BK-62 Kephart - In the kitchen?

T

Toomanyquestions

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Mar 15, 2010
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On another BF thread I asked if one could use outdoor belt knives effectively in the kitchen (the answers so far have generally been in the negative).

Today I wanted to ask Becker aficionados about the Kephart in particular: how does it food prep? Will it cut vegetables, meat, and cheese effectively enough to be worth using as a versatile kitchen knife? Feel free to post pictures and offer advice - even if it is only vaguely related to the topic at hand. Let's make the thread fun!
 
I don't have that model, but the BK16 works great when used for food prep.

The Mora flex is a great model for this sort of thing as well.

The Old Hickory butcher knife also does pretty well in the kitchen, as well as the field.
 
The 62 is one of the best peanut butter knives ever made.
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Yes. Works very well. When it comes to cheese, any knife will have resistance, just the nature of the beast. A thin knife usually works best with cheese.










 
Why wouldn't it work, or most others too? I don't get it. I don't even own a "chef's knife". I use whatever knife I have on me at that time which more than likely will be a Becker or Spyderco. Most meals I make are for four people or less. I'm sure I could make due with a decent pair of scissors!😁
 
I'm all in favor of cutting things with your favorite knives, especially food.
And certainly when you're doing outdoorsy things, the '62 is a pretty good all-arounder.

But... the BK-62 does not meet most kitchen knife design criteria, such as:
1) too wide and thick to be a paring knife - doesn't turn IN food well, no precision tip
2) no clearance for fingers when working on a board, so you end up using only the belly of the blade
3) no high-volume chopping/dicing/mincing techniques work with it
4) too thick to be a chef knife (too much resistance, lack of precision)

If you want a knife you love in the kitchen, invest in a good pair of kitchen knives: 7-8" chef and ~3.5" paring knife. Watch some kitchen knife skills videos and you'll see why they are designed as they are. They are powerful, purpose-driven tools.

I'd totally butcher a deer with a '62. That's not really a kitchen task.
 
Some good thoughts - thank you! Before even reading the thread I started thinking about off-set handles, and possibly a Nessmuk/Canadian belt knife type design.
 
It’s not a kitchen knife and most kitchen knives will perform better on many foods. That said, I don’t see why you couldn’t use it for food prep. I definitely have while camping and it worked fine. It is thinner than many belt knives and thinner than most Beckers. If you want to use it for food prep then give it a try. You won’t know until you do.
 
I can see it doing great as an outdoors camping food prep knife for sure. It's thin enough to do a good job and can also be thinned if needed. Haven't thought about using mine in the kitchen since I have a collection of 180mm to 240mm gyutos that I use for daily cooking. May be time to break out the Kephart and see what it can do!
 
The Becker Kephart seems a little on the thick side to be really good at all food prep tasks. The modestly priced Ontario/Old Hickory Fish & Game (Kephart) really excels at cutting foods since it's so thin. It also rusts almost immediately after you wash it if you don't dry it right away!
 
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