BRKT Bravo-2 VS RC-6

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dcycleman

Joined
Feb 16, 2009
Messages
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what are your opinions? tougher better all around camp/food prep/hunting/survival blade. I know thats a lot of categories. oh yeah fire prep too(battoning)
 
both seem too large for food prep,i would suggest a 3" blade for food and something like the RC6 for hunting/survival. RAT seems like a better fit. i would buy a small BRKT for food prep and the RC-6 for the other chores. best of both worlds :D
 
I like the Canadian Camp but I guess they're harder to find these days. Gives you something closer to the Rat Cutlery knives than the Bravo2 if you want the A2 steel but like the Rat designs.
 
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I like the looks of the bravo 2, and size wise it is comparable to the rc6 but i dont know if it is as strong. the A1 blade is actually thicker than the 1095 found on the RAT, curiosly I searched for A1 and could not find any results. The A series steels are air hardening and I found makeups of A2, but no A1. Mabe Bark river fiddled with the alloy enough to designate their own steel. who knows. I would think that A2 would be some pretty tough stuff, but I dont know if it will handle the hard duty like a 1095 rat.
 
I have knives from both Bark River and RAT Cutlery. RAT Cutlery makes very good knives, but owning a Bark River is a real treat. Mike Stewart is frequently on another knife forum and he stands behind his product just like the guys at RC.

Also be aware that Bark River knives are convex edged, so be aware of that when sharpening.
 
call me old fashioned, but thats probably my prime reason for not going with a BR. Convexed edges just dont add up to me. Just give me a basic grind with a stone to sharpen it with and I'm good to go.
 
Recently I use on my mountain trips BRKT Gameskeeper II or Aurora with a SAK Nomad. Even though that Gameskeeper II is not the typical chopper because of the lack of weight and blade lenght I use it very hard for batoning and splitting wood, food preparation, meat quartering without any issues. I would deffinitely go for a BRKT, A-2 is better in edgeholding, toughness and even maybe a little bit in corossion ressistance / it has a 5% chrome in it /than 1095 IMHO.Triple tempered, cryo treated and shank drawn blades.
 
I have the Bravo II and the A1. Both are awesome, of similar size. The A1 has a little more steel but the ergonomics are better on the Bravo II IMO. But, in general, I really, really like both.
 
Bravo II is bigger, thicker, badder and nicer. It is also almost twice the cost of the RC-6. Then again, an RD-9 is longer, badder and thicker than both and about the same cost as an RC-6. Depends on what your are looking for. Great F&F and a 7" blade - the bravo ii. Great values, very fast blade and perfect balance - RC-6. Great ass kicker chopper for $100, then the RD-9.
 
kgd said:
Bravo II is bigger, thicker, badder and nicer. It is also almost twice the cost of the RC-6. Then again, an RD-9 is longer, badder and thicker than both and about the same cost as an RC-6. Depends on what your are looking for. Great F&F and a 7" blade - the bravo ii. Great values, very fast blade and perfect balance - RC-6. Great ass kicker chopper for $100, then the RD-9.
Click to expand...

For a survival knife you don't want thicker and badder (which I suppose equates to nicer :confused:). The RC-6 is beautifully balanced and just about as large and thick as you would want for a carry survival/backpack knife. RC-6 all the way on this one. In my opinion it is the nicest (most functional) of the bunch. It is also extremely tough.
 
I have a Bravo 2 and RAT RC-4, both are currently sitting waiting for their maiden real world trial. Obliviously the RC-4 is quite a bit smaller knife, and isn't a direct comparison, but build quality would be the same as the RC-6

Both companies have bullet proof warranties, no need to consider one over the other based on warranty.

My impression out of the box is that both knives are rock solid built.

Overall my initial impression is that the BRKT Bravo 2 is a nicer knife all round, specifically it feels much better in my hand than the RC-4, the handles on the Rc-4 feel "unrefined". This is not to say the BRKT is necessarily a better performer, just a nicer knife IMO. I have no basis to judge the performance of either knife until I have a chance to use both.

The RC-4 doesn't fit my hand well, handle is a bit small and the ergonomics are not nearly as good as the Bravo 2, my impression of the RC-6 could well be very different with it's larger handle.

I convexed the edge on the RC4 today and was very impressed with the edge it took, absolutely razor sharp.

The Bravo 2 and RC-4 will be going into service alongside my already favorite Fallkniven A2, in time I will be able to develop an opinion of how they perform against each other based on hands on experience.

For now though, based strictly on initial impression, if I was told I could only take one of the two with me into the great outdoors - the Bravo 2 would be my choice over the RC-4.

Kevin
 
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I am not at all a fan of the flat handle slabs of any of the RC series. They gave me excessive and horrible hotspots, although, this was in extended use. The Bravo II ergonomics are an absolute work of art. The Bravo II will slice better, but takes batoning like an absolute champ. The steel is exceptionally tough. I have beat the hell out of mine. Red and White oak, Walnut, Ironwood, all without complaint. The satin finish also glides through media better than the crinkle finish on an RC series. It is just a fact. The RC will probably chop a little better with the extra weight, but neither blade is 8" (kind of my standard for a decent choppers minimum length) so really won't fill an exceptional role in this task. Overall, the bravo II will run circles around an RC, but at twice the price. You also get Corby Bolt sets on the Bravo II as well. I know the handle slabs are screwed onto the RC so handle durability is a wash. Both steels are very tough, edge retention goes to the A2 hands down. Convex geometry can't be messed with either. It is sort of like comparing a Ferrari to a '69 Chevelle. Both have a lot of power, but are in totally different classes. It was mentioned that Rat has the warranty, but I promise you, no one can compete with Bark Rivers warranty. One of my friends broke a Highland ON PURPOSE in a vice in a fit of rage, called Mike and asked when another run was going to be made of Highlands and Mike told him to send the Highland back and he would warranty it. When he told Mike it was on purpose, Mike said he didn't care, it was still warrantied. Yeah, that is tough to beat.

Hope this helps.

Actually my price quote was wrong. Over on www.knivesshipfree.com, the Bravo II in G-10 handles is only about $75 more than the RAT. If you want a fancy wood on the Bravo II, Derrick has those as well.
 
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I would love to have a Bravo II in reasonable condition. As long as the blade is not broken or chipped.
I want one to mod the crap out of and rescale. I plan on grinding off the thumb tab, so having one doesn't matter.
Let me know (visitors message on my profile page) if anyone has one they want to trade or sell.
 
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