Besides CPK knives, whaddaya like?

Uncle Slayton said:
I've bought 2 Beckers recently as a late adopter. One I enjoy quite a bit, the 9. The other, a Kephart was a bit of a disappointment for the cost so I'm letting it go. Debating getting a 16 in lieu of the Kephart for a mid length blade.
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I got my 62 (Kephart) from the very first release and it was priced more modestly (I think around 80 bucks shipped). I've noted that it's considerably more expensive now. When Ethan got his hands on an original Colclesser Kephart, it moved him a lot so he sought to collaborate with Ka-Bar to make the most authentic reproduction Kephart money could buy. It's worth noting that at this point in time, almost no one, even custom makers, were making an authentic Kephart reproduction.

Ka-Bar made an extraordinary effort - tapered tang (on a production knife!), relieved spine (in lieu of the traditional double convex), walnut scales, and a leather sheath. Ethan insisted on removable fasteners instead of pins, his design philosophy not allowing any knives that carry his name to be pinned. Unfortunately, as Nathan has noted in his Kephart comparison videos in the past, the fasteners are a weak point for the 62 and there can be some movement in the scales when working with it - something I've noted myself.

Nathan's Kephart is so similar to the 62 that it is a bit redundant to have both and from a production standpoint, Nathan's is by far the superior knife. That said, Ethan's and Ka-Bar's homage is something special.
 
Pàdruig said:
I got my 62 (Kephart) from the very first release and it was priced more modestly (I think around 80 bucks shipped). I've noted that it's considerably more expensive now. When Ethan got his hands on an original Colclesser Kephart, it moved him a lot so he sought to collaborate with Ka-Bar to make the most authentic reproduction Kephart money could buy. It's worth noting that at this point in time, almost no one, even custom makers, were making an authentic Kephart reproduction.

Ka-Bar made an extraordinary effort - tapered tang (on a production knife!), relieved spine (in lieu of the traditional double convex), walnut scales, and a leather sheath. Ethan insisted on removable fasteners instead of pins, his design philosophy not allowing any knives that carry his name to be pinned. Unfortunately, as Nathan has noted in his Kephart comparison videos in the past, the fasteners are a weak point for the 62 and there can be some movement in the scales when working with it - something I've noted myself.

Nathan's Kephart is so similar to the 62 that it is a bit redundant to have both and from a production standpoint, Nathan's is by far the superior knife. That said, Ethan's and Ka-Bar's homage is something special.
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I really really wanted to make this knife an edc. My walnut scales are not flat on the tang side, as much as .060 from end to end. oddly enough the factory micarta scales are better but still not a seal to the tang. maybe it's not possible with the screw down construction?

I'd taken the bk62 out west on a bird hunt and even without rain there was surface rust under the scales. it was easily sanded out but equally disappointing from an outdoor knife. just my opinion and honestly I shoulda inspected it better and returned it to Tomar when still unused.

on the other had can't sing enough praises for the 9 (also have 2 CPKepharts takes the sting out lamo)
 
Uncle Slayton said:
I really really wanted to make this knife an edc. My walnut scales are not flat on the tang side, as much as .060 from end to end. oddly enough the factory micarta scales are better but still not a seal to the tang. maybe it's not possible with the screw down construction?

I'd taken the bk62 out west on a bird hunt and even without rain there was surface rust under the scales. it was easily sanded out but equally disappointing from an outdoor knife. just my opinion and honestly I shoulda inspected it better and returned it to Tomar when still unused.

on the other had can't sing enough praises for the 9 (also have 2 CPKepharts takes the sting out lamo)
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Beckers are known for their coatings - that 1095 rusts just by looking at it otherwise. I think the 62 is one the few, if not only outliers in that regard. If I am understanding your issue correctly, do you think there was some warping of the knife itself? Or maybe in the scales? I am pretty sure the walnut isn't stabilized at all.
 
Pàdruig said:
Beckers are known for their coatings - that 1095 rusts just by looking at it otherwise. I think the 62 is one the few, if not only outliers in that regard. If I am understanding your issue correctly, do you think there was some warping of the knife itself? Or maybe in the scales? I am pretty sure the walnut isn't stabilized at all.
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the walnut scales are certainly not on a plane. I've put a metal rule on the tang and it appears to be straight and true. I really am at a loss for what happened since the micarta won't snug up either. I'm just gonna move it along when it hits the right price on the market.
 
I also have a bit of a Fiddleback addiction...

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Smithhammer said:
One of your own creations?
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Jungle Brother

The blade is 3/16" CPM3V, the handle is Terotuf laminated to vulcanized fiber and held to the tang via stainless steel pins which were epoxied in place and then tapped to accept 12.9 steel bolts. Which were also epoxied in place for a totally bombproof set up. I was able to precisely manage...
www.bladeforums.com www.bladeforums.com
Lorien design has a forum too
 
Cap’n Smudge said:

Jungle Brother

The blade is 3/16" CPM3V, the handle is Terotuf laminated to vulcanized fiber and held to the tang via stainless steel pins which were epoxied in place and then tapped to accept 12.9 steel bolts. Which were also epoxied in place for a totally bombproof set up. I was able to precisely manage...
www.bladeforums.com www.bladeforums.com
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Thanks! Great lookin' blade.
 
luethge said:
The knife is beautiful, the entire picture is incredible though. Can Feel the warmth from here.
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yeah man it was fucking hot! Some of those were trunks around 8" diameter and 6' long, and cherry to boot. Cherry burns like a mofo. Biggest fire we've had yet
I really just wanted to post a picture of the fire, but ya gotta have a knaf in dar somewheres
 
ferider said:
Yep. This one I haven't used really yet, but I have several others that work well. They are good cutters, ergonomic, and the sheaths are very nice. And I like Sleipner, not hard to sharpen, good edge retention, no chips, and enough chrome for me not to worry too much about corrosion. Hope this helps.

Roland.
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Thank you Roland! I'll update after some time with one of his... now en route.
 
Uncle Slayton said:
I really really wanted to make this knife an edc. My walnut scales are not flat on the tang side, as much as .060 from end to end. oddly enough the factory micarta scales are better but still not a seal to the tang. maybe it's not possible with the screw down construction?

I'd taken the bk62 out west on a bird hunt and even without rain there was surface rust under the scales. it was easily sanded out but equally disappointing from an outdoor knife. just my opinion and honestly I shoulda inspected it better and returned it to Tomar when still unused.

on the other had can't sing enough praises for the 9 (also have 2 CPKepharts takes the sting out lamo)
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Damn, so many thoughts (*re: Becker) over the last coupla' pages that my ADHD and alcoholic wet brain are spinning. Hope this rambling post doesn't offend, so I threw-in some pics to keep with the theme.


First, my "2", "7", and "9" all have a lot of mileage on 'em...









They have all been flawless in their performance. I think I've posted this before, but South Texas wood isn't anything like that balsa-like stuff you see the regulars beatin' on, on YouTube. A lot of the wood here is a rare combo of "hard but not brittle". So, whether splitting, chopping, shaving/feathering, or the like, it puts a lot of strain on a blade. (*especially aged Oak and Mesquite) The 2, 7, and 9 have eaten it up.


Secondly, it seems like your Becker Kephart issue is more than just a surface rust thing. However, if the scale/handle stuff is something you could get used to, have you considered just having your Becker Keppy powdercoated or Cerakoted? Obviously, both would jettison the blade portion with use, but would still continue to protect/prevent under the scales. When I stripped the BK-2 I posted, I purposely left the coating under the scales and on the pommel. Again, South Texas is pretty humid being about 150 miles from the Gulf. So, I left the coating where I could and polished the blade a good deal. I knew from experience that both of those little decisions would make that dressed-up BK-2 a lot more enjoyable, and less "high maintenance girlfriend", for me. So far, it has worked-out. The starboard side Bocote scale has a pretty good crack, but that's more on me and a story for another time. I'm more of a "go" than "show" guy when it comes to my users, but got bit by the "pretty BK-2" bug when I saw a gentleman from Japan, in a YouTube vid, do one up pretty snazzy. After that, I had to have one.


If I can't score a CPK Keppy, I think I'm gonna' get a "62". Pàdruig's post is not the first time I've heard amazing things about it. I've been considering one for a long time but have been a little apprehensive about the uncoated blade and wood scales.
I reckon I'll have to address those two issues when/if I acquire one. Since many of my knives are regular users, I'm just over the whole "uncoated carbon blade" thing. A lot of 'em are gorgeous but just wouldn't fit in my "system", to quote Aaron from Gideon's.
 
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