BK-7 or RAT-7 like knife BUT with smaller grip??

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evi1joe

Joined
Oct 28, 2005
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33
I have a Mora (11746) "ROBUST" companion mg (HEAVY DUTY) in Carbon Steel for many camp chores, but have wanted to get something bigger for batoning wood, minor chopping, etc. The problem is, the most "classic" big (6-7") blades I can think of are stuff like the the BK-7 and RAT-7 with those HUGE (and slick with the BK7) handles that make my hands hurt looking at them. Also, I'd prefer to spend less than $125-$140 UNLESS the knife was amazing.

I thought about the Scrap Yard 711, but (a) they're $250 or more, and (b) the rough coating seems odd to me (seems like it would make it harder to slice through some things with). The Ritter MSK2 (?) and Spydeco Tenacious 2 seem TOO close to the Mora, and less robust.

Any suggestions for a bigger robust knife with a smaller, comfy grip would be appreciated.
 
Have you held a bk-7? The comfort of the handle is one of the most praised features of the Becker line, I have medium sized hands and their handles suit me just fine. Also, the Ritter Mk2 has the exact same handle and blade thickness as the Bk7. If you find one much to large and the other too small and not robust I suggest you do a little more research as those two knives are incredibly similar (considering Mr. Becker himself is connected to both of them).

Also, although I haven't tried it myself I'm sure it would be pretty easy to thin out the Becker scales or the micarta option also available from kabar. If you don't feel comfortable doing something like that myself or any number of good folks over in the Becker forum would be happy to do it for you.

I think there was a post in the Becker sub forum recently showing that the g10 scales from TKC are slightly thinner. You should double check on that.
 
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The G10 feom TKC ones are Very slightly thinner, but they don't use the existing mounting holes, so you have to use some supplied sleeves within the openings in the tang to keep themy mounted securely.

Keep in mind that the G10 won't fit the BK12 with the stock weight system installed. You will have to cut/grind/file/sand the threaded part down to clear the mounting screws for the G10 scales
 
JGorman said:
Have you held a bk-7? The comfort of the handle is one of the most praised features of the Becker line, I have medium sized hands and their handles suit me just fine. Also, the Ritter Mk2 has the exact same handle and blade thickness as the Bk7. If you find one much to large and the other too small and not robust I suggest you do a little more research as those two knives are incredibly similar (considering Mr. Becker himself is connected to both of them).
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I was wondering this as well. The Becker handles are some of the most comfortable on the market IMO. Most folks find that they aren't too slick in use either. The Knife Connection makes thinner G10 handles for them as well if the problem is just having smallish hands.
 
Also worthy of note is that you can lay some sand paper on a smooth surface and remove about 1/8" total from the stock scales (1/16" each slab).

And to be fair, I work in a meat plant and I use my BK5 daily. If the scales aren't too slick for me with fat and blood on my hands, they will be fine for you.

Worst case scenario, sand the scales with 40 grit to rough them up a touch.
 
Thats true about the handles, i got to handle a BK9 and its very light and slim for what it is. And i have small hands. But i just got a JK in the mail from a trade about 4 hours ago and it has a very nice contoured handle that you can wrap your entire hand around. Its a nice piece.
 
What JK did you get?
There was a #9 and a Tool in the trade thread not too long ago.
 
I meant the Ritter mk3 (the one similar to the Tenacious 2).

I do like that GET BACK HOME knife.

I thought I'd held a Becker BK7 and it was just smooth black plastic, but I'll look into them. If someone can hold onto one with blood and fat on his hands, they can't be slippery. Thanks for the options and info--looking into it now.
 
JGorman said:
Have you held a bk-7? The comfort of the handle is one of the most praised features of the Becker line, I have medium sized hands and their handles suit me just fine. Also, the Ritter Mk2 has the exact same handle and blade thickness as the Bk7. If you find one much to large and the other too small and not robust I suggest you do a little more research as those two knives are incredibly similar (considering Mr. Becker himself is connected to both of them).
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Exactly! While handle comfort is a personal thing, I'm in LOVE with my BK's in large part because of their comfortable handles. 18yrs ago when I saw the first photos of the BK&T lineup I laughed, and asked myself "who in the hell would want one of those?" I was just plain ignorant of how awesome the knife designs are, and especially the handles.

You owe it to yourself to at least hold a BK7 for a few minutes before you write it off as too large and/or slick and uncomfortable. It's most definitely NOT the case for me.

BTW, I had the chance to hold an ESEE 5, 6, and Junglas yesterday, and came away underwhelmed by their handle scales. They were as uncomfortable as they looked.
 
I found the BK7 & 2 to be slick, the first day or two. I tend to have dry hands. After that, I didn't even feel the need for a ranger band. Though if I run across an inner tube, it's on like Donkey Kong :-) And there are so many ideas that the BKT family & crew have come up with. You might find a mod that fits you. Or try to make your own mod. Either way, Good luck.
 
I'll pile on my thoughts about the Becker handle scales. I'm a fan of the stock scales, as i find they give the right balance between grip and slip. I've used them for hours continuously, and never had a blister. The handle is shaped such that it can't really slip forward or backward.

And as others have said, you could thin them out I guess. I actually added liners under mine to make mine thicker.

Most knives in the ~7in range that I can think of off hand have fairly large handles. Custom might be the way to go to get what you want.
 
evi1joe said:
I meant the Ritter mk3 (the one similar to the Tenacious 2).

I do like that GET BACK HOME knife.

I thought I'd held a Becker BK7 and it was just smooth black plastic, but I'll look into them. If someone can hold onto one with blood and fat on his hands, they can't be slippery. Thanks for the options and info--looking into it now.
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The handles do feel that way at first, but in use you see that they aren't. I've done a load of chopping with my BK9 and it has never slipped once.
 
I'd take a look at the Condor Moonshiner, Condor Kumunga, and Condor Hudson Bay. Since you seem to like the BK-7/9 blade shape, I would probably lean toward to Moonshiner.
 
evi1joe said:
I thought I'd held a Becker BK7 and it was just smooth black plastic, but I'll look into them. If someone can hold onto one with blood and fat on his hands, they can't be slippery. Thanks for the options and info--looking into it now.
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It's not just the grip of the handles but the design/ergos that enable you to hold onto it during varying types of uses and conditions.

The grivory/zytel handles can easily be mod'ed to improve fit and 'grippyness'. I hit my BK10's with a little 100grit sandpaper for a better feel. You can also sand the underside of the scales to reduce the overall width. Check out the Becker Knife & Tool subforum for all things BK - http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php/827-Becker-Knife-amp-Tool

Also, the G10 scales from TKC (TheKnifeConnection.net) run a bit thinner and grippy than the standard BK scales.

BTW, for batoning and chopping, get the BK9. It's only $10 more but batons/chops 10x better.

You can't not have a 9.
 
22-rimfire said:
I'd take a look at the Condor Moonshiner, Condor Kumunga, and Condor Hudson Bay. Since you seem to like the BK-7/9 blade shape, I would probably lean toward to Moonshiner.
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I have both Hudson Bay and Moonshiner....the handle difference between Moonshiner and BK7 is minimal at best and the knife is honestly one of my very favorite knives even though it is on the lower end of the price spectrum....if I were to suggest one based on the OPs request, I'd say the Hudson Bay sounds almost perfect....it's a well respected and loved knife but its ONE criticism has always been that the handle is too small for most folks.... truth be told, if I had a Hudson Bay knife with the Moonshiner handle, I'd think it was perfect ( for me ) and might even dethrone the BK9 in my book....

But yes, between the 2...I'd definitely suggest the Hudson Bay over the Moonshiner, though, honestly, all 3 ( counting BK7 ) are great knives for the price

( disclaimer, my 7 is on loan to a buddy along with my 17, so I subbed in the 9 ) .... what the pics won't show, mostly cause I'm bad at taking pics, is the thickness of the handles.... the Hudson Bay on top is literally almost half as THICK as the other 2 so even though they look PRETTY similar in size, the hand feel is SIGNIFICANTLY different.



 
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I always felt the Hudson Bay handle was a bit thin for the size of knife. But I like the heft of it a lot. I don't have the Moonshiner YET, it will probably appear in the coming months. The Kumunga handle is pretty fat but grippy. It is more of a mini-machete (chopper) than a knife but it is fun to play around with. But you can use it like a knife too. I wouldn't try whittling chess pieces with it however. ;)
 
ScrapYard and Swamp Rat is where it's at. The 711 is well under $250 (my ScrapYard 1111 didn't even cost $250) and the Ratmandu is supposedly one of the most ergonomic Busse Kin knives at $150 ish.
 
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