BK9 or Junglas?

I have a bk 9. It does chop well. I like the junglass, but to much money for that niche for me. I wanted a junglass too, but I think I have made it past that urge. I hear a 12" machete may outdo both. I know an 18" machete will. Hope this helps Matt.
 
I think the Junglas might be a bit overkill. While it is an amazing chopper, it's expensive. And huge.

Also consider the fact that you could get a BK9 and BK2 for the price of one Junglas.
 
I have long wanted a Junglas and most of my buddies have the BK9, However, for chopping alone, my low cost machete the Cold Steel Kukri or Magnum Kukri will out chop them both and the machetes are lighter. The machete will do even better at tasks like slashing though dense vegetation. Their is something about a large knife though. It is one of those things you just got to have. Go with the one that feels best in your hand. YMMV

Unklfranco
 
I don't know anything about the Bk-9 but i do have a Junglas but have'nt had the chance to try it out yet but it does have a nice well fitting sheath. The one thing i noticed about the junglas is the tip is kind of thin and i'm not too sure how strong it is.

I've compared it to a Busse Bm which has a thicker tip and i have more confidence in it not breaking if i had to do some prying with it. I'm not too sure about the junglas though.
Other than that it a really nice knife. I suppose the Bk's tip might be stronger also from the pics i've seen around here but i've never handled one. You may want to ask the Becker heads i'm sure they have tested them out pretty throughly. Good luck with your decision.
 
The junglas design makes it a better chopper. It does out chop the bk9. The bk9 in my opinion is a more of a "one knife" knife. It chops damn good but can do small chores very well. While the junglas had seemed a bit awkward in hand at smaller stuff. Straight chopper tho? Junglas.
 
I don't have a BK9, but do have a Junglas. It's incredible. The blade design, handle design, and sheath design are all top notch. It has the best sheath I've seen for this type of knife. The build quality of the whole package is perfect. Rowen's work with the steel is awesome. It is tough as can be. Makes a great chopper and machete, which can be a hard combo to find in a knife as most are too thick and/or heavy for light vegetation. You would not be disappointed in the Junglas. I've never heard of anyone breaking the tip either. It could happen, but if it did ESEE would replace the knife without even questioning how it happened. You've got your BK7, so I think between these two the Junglas is the way to go. Maybe watch the Exchange for a used one. Good luck.
 
clich said:
The junglas design makes it a better chopper. It does out chop the bk9. The bk9 in my opinion is a more of a "one knife" knife. It chops damn good but can do small chores very well. While the junglas had seemed a bit awkward in hand at smaller stuff. Straight chopper tho? Junglas.
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That is sort of my take on the two even though I don't have much experience with either. The Junglas is expensive for a "machete". The BK9 is pretty cost effective for a big knife. Both have a lot of appeal to me but I would choose the Junglas for trail management or a predominant chopping task and the BK9 for more knife tasks with some incidental chopping.

I don't own a BK9. I suspect I will be getting my first Kabar Becker today via UPS (BK-2) which I chose for a middle of the road blade that I believe will be easier for me to use safely than the larger BK-9. I have handled Beckers many times and finally pulling the trigger on one. I was interested in the Junglas when it first came out, but I have since gravitated to some of the Condor short machetes as I feel they would chop just as well. But the micarta handles on the Junglas has appeal. Cost does count. I just got the Condor Pack Golok which might well become a regular carry in the woods, and have the Condor Golok and Parang to choose from when I want a longer stiff blade for chopping. I tend to beat up machetes when I use them and I feel more comfortable with a less expensive blade for this purpose.

If you are leaning toward the Junglas, you might want to consider the Bark River golok machete.

For me the choice would be between the Condor Pack Golok, Kabar Cutlass Machete, and the Kabar Becker BK-9.
 
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Junglas out-chops the BK9 by a little but, IMO the BK9 chops well, and out-performs the Junglas in almost all other tasks. Think of the BK9 as a big knife and the Junglas as a small machete.


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Beckerhead #42
 
I would get the BK-9 (~$90) and a Condor Pack Golok (~$40) and you have two for the price of the Junglas.
 
The Junglass feels better in my hand than the bk9 the sheath is far better. If you watch the exchange you can get one pretty reasonable I got a second one for 120 brand new. The guys saying machete are right they will out chop either. My personal favorite is the esee light machete simply because of the micarta grips, they are much more comfortable than the typical plastic.
 
Fiddleback 14" machete will outchop both and has an incredible handle and can be found at a popular online machete store for similar $$ as the BK9 -- but does not come with a sheath.
between the Junglas and the BK9, I find the Junglas to be more comfortable when chopping, but I have really wide hands.
 
mitch_mckee said:
Consider a real, made in Nepal, kukri.
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There you go. At that size, an Ang Khola, an M43, or WWII model Khukuri will outchop any Junglas like crazy. Even Jeff Randall who makes the Junglas is not a big fan...he's just a good businessman...and an advocate of good Central American machete.

Don't get me wrong, the Junglas is a truly awesome knife is just crazy well made with a great sheath and despite what some folks have said, is not all that expensive...under $200 by a pretty good margin almost everywhere.

The difference here is that the Junglas is, if you will, a small, rather stout machete, whereas the BK9 is a big knife. A Khukuri is a chopping machine that will serve equally well as a tool, a prybar (the Chirawa Ang Khola is 1/2" thick!), a shovel in a pinch and a very effective edged weapon.
 
I have a bunch of khuks, but 3/8" thick spines don't work well for light vegetation in my experience. The exceptions I personally have being the CS Gurkha (Full Flat Grind SK-5) and LTC (1/8" Carbon V) and both of these can take an extreme beating as well. My traditional khuks are great choppers and I love them, but for outdoors actvities which may require chopper AND machete tasks, the Junglas works better IMHO. Machetes work great and are cheap, but will not take the abuse a Junglas can handle and they dull quicker in my experience. You're not just paying for a thick machete with a name brand on it if you buy a Junglas, you're getting top quality steel in a well designed package backed by a no questions asked warranty. It all depends on what you really want. Between the two you're asking about, I think the BK9 is probably too close to your BK7. Of course, I have niether a 9 or 7. I do have an ESEE 6 and Junglas, which are kind of close I guess. I can say I will not part with my Junglas and trust it implicitly in any situation. Good luck.
 
Firstly, I am completely in the dark concerning khukri's. Any information on those would be great, especially good ones that can be had for around the $100 mark (or less, of course). Secondly, does anyone have any experience with the Condor Warlock? If so, what are your thoughts?

mbs
 
The Junglas will out chop it, and has what I'd consider a much better sheath. Overall chopping though, most any machete if sharpened will outchop them both. My favorite production blade for chopping is honestly a 15" Condor Bolo. The Junglas is my favorite of production pieces in terms of knives, but it isn't as good as a machete.
 
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