I love D2 for this quality. When I used it to eat later than night, of course, you need to watch anything getting on this blade that will discolor it. A little steak sauce with vinegar can add spots. I don't really care as this was meant to be a user, and you can buff it out VERY easily - but it is a possibility with this type of steel.

The Sheath:

This sheath is a Sharpshooter, like all have been from BRKT for the last few years. This was made like the rest, 6-7 ounce leather stained a light brown while at the tannery, machine sewed with 4 ounce white nylon, and riveted with 3/16 lanyard tubes. It came with a firesteel loop. The welt was made either too short or with a drain hole (this is the first to have a drain hole - but since this is more of a fish and foul I could see the use of a drain hole).

The knife fit fairly well (a little loose) and was very competent. I looked a little out of square and sort of rounded toward the top. This sheath would serve a lifetime and I am anxious to try out its piggy back to the Kephart sheath.

Overall Impressions:

This knife is like what I am used to from BRKT. A nice user, easy to maintain, nicely priced, and well suited to its tasks.


TF

 

[Will Power]

I very much like the look of that Kephart Companion as I favour a small knife.That said, it's not at all easy to locate one,so they must be good!
Thanks once again for a thought provoking and very well presented review.