Bark River North Star:

R

rev_jch

Joined
Jul 29, 2002
Messages
3,228
North Star:

I had heard mixed reviews about this knife. Some good, some....mmmmm..."not-so-good". One review in particular by someone, was particularly not "flattering". So with this opinion, I had decided it must be a decent knife. Or at least have some good merits. Have some redeeming value!

So I decided to try it! I purchased one from my good friend Larry over at DLT. My specimen I purchased is the black canvas micarta model with lanyard ring.

Upon opening the box. The first thing I noticed right off was the blade was absolutely "shaving sharp".

Well I decided to take this knife on a packing trip with me and try it out.

Now, originally I had thought, when I first handled the knife. It was a little on the heavy side for it's size. Of course this was due to the thick blade (I believe .170 if I remember correctly?). Now I have heard others say it is too thick. But after using this knife I would have to disagree.

The knife, even though it was a little heavy. Really was not heavy at all. Not only that, but it did carry very well on the belt. I hardly knew it was even there.

For lunch I stopped and made camp and thought I would try it out. I made some fuzz sticks. Did some whittling, and cut off branches. This knife performed "flawlessly". Not only did it cut like "no bodies business". But it maintained that razor edge for quite a while! The blade grind was well "executed". The full convex edge was "flawless". For my standards it was very good (and for those of you who know me, that is allot for me to say! Ive been making knives for over 25 years, and I can be a bit "particular").

When I got home I touched the edge up on a barber's strop. It took less than 2 1/2 minutes to get it back to its "keen" edge on just plain leather!!

This knife is wonderful, its definitely a keeper!!

I worked in survival in the AF for 8 years (88-96), and have spent much time in, and around the woods. I was very impressed with the "execution" of this knife. It is well thought out and made to perform! One of the few knives that I would say is very useful in the woods (without added weight). Next to the SAK it is a great tool!

Thanks to Reid, Mike and the guys (and girls) at Bark River for doing a fine job!

Kudos to you all! This is an outstanding knife!~!!

It is my new favorite trekking/camping knife. This knife is proof that smaller knives can do much bigger jobs, and "effectively" also! I usually am very weary of taking a smaller knife on a trip when I may have to depend on it to do larger jobs, but not anymore. Not in this case!!!!!

This is definitely a keeper!~!!!
 
It's a shame you didn't try the Fox River, a much better knife in every respect! :D

Seriously, the NorthStar is an excellent knife, and Mike and the crew at Bark River do a fantastic job on their blades.

Cheers!
 
Ive heard really good things about the fox river also (and Im sure Mike would agree with you ;) )

However, I wanted something that would be lighter, and the North star fit the bill well :D
 
I like my Bark Rivers----but the sheaths suck. They should be doing a lot better in that dept to go with their nice knives.
 
The sheaths are not great, but really they are not that bad at all.

The price of the knives of course would go up if the sheaths were nicer.

Of course their warranty is pretty good! So if you had one that fell apart, you could send it back!
 
rev_jch said:
The sheaths are not great, but really they are not that bad at all.

The price of the knives of course would go up if the sheaths were nicer.

Of course their warranty is pretty good! So if you had one that fell apart, you could send it back!
Click to expand...
It's not that they're badly constructed. It's that they aren't very secure. My Fox River wants to jump out of the sheath every chance it gets. I love the knife, and would be seriously miffed if I lost it due to the faulty sheath!! :mad:
 
I have had my Fox river for a couple of months now and have used it nearly everyday since. It has performed really well and is one of my favorite small fixed blades. I agree with others on the sheath though. Its nice but very unsecure.
 
Wow, if it's bad send it back to Mike, Im sure he would help you.

The sheath to mine is actually really tight. Now Ive heard some people say they have been "wet-molding" their sheaths after they receive their knvies. I do not know if you have, or not? I have not personaly. Reason being, "wet-molding" a sheath that is thinner stock is never a good idea. It needs to retain it's shape as much as possible to retain the knife securely.

Ive been making knives for years, and doing my own sheath work (have also worked in upholstery), and I would only wet-mold a sheath that is thicker stock.
 
I wet molded the sheath for mine, and yeah...I''m inclined to agree with you, that it's a mistake- It sure got awful lloose. In any case it didn't help. Might have to see what I can do about the sheath situation, even though I do love being able to slip a Swedish fire starter into the loop of mine.

Other than that, a great knife. I think handle material must matter alot. mine has maple burl on it, and it feels like it was made of aluminum it's so light and nimble- even next to my Highland Special that's got the green micarta. It's definitely one of my favorite knives. (I've aquired so many BRK's, Puukko and made so many of my own knives it's hard to pick just one knife when I go out anymore) :o

great review!
 
try soaking it gain and this time press it flat (down) in the handle area, but not completely flat (as this will make it worse). It will help tighten up the handle area.
 
Thanks for the tip!

Oh, about the loose sheath, I've found a bit of a solution...

I attached a small keychain style swivel snap to the top hole of my sheath and a lanyard to my knife. When I'm going through thick brush I clip my lanyard inside the snap. Keeps the knife absolutely secure.

When I'm just muckin' 'round camp I don't bother though.

I'll try resoaking it tonight, and see how much improvement I can muster out of it.
 
I, too, was unhappy with the sheath for my NorthStar. Bodgan makes great sheaths, I'm just not much of a leather fan. Solution? Talk to Reid at "Sharpshooter's Sheath Systems" (http://kydexsheath.com/). He can whip you up a perfect Kydex sheath for you and you can still have a firesteel loop.
 
For the loose sheath - glue a strip of soft leather inside where the handle rides, it will snug it up nicely.

I agree, the Northstar makes a great camp/backpacking knife.
 
This will be my next purchase. What a beauty!

BlackPalm.jpg
 
Yes...it is a beauty!!! (hmmmmm...........no wonder some wives get a little "jealous"...:eek: )
 
oh, just alittle tip on resoaking the sheath.

Give it at least four days to dry (after reshaping) before you try it!

One other tip. Do not store the knife in the sheath when not using it. Aside from the possiblity of corrosion (even with "stain-less", or resistant blades) from storing in leather. The knife, if stored in its sheath, the sheath itself can become acustomed to the knife and loose some of its resiliency (and become loose over time). Bringing back the original problem! This can go for new sheaths also.
 
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