BK21 Unboxing And Initial Impressions (UPDATED)

The Warrior

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Update: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...Impressions-(UPDATED)?p=15454176#post15454176

I received my BK21 in the mail Friday after work, which was perfect, as it came in right before we left for the cabin. Perfect time to unbox, use, and do some initial impressions.

First off, I'd like to say that I look at a knife as a tool, which, of course, it is. As with any tool, it's an implement to accomplish an intended task. But with many tools, especially a knife, one must think moreso how he goes about using it. Any reasonable person would agree that a knife is a thinking man's tool. It demands respect. You have to think about every aspect of it before, and while you're using it. Even thinking about it later, so you can perhaps improve techniques to assure safety. I always think about such things when using a blade, but the reason I'm saying this now, is because once I held the 21, it automatically made me think about safety. This is a heavy blade, and extremely weight forward. Not to mention, shaving sharp out of the box. It made me try to think about how the blade would react say, if I swung it, and it was a glancing blow instead of a direct impact hit. What if I swung at a branch, and missed? Where would the blade end up going, etc? The extra weight will make it go further in motion, compared to a lighter blade. Are there others around me, that could be impacted? My wife takes my action shots, and I had to remind her not to get too close to me while chopping with this blade. She always wants to get close for good action shots, but that can't always happen. You get my drift. Anyways, please be careful when using this blade, or any other blade for that matter.

Okay, on with it. As I said, I got it Friday, but waited until Saturday morning when the sun came up a bit, to open it. Man, that wasn't easy, haha.

The parcel:

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Packaging:

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Obvious what this one is:

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Opened up:

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Sheath:

Front and back:

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Unsheathed:

Damn, what a blade:

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My first impressions holding it was the weight forwardness, but also the size. It's plenty big enough, but for whatever reason, I envisioned it larger. Perhaps more machete-ish. Photo is blurry:

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It would be easy to think to use the ricasso area as a choil, but, it is NOT a choil. I highly recommend not using it as such. Look at the photo I just posted, and notice how the ricasso curves right down to the edge. Not a good idea. Again, a thinking man's tool:

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Glams:

She's a sexy beast. Look at those curves:

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Size comparison:

With the 4, 9, and 5:

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Against just the 9:

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Sure does make the 14 look small:

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More glams:

Sorry, did a bunch, but just a fraction of what I actually took:

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Let's use this thing.

Feathering:

Perhaps not the best choice for feathering, but it will do it easily enough:

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Batoning:

Started out with some softer maple. As expected, no problem:

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Break it down a bit smaller. Some nice spalting in that maple, haha:

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Some black walnut. Again, no problem:

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to be cont...
 
Last edited:
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Do some splitting, to break it down even more:

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Chopping:

This is the biggest deal for me with this blade. I took the 1 inch tree down on the left with one blow. I ended up hitting it too straight on, hence why it cut, then just split it down. The 2 incher on the right was done at a more precise angle, and it went with a single blow:

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Do something more substantial. This was more difficult not only because it has a larger diameter, but also because it's on the side of a hill. I had to make sure my footing was solid:

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Again, my angle was off. I hit it too downward, and it glanced off. Not good. You can see the blade still in motion. This is again what I was talking about earlier. Where's it gonna go if I miss, etc? It didn't do any damage to me, as I took into account where it would go if such a thing happened. Hard to tell from the photo, but I stood a good distance away:

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The next hit was more direct, and at a better angle. It seems to me that right under the "Hank Reinhardt" area of the blade is the sweet spot, kind of like on the BK4:

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Only one more action shot, as I didn't want my wife getting too close:

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The result:

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After use shots:

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Draw Knifing:

Wanted to see how it did as a draw knife, so Sunday morning I did just that. Smaller curls:

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Longer slice:

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Worked great. Perhaps even better than the 4, but, to be fair, it's been awhile since I've done it with the 4, and if I were to do a direct comparison, I would have gotten the 4 out right then to see. But hey, this is about the 21 this time.

More Chopping:

Some small stuff:

Obviously this would be no problem, but I still like to check out new blades. Kind of hard to see, but you can see the blade swinging:

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Impact. You can see the piece flying off to the right:

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Close up of the blade impacting the post:

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Chopped on some dry stuff, lying on the forest floor:

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There's nothing like freshly used steel:

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Some initial impressions:

I say again, initial impressions. I would never base the performance with this, or any knife for that metter, on only one or 2 sessions using it. Also, I've obviously only used it for a small fraction of what it could be used for.

On feathering:

Of course there's better choices for making feather stick. A small blade, for one, haha. It can be done with this, but the weight forwardness may make it more difficult for some. Personally, for me, it wasn't any problem.

Batoning:

I know the pros and cons of batoning. I'm one of the people that do it often. I feel a straight bladed knife works better for batoning. Not because of the straight edge per se, but having a horizontally oriented spine for impact. That said, it perfomed without issue.

Draw knifing:

As stated previously, it worked exceptionally well for this. The blade geometry seemed just right for it. Not that I know a much about blade geometry, but whatever the case, it worked great.

Chopping:

I had a bit of a hard time using it while chopping. Not necessarily because of the weight , but hitting the correct spot on the blade that seemed best. I was hitting the trees hard, and sometimes it would be like a dead blow, with lots of shock in the handle, with not much penetration. If, however, I got the angle right, and what I believe to be the sweet spot, it was incredible. Also, since the blade portion that makes contact is more forward than your hand, and since it's blade heavy, the handle tended to slightly twist in my hand upon impact. Your hand is more in line with the point of impact on a straight blade, if all the makes sense. It may be that my hand wasn't squaring the blade properly to the tree. Very likely actually. Also, using gloves, and a lanyard would probably have been a good idea.

In my opinion:

I like the 21 for the brief time I got to use it. It was stated early on, can't find the thread, that there may be more than one version of the 21 released, thickness wise. I stated in that thread that I would have liked the thinner version. I was thinking in my head this would be more machete like, but it's more knife like to me, or sword like, if you will. I was thinking that a larger version, with thinner blade, would have served my purposes better. I was thinking about the brush on my property more than anything else, to be fair, and not using it for much else.

This knife is very blade heavy, as stated previously. I'm more used to a lighter knife. While I am a person that tends to gravitate towards the larger blades, this one is a bit to heavy for what I intended to use it for. I like it, but can't see it replacing my BK4, or especially my BK9 anytime soon.

All that said, I do think it to be an incredible blade. Like the BK4, the BK21 has more of a learning curve to it. That is in no way a detriment to me, as I'm a person that loves to learn. After I get to learn this blade more, I'll update and give some more impressions.

Thanks for looking.
 
Great thread Dubz. It does look kinda smallish in your paws. Can't wait to get mine. Thanks for sharing.
 
Great thread Dubz. It does look kinda smallish in your paws. Can't wait to get mine. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks man. Don't get me wrong, it has a good size to it, just not as big as I was thinking it was going to be is all.
 
Great write up, warrior! I find that getting the timing right, for the snap cut, is critical for a nice chop. And, as always, great pics.
 
Great write up, warrior! I find that getting the timing right, for the snap cut, is critical for a nice chop. And, as always, great pics.

Thanks man. I haven't even tried snap cuts yet. Will the next time though.
 
It really is. Look forward to learning it better.

I like machetes with a kukri shape. Like you said, I think it might be easier to use with a thinner blade. However, I haven't tried the 21. I really like the 4, it's my go to big knife. If they make a longer, thinner blade I would love to try it out.

Hope you give an update after you're more used to the sweet spot and such! 👍
 
Awesome write up, thanks for taking the time to do it. I'm SOOOOOOO on the fence about this blade.
 
I like machetes with a kukri shape. Like you said, I think it might be easier to use with a thinner blade. However, I haven't tried the 21. I really like the 4, it's my go to big knife. If they make a longer, thinner blade I would love to try it out.

Hope you give an update after you're more used to the sweet spot and such! 👍
Gotta love the 4. I will definitely update.

Awesome write up, thanks for taking the time to do it. I'm SOOOOOOO on the fence about this blade.
Thanks man, appreciate it. I was too, but my curiosity got the best of me.
 
Pics as always the Best ! Great write up also ! I'am sure it won't be long you will have the sweet spot down . Thanks for informative post.
 
Awesome post Warrior, always look forward to yours. Beautiful pics mate as usual, was just showing the wife your pics, persuaded her to,let me get one when I get back from my trip - thanks brother!
 
Great post bro. Beautiful pics as always. Thanks for taking the time to put it together for us.

I know this sounds like Becker heresy, but I just can't talk myself into buying this blade. It's beautiful, but I just can't find a logical place for it. I have a 4 and a 9, and a big pile of machetes of different flavors. Your pics will help me try harder to invent a new "need".
 
Pics as always the Best ! Great write up also ! I'am sure it won't be long you will have the sweet spot down . Thanks for informative post.
Thanks man.

Awesome post Warrior, always look forward to yours. Beautiful pics mate as usual, was just showing the wife your pics, persuaded her to,let me get one when I get back from my trip - thanks brother!
Haha, thanks man. I'm here for ya like that.

Great post bro. Beautiful pics as always. Thanks for taking the time to put it together for us.

I know this sounds like Becker heresy, but I just can't talk myself into buying this blade. It's beautiful, but I just can't find a logical place for it. I have a 4 and a 9, and a big pile of machetes of different flavors. Your pics will help me try harder to invent a new "need".
Thanks man. I hear ya. I didn't put this on my belt, but did hold it to my side. She's a biggun.

Great thread and photos W!!
Excellent and honest review!!
Thanks man, appreciate it.
 
Nice post as usual Warrior, but you didn't help me get of the fence ;)
I think I'm gonna have to pull the trigger soon.
 
Nice post as usual Warrior, but you didn't help me get of the fence ;)
I think I'm gonna have to pull the trigger soon.

Thanks man.
 
Since the last time I posted (or visited) around here with any frequency, my wife and I moved from our culdesac sub-division little cracker-box in North Alabama down to five heavily-wooded acres in the Southeastern most corner of the state. About 10 miles from GA state line, and maybe 20 - 25 miles from FL line. Access is on a dirt road, year-round flowing creek on the back side of the property, can shoot anytime I like right out my back door, artesian well water and close to twice as much sq. footage in the house as we had up North. We're so far out that we don't even get cell service out here, and if you plug our address into Google Maps, even it has no idea where we are(!!). It readily became apparent that to get someone out here to do tree-trimming, or even just basic yard work, would be cost-prohibitive, and the high winds from the regular pop-up thunder storms keeps cleanup of felled branches and trees a never-ending battle. So.........







I NEED A BK21 ASAP!!! :D

Back a couple of years (or so) ago I got the BK4. I already had a (Camillus) 9, and also had a Cold Steel Gurkha Kukri. I tested them against each other expecting the Kuk to excel between the three of 'em, but alas, the 9 was the king of the hill on a horizontal V-shaped pair of saw horses going through an approximately 5" tree. The test consisted of time and number of strikes it took to get through. The 9 won on both counts, fewer strikes and less time, than the other two. I had similar problems getting the angle right with the curved blades as you did Dubz, which to this day I don't really understand as the wood was at a very comfortable height laying horizontal in front of me while standing on level, firm ground, but I had trouble hitting it straight on with both the 4 and the Kuk nonetheless.

Well, since that day a couple or so years ago, I've had the opportunity (and necessity) to become more proficient with my choppers, and confirmed my suspicion that it was operator error and not the two curved knives that caused their losses in the test. The role I see for the Reinhardt for me would be in de-branching trees that I either fell myself, or that get blown down in storms. Here's two that fell from a storm right next to each other, almost right on top of one another, about a month ago:

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It's hard to get a perspective on 'em, but at the trunks, they're probably like 10" to 12" in diameter, and they're blocking the rather unkempt trail that goes down to the creek. It's been raining for two solid weeks down here, which has interfered greatly with my plans to get those trees out of the way and start cleaning up the trail as soon as the weather started cooling down, which, coincidentally, it started doing the same day it started raining! Just my luck! 61 degree highs is "cooled down" in this part of the state, and if that ain't perfect choppin' and trail-clearin' weather, I don't know what might be.

Anyway, the RBK21 has more than an inch of length on the Gurkha Kuk, 1.75" overall length, .4 oz. more "gravity fed" swing ability, and with the Becker handles that I'm already very familiar with and, most of all, comfortable with, by this time next week, or maybe a little longer, The Reinhardt BK&T BK21 should be the official big blade of The Republic of Dead Cell Holler, Occupied Territories of Alabama, Former US of A! HA!

Something drew me here today and I found this great review thread within the top 5 from the top of the forum. First I'd heard of the RBK even being a possibility to be released. I've wanted one since I became aware of what they were, and want to thank Ethan and Kabar for the re-release, and thank Warrior for the great review and pictorial. Gotta git. Y'all take care.

Blues
 
Thanks Blues, good to see you come back around. I agree, that I attribute it to user error. After all, when I got it right, it would bite deep. As a matter of fact, when I was chopping the dry, downed stuff, I was kneeling down to do so, and sometimes had to step on the branch to get the blade out. It's just a learning process is all.
 
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