Bear Grylls Ultimate Pro

Status
Not open for further replies.
Good lookin knife. But, being a gerber, I would have to see some hard use before I pull the trigger. The Bear Grylls line had a rough start with drastic failures on their machete. So I get a skin rash every time someone mentions Bear Grylls.

edited to add:
well it looks like it is plenty stout.

[video=youtube;Kw8JxaDQ9ZY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kw8JxaDQ9ZY[/video]
 
Last edited:
Nice they appear to have responded to complaints by making improvements.
Thanks for the reviews, guys.
I wonder if it might sell better even as a Bear Grills knife, if he/they weren't so pushy with the labelling. Then a non-fan wouldn't have to say "I know, I know, but..." every time he's seen with it.
 
The labeling is definitely over the top and unattractive. But the orange accents are nice for when you set the knife down in the woods
 
Yes, the sheath could be toned down some as that's usually on your belt...hard to lose unless you get lost too ;) so I'd opt for a black or more subdued sheath and the knife could be left as is.

While it's tough, it isn't a super steel, but then the price typically is less than $65 out there in the wild, so you're getting quite a bit for not a lot of money, and in sharpening it, it seemed to be heat treated ok, will know of course as it's used more.

G2

Edited to add, that when returning the knife to the sheath, it seems to work better if you tilt the blade so it's edge side is closer to it's side, otherwise the tip likes to stick into the angled part, but if you tilt the blade just a bit, it'll go right in, easy peasy and it has a pretty good retention.
 
Last edited:
not just the sheath, the big BG on the handle is a giant eyesore. Still if the knife is good value, as a working knife it sounds good and like I said earlier, orange is nice when you do the big no no in the woods and set your knife down for a second, and it almost always seems like a gremlin came by and took it. I have spent hours looking for a knife I set down while working in the woods. That is why I put orange lanyards on all my knives. This knife already has orange.
 
Thank you, Gary, for mentioning the Selkirk in your review :thumbup: that was one of the three knives I thought this one should be compared to, another being, of course, the original BG 'Ultimate'. Could you expound a bit more on the Selkirk comparison?

The third knife would be the Gerber Strongarm - USA-made and sells for $50 vs this one at $70. Any experience with the Strongarm to compare the two?
 
You're welcome, for me the Selkirk was a very good knife, the blade shape was good, ground nice and flat down to a fairly thin edge, and while sharpening it, I think it was pretty hard heat treat wises as the blade made a very high pitched squeal that drove my wife crazy, which I took that to mean it was quite hard and it did take a nice sharp edge. The small point for me was the handle being more oval, while I didn't use it a lot, I just felt that one with a flatter set of scales might work better, less chance of the knife rolling in your hand, where as the BG I doubt would ever be doing that with the nice contoured edges it doesn't hurt your hand while gripping and the sides provide a very solid locked in placement. I showed it off to work the other day and the guys were like 'wow, I always heard/saw these but never handled one, it's pretty good!' Which I just smiled and nodded. I got mine at just over $60 so it's a good buy for the price.

I've not seen the Strongarm in person, just the youtube reviews, I am still drawn to this handle configuration over the Strongarm one, personally that is.

G2
 
Gary W. Graley said:
You're welcome, for me the Selkirk was a very good knife, the blade shape was good, ground nice and flat down to a fairly thin edge, and while sharpening it, I think it was pretty hard heat treat wises as the blade made a very high pitched squeal that drove my wife crazy, which I took that to mean it was quite hard and it did take a nice sharp edge. The small point for me was the handle being more oval, while I didn't use it a lot, I just felt that one with a flatter set of scales might work better, less chance of the knife rolling in your hand, where as the BG I doubt would ever be doing that with the nice contoured edges it doesn't hurt your hand while gripping and the sides provide a very solid locked in placement. I showed it off to work the other day and the guys were like 'wow, I always heard/saw these but never handled one, it's pretty good!' Which I just smiled and nodded. I got mine at just over $60 so it's a good buy for the price.

I've not seen the Strongarm in person, just the youtube reviews, I am still drawn to this handle configuration over the Strongarm one, personally that is.

G2
Click to expand...

Would you be interest in receiving my own Strongarm to compare this BG before you sell it (as I expect you will) ? I could loan it you, if you'll pay return shipping on it... though it may be easier to simply buy one and then re-sell it instead, plus mine is serrated which may not be your preference...
 
Haha, well, I'm banking I hang onto this BG for a while, but my track record does speak volumes ! BUT, my thoughts are to keep it and it'll go in my emergency bag, I've been trying a few but none made the 'cut' so to speak.

And you're right, serrations are not my fav for sure, appreciate the idea though! From the videos I've seen it looks sturdy for sure though.

Again, thanks!
G2

edited to add, at work in the office, when I hear come commotion down a few cubicles I'll blow the whistle two loud bursts and say 'Ok everybody out of the water! ' always gets a laugh, BUT they heard it pretty good, it's a loud whistle! :)
 
I was hoping to see some hard use testing on this knife. I'm sorry but until I do, I will largely have the same opinion of the knives that I do of the man that they're named after. And that opinion would be for entertainment purposes ONLY and not to be relied upon in an actual survival or other life threatening situation unless there was absolutely no better choice available. I have seen TONS of youtube videos, pics and reviews (amazon and others) concerning this line of knives exhibiting results of ridiculously weak steel, (turns out wood might make better blade material than whatever Chinesium Gerber is using) rusting steel, (sometimes mere hours after a single use if you can believe it) catastrophic blade failures as well as other failure areas (yeeah, turns out that hammerhead designed pommel on other editions likely makes a better back-scratcher than a hammer and even that might be pushing it). Nope, NOT real survival knives imo. :thumbdn: At least, not until I see some SERIOUS hard use survival testing that proves these knives could take it. Just to be clear, I am not dogging Gerber, as far as many of their domestically made offerings are concerned, I'm a fan. Their foreign-made knives however? Nope, not a chance and not unless I had absolutely no other choice. When I buy a knife, I prefer to buy it once and once only (unless I need more than one or it's a gift). I'm tired of throwing good money down the crapper for ridiculously sub-standard quality. Just have to wait a little longer and / or save a little more money. It certainly beats the alternative. ;)
 
Yep, not a destructive review, or a hard use review, just a plain run of the mill take on what the knife is like and how it handles. At around the $60 I think you might find maybe something in better steel, but I haven't seen it yet myself.

What knife are you currently using now? And where does it fail that has you looking for a replacement?

I carried this the last few days around the property, chopping smaller branches without any edge damage at all, and whittling on some hard wood too it handles great in the hand, for me, with the way they made the handle shape.

I've had other fixed blades, but I do still like this for those time when you might not want to use a high dollar knife, again it's all on what you intend to do.

Of course, it is your perogative to not buy this, never said it was for everyone and I did start out that yes...it is a Bear Grylls thing, but to look past the bit of flash and handle one in person. I found a store that had one and had them remove it from the packaging so I could hold it, feel it's grip, feel how well it was ground down to it's edge, nice transition down to the edge bevel btw. And from being able to actually handle one, I felt it was worth the risk to give one a try and ordered one.

It would appear that you have already reached your conclusions and your best route now is to do as you said, save your money for a greater value knife that you will be happy with, for me and my intended use, this works very well.

G2
 
Well, I'm a fan of Ontario's more modestly priced offerings (SP-2 Survival and 499 USAF Pilot Survival) as well as TOPS 'Brothers of Bushcraft Field Knife'. I'm not currently looking for a replacement but if I was, I'm pretty sure I'd be willing to look further than Gerber's Bear Grylls line OR Les Stroud's Camilus line. I have seen some pretty bad failure in both lines.

I guess for me what it comes down to is actual results (or at least the major lack of bad results) instead of someone's name and a bunch of slick advertising and propaganda before I'll lay any money down anymore. I used to buy LOTS of products this way and I can tell you how much I wish I had just waited and not impulsively gone the cheap route because quite frequently it just ends up costing more money in the long-run. (bought several items more than once due to cheap, shoddy manufacturing and substandard materials).

But no more, at least not as much as is consciously financially possible. I'm tired of getting fleeced by slick advertising when all it really is...is junk.

No offense, I've watched the review on this knife in your thread and it APPEARS to be better quality than previous models. For your sake, I hope this is true.

Nobody should be put in a position to throw away good money on garbage simply because some TV personality slaps their name all over it.

Just my $0.02 ;)
 
Paul_Atreides said:
Well, I'm a fan of Ontario's more modestly priced offerings (SP-2 Survival and 499 USAF Pilot Survival) as well as TOPS 'Brothers of Bushcraft Field Knife'. I'm not currently looking for a replacement but if I was, I'm pretty sure I'd be willing to look further than Gerber's Bear Grylls line OR Les Stroud's Camilus line. I have seen some pretty bad failure in both lines.

I guess for me what it comes down to is actual results (or at least the major lack of bad results) instead of someone's name and a bunch of slick advertising and propaganda before I'll lay any money down anymore. I used to buy LOTS of products this way and I can tell you how much I wish I had just waited and not impulsively gone the cheap route because quite frequently it just ends up costing more money in the long-run. (bought several items more than once due to cheap, shoddy manufacturing and substandard materials).

But no more, at least not as much as is consciously financially possible. I'm tired of getting fleeced by slick advertising when all it really is...is junk.

No offense, I've watched the review on this knife in your thread and it APPEARS to be better quality than previous models. For your sake, I hope this is true.

Nobody should be put in a position to throw away good money on garbage simply because some TV personality slaps their name all over it.

Just my $0.02 ;)
Click to expand...

Or miss the opportunity to bye this knive because someone with six post and who joined this forum yesterday .... says that knive is garbage ? I love internet :D

Just my $0.02 :yawn:
 
We'll just close this one down for now, that's for the input guys!
G2
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top