Bear Grylls Ultimate Pro

[Gary W. Graley]

Yes...I know, it's Bear Grylls BUT, it is actually not bad, especially considering the price point and how solid it is, so 'Bear' with me as I cover the particulars of this knife.

This is the updated version of his original Ultimate knife, the Pro being the part of the name that is suppose to help set it apart from the first. I've not handled the first version but seen some youtube reviews and while it wasn't bad, it wasn't all that great. Gerber has taken the stance to help better this knife and it shows.

I've added a paracord lanyard, the whistle is not attached to the knife/sheath I'll carry it separately. It is quite loud and would be an attention getter, maybe not so often that you are lost in the woods and needing rescue, but there might be times you need to attract the attention of your friends while on a hike, or needing some assistance and your voice just won't carry as far as a high pitched whistle like this, plus you can save your singing voice for some campfire songs later on...

In the sheath you see the part below the Gerber name, that's the firestarter, it measures 1 3/4" long and about 1/4" round and it also has an O-ring to help keep the tube it's in from collecting water during carry.
I've not tried it yet but handy to have, most might prefer a larger one but having one right on hand may be of use if your other one is packed away.

On the back of the sheath is a place to draw the blade across some carbide bits to do a quick field sharpening if needed, you can also switch sides in case you prefer having them on the other side of the sheath.

Overall I probably would like to get just a very simple kydex sheath made for this, but I'll see how it goes.

The knife is retained by a velcro strap at the top of the sheath, but also the sheath has bumps that snap into place into the holes in the guard of the knife, holds pretty securely too.

The belt loop is probably the weak link in this sheath, being a bit short in length, while it measures 2" it is very tight to the backing, but my 1 1/2" wide belt did fit into it easily, you can remove that entire bit of belt loop by taking two screws out, might even add a better loop using the attachment bits that are beneath it.

Blade Steel Type: 9Cr19MoV

Blade length is 4 3/4" long, 1 1/4" wide and 4.7 mm thick at the spine

Edge Bevel measures about .032" so not overly thin but feels thinner than that, pop cuts paracord easily and sliced cardboard as well.

The grind is a saber grind which would help with batoning if it was necessary but still ground down to a smooth transition to the edge which on mine arrived shaving sharp, surprisingly so. The new model boasts a higher grade steel 9Cr19MoV, supposedly on par with 440c steel or slightly below that level, I'll find out how well it keeps that edge.

The handle measures about 5" long with well positioned guard below and above, the tang is full on both of the guard areas so they are solid with a layer of hard plastic to help widen the guard for a more comfortable grip/protection, also there are two lashing holes in the guard as well as the lanyard hole on the end if you ever find yourself in need of making a spear of some kind.

The handle is for the most part flat sided but swells out slightly as it nears the steel pommel that can be used as a striking tool. Now that was the part that swayed me from the Buck Selkirk, while the handle on the Buck was very good and protected you from moving up onto the blade, it was still more oval and could twist in your hand in use, where a FLATTER type set of scales will provide better traction and overall control, much more secure feeling when gripping this knife! The rubber inlays are hard but have nice texture that should provide a good grip even while wet, I know a lot of people might hate the BG logo in the middle, but I don't mind it, if you set this down, you're going to find it pretty easily!

Here are a few images of this taken today;

Just above the words Bear and Gerber on the blade, you can see a brighter area on the spine, that's a 90 degree part to use to strike against the fire starter.

Handle does have some subtle contours but overall a flat surface which helps to keep the knife under control, in this photo you can see the texture of the hammer end of the handle

An in hand shot with my lanyard on, the celtic bead slides up to my wrist to act as a keeper, the black thread whipping near the handle helps to keep the lanyard out of the way if I need to use that end for hammer type strikes on what ever might need hammering, tent pegs, breaking up rocks for a fire ring...etc

I know some of you guys and gals might already own this and possibly the first edition too, you're welcome to add your thoughts/concerns/critiques in this thread too.

G2

 

[xtom68x]

Hi, thanks for your information.
Could you weigh the knife without the sheath, please?
I have only been able to find info on the weight including the sheath so far.

Tom

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[Gary W. Graley]

Hi Tom and welcome to BladeForums !

It's 9.72 ounces without the sheath per Blade HQ's details on the knife, I do not have a scale to measure, but those guys are pretty good.

The knife balances just about 1 3/4" back from the front of the guard, about at the finger groove peak.

G2

 

[Raj]

plus you can save your singing voice for some campfire songs later on...

... and how solid it is, so 'Bear' with me as I cover the particulars of this knife.

Hi Gary, had me laughing with the above lines. Did not know you were a comic and a ministrel
Good review and nice pictures as usual. Keep up the reviews and the pictures. Appreciate all your hard work on this.

 

[JD Mandrell]

I've had that one since they first came out, folks can say what they want about a lot of the BG line, and some of it's justified, but the "Pro" version is a solid knife, that I've always thought that if Gerber released it in normal colors without the BG branding, it would sell like crazy.

 

[Gary W. Graley]

Thanks Raj and Bear Claw, that sounds about right, I bet they would sell a bit faster if they moved to more subtle colours.

One thing to note about the blade on this, the tip area from where the curve starts, they made that just slightly thicker than the straight part of the blade, giving that tip area a little more meat/strength behind it.

Also the handle, just noticed that from the spine of the handle, it slims down to the bottom edge of the handle as well, it's a very comfortable knife to grip and use, yet you don't feel like you'd lose control of it, just a good textured handle, well shaped.

G2

 

[Gary W. Graley]

Here are some additional pictures to fill in the blanks on the features with this setup;

The belt loop is well stitched and my 1 1/2" wide belt fits through, snugly since the belt loop is sewn tight, the opening measures 2" but it would be a trick to get a 2" belt through I think.
Also the construction of the belt loop backing it's sewn to is very stiff, which is good as I've seen some that are just loose fabric with no substance, but being rigid, you can pull the knife out without it buckling, not bad at all.

The Belt loop and the sharpener are attached via screws on the back, seen here;

The Sharpener, for emergencies and the like, I would still recommend a sharpening stone but not always available, yes I know there are 'stones' most everywhere, but some folks are not as savvy...savvy?
There are two bits of carbide set in position, and you can remove them and reposition them to the other side of the sheath if you prefer them there.

My one grump is how thick the sheath is but I can not see how they could have made it any trimmer and still provide the devices included, certainly well made and form fitted! but thick, it's about 1 5/8" so it stands out on your side pretty well.

The Fire Starter, it's retained by the small wedge of plastic that it slides over and locks in place, making attaching anything to the loop end pretty much not a good thing, I did try putting the whistle lanyard on it and while it worked, it wasn't as secure in the sheath since the back of the fire starter is raised up.
In this photo you can see the O-ring they put on the Fire Starter to help keep 'stuff' out of it's socket.

and the whistle, not too large but is quite loud, comes with a non removable lanyard cord attached

That about does it folks, hope this gives you some insight to the knife and it's sheath, I did cut up some hardwood blocks I had sitting around and it handled and cut great edge still razor sharp.
G2

 

[xtom68x]

Thank you very much. I didn't know that BladeHQ has the information.
I checked some dealers' specs here in Germany, but couldn't find the information I needed.

Your photos are great and detailed, btw.

Tom

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[JTC]

Those are some excellent pictures.

 

[Gary W. Graley]

You are welcome Tom and thanks JTC, the knife is hefty but that translates to a more confident grip, of course it all depends on what your end use will be, this is, as a lot of 'woods' type knives are, with some compromises. While a much thinner blade is handier at cutting/slicing it may not hold up to harder chores, but I think this one covers both duties pretty well.

Wore it around the property a bit today to see how it carries on the belt, the sheath rides just about right for me and the opening is good for returning the knife to the sheath without much messing around. Knife snaps into place well enough that I haven't bothered with the velcro strap, but if I were in a situation that it could become dislodged I would put that on for a more secure retention.

G2

 

[jaseman]

See if this works....

Sorry, for some reason, a kept getting a "you have been blocked" message every time I tried to post. :grumpy:

I had a whole comparison written up between my gen one, and your pro.

 

[jaseman]

Let me try again, in fewer words, that won't trigger the block...

I like my BG Ultimate. Serves me well as a general camp knife. Large enough to be useful, but small enough not to scare other campers in the state parks we frequent.

I'm actually quite a fan of the bright orange accents on mine, as they make it easy to keep track of around camp, should you set it down, or accidentally drop it.

The whistle, sharpener, and other add-on's are probably OK in a true survival situation, but for me they're just marketing to go along with the BG name. I will say, I do use the fire steel occasionally to start the camp fire, just for fun.

The knife itself has served me well. I use it for chopping, food prep, or even just stirring the fire. It's taken a pretty good beating over the last few years, without any problems.

I like the sheath on your pro much better. It seems to address my biggest complaints to the overall package. My sharpener is accessed by having to undo the Velcro holding the plastic case, and flipping it ove, where it's attached to the back. Your fire steel rides upright when the knife is belt carried, eliminating the possibility of it just falling out (though mine seems very secure, even upside down). But the biggest, and most important change, is the shape of the nylon portion itself. Yours is much more tapered, and looks more comfortable to carry. Mine is very squared off, so it digs in at my side when riding on my belt. When I do carry it hiking, I've taken to strapping it, inverted, to the shoulder strap of my pack.

Overall, I think it's a better knife than the bad rep that Gerber has gained in many circles over the last few years.

Pics for comparison:

In its sheath



Out





Sheath folded over for sharpening

 

[Gary W. Graley]

Thanks jaseman, appreciate the comparison! For one thing I wish they kept the sheath colours the same, the word Gerber in Orange on a black field would still be noticeable but not as bright on the knife I think it's ok as you can set the knife itself down and the colours help you find it, but usually you are wearing the sheath, maybe it would help people find you in a crowd but looking in a mirror it does seem a bit on the 'Bright' side for a sheath, although it is very well made!

G2

Edited to add, and Welcome to Bladeforums too !

 

[Mistwalker]

Nice one Gary. I got to do some of the initial testing of the first Gen, and then the second Gen. The Pro solved all of the issues with the other two as far as I could tell. It didn't do bad at all. The welded pommel was a HUGE improvement over the first two.

 

[Gary W. Graley]

Thanks Brian, it has a very positive grip and I sharpened it up a bit last night and it took a nice edge as well, it was pretty sharp on arrival, but, that just means I don't have to work as hard to get it sharper
G2

 

[scrappy]

Thanks Gary. I agree. I have had one since they came out and it's a good blade. Feels solid. Slices well. The accessories are perfectly usable. If it had been put out by another maker it could have been widely received as a great knife.

 

[Pokerface]

The Pro is a pretty good knife. I had bought one out of curiosity and I was very impressed with how it handled everything. The only reason I sold it was because I don't care for choils. Better than the original Ultimate Survival knife by leaps and bounds.

 

[Gary W. Graley]

Yes, if it was marketed differently it might have a better reception.

My grandson and I enjoy watching Bears exploits, interesting situations he gets into

Used the knife today to trim a low hanging branch that was in the way when mowing, cut it pretty easily.
G2

 

[Gary W. Graley]

.... The only reason I sold it was because I don't care for choils...

I agree, while some may find that handy AND I think it makes it so the sharpener on the back can now reach all the edge, but unless I'm stranded in a place I can't find another way of sharpening it, I doubt I'll use that tool, so for me I feel we lost a good bit of edge right there.

I did give the sharpener a try on one of my wife's kitchen knives just had to see/feel how it worked. You can feel it abrading the metal, and it does sharpen the blade but possibly my wife's knife was too thin as I kept getting a burr that wouldn't go away, ended up taking it to my stones to finish it off, gotta keep SWMBO happy couldn't return it to the draw otherwise.

G2

 

[Gary W. Graley]

Couple more shots of the knife, some marking near the tip from use, not sure how long the coating will last, but that just adds character...much like Bear

and here you can see the texture of this grip, I'm pretty hyped on how well it feels in use, very solid and a lot of control

G2