Broken USMC...Again!

NYOutdoors

NYOutdoors

Joined
Oct 24, 2011
Messages
1,569
Hey guys,

Just wanted to share with you a few pics of my USMC:

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This has happened to me once before in the exact same way. As you can see, this knife saw a lot of use before giving in. I heat my house with firewood and the USMC has been a beater knife for me ever since I've owned it for all sorts of related tasks, from preparing kindling to making some shavings to start up the fire.

As much as I like the USMC, I think I am done with them for this sort of work. The stick tang is simply too weak to be used in that way for prolonged amounts of time. It holds up great for a while, but it just eventually weakens too much and snaps at its weak point.

Anyone else use their USMC for things like this and experience similar outcomes? It stinks that this is the second one I've broken in the same way. Not sure what to do with her now.
 
Yah I am looking at this thing thinking... there is no way all its done is "prepare kindling and make shavings..." That just looks like a flat out abused knife that broke... not to hit on OP but... This thing looks like it was dragged behind a semi then beat out sideways until it snapped...
 
Maybe I should explain more. The knife was "abused," depending on your definition. I've batoned probably thousands of logs with it. It has pried, chopped, fallen on rocks, in dirt, water, etc. It's been beaten to absolute hell. So you're right. I'm not trying to complain here, just showing what happened and asking the question of if this happens to other people as well, though I don't doubt there aren't many who use their knife like that. I don't use all my knives like that, I guess the USMC just became an all purpose beater.

The handles are the result of a lot of wear and tear on the knife. They have been beaten on when the knife got stuck batoning and things like that.

Sorry again if I wasn't clear enough, I was pretty sure "preparing kindling" implied it has seen a lot of batoning, chopping, and general beatings.
 
NYOutdoors said:
Maybe I should explain more. The knife was "abused," depending on your definition. I've batoned probably thousands of logs with it. It has pried, chopped, fallen on rocks, in dirt, water, etc. It's been beaten to absolute hell. So you're right. I'm not trying to complain here, just showing what happened and asking the question of if this happens to other people as well, though I don't doubt there aren't many who use their knife like that. I don't use all my knives like that, I guess the USMC just became an all purpose beater.

The handles are the result of a lot of wear and tear on the knife. They have been beaten on when the knife got stuck batoning and things like that.

Sorry again if I wasn't clear enough, I was pretty sure "preparing kindling" implied it has seen a lot of batoning, chopping, and general beatings.
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I appreciate you coming back and explaining. :thumbup:
 
NYOutdoors said:
I've batoned probably thousands of logs with it. It has pried, chopped, fallen on rocks, in dirt, water, etc. It's been beaten to absolute hell.
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It looks and sounds like an $80 well spent then. I bet going out and getting thousands of logs cost more in food and fuel than the knife did. :D Just saying.
 
Thanks for the honesty,

It looks like it has had a rough life,

Looks to be a thrower too. Maybe not though.

I guess you have to ask yourself, Do you feel you received fair value out of the knife? Given what you put it through. Not many knive are designed to take that kind of punishment. Those that are can not be had for $65.00 Especially sideways beating on the handle to get them out of a stuck piece of wood. I have an Ek Bowie that I'm not sure would have faired any better.

I used to heat soley with wood. So I know where you're coming from. I bought a small hatchet sized maul for kindling and such. I spend a ton of time in the woods and baton the snot out of my knives. None come close to looking like yours. I am impressed., Another question I had was what do you use for a baton? The spine of the knife looks pretty rough too. Wood or a hammer or something else.

That does indeed seem to be the Achilles heel of the Ka-Bar as the handful of the broken ones I have seen are similar. That being said, there are tens of thousands of them out there and most are still in one piece.

If I were you I would by another one just for the story telling aspect. Maybe Ka-Bar will use you in an ad. You obviously know how to extract every bit of life from their knife.
 
Sadly all steel will break,

I see you live in New York, me too. I live in the northern adirondacks and I am amazed at how many axes I see up here that are welded back together. Over time with enought use and the right temperature all steel will give up the ghost.

I tend to be a little more cautious when batoning in sub-zero temps. Which basically is half the winter here.

That is what I'd do with it. Find some old welder looking for a challenge, it will probably go for another 1000 blocks of wood.
 
LostViking said:
Thanks for the honesty,

It looks like it has had a rough life,

Looks to be a thrower too. Maybe not though.

I guess you have to ask yourself, Do you feel you received fair value out of the knife? Given what you put it through. Not many knive are designed to take that kind of punishment. Those that are can not be had for $65.00 Especially sideways beating on the handle to get them out of a stuck piece of wood. I have an Ek Bowie that I'm not sure would have faired any better.

I used to heat soley with wood. So I know where you're coming from. I bought a small hatchet sized maul for kindling and such. I spend a ton of time in the woods and baton the snot out of my knives. None come close to looking like yours. I am impressed., Another question I had was what do you use for a baton? The spine of the knife looks pretty rough too. Wood or a hammer or something else.

That does indeed seem to be the Achilles heel of the Ka-Bar as the handful of the broken ones I have seen are similar. That being said, there are tens of thousands of them out there and most are still in one piece.

If I were you I would by another one just for the story telling aspect. Maybe Ka-Bar will use you in an ad. You obviously know how to extract every bit of life from their knife.
Click to expand...

Love the ADK region. I have a hunting camp in Lewis County, and I get up to the mountains as much as possible for hiking.

I absolutely feel that I got my money's worth. No question about that. I really feel like I came off wrong in my OP...I am not complaining that I broke it. More discussing and looking for others' experiences. Like I said, this is the second one I've broken and while it did take a tremendous amount of abuse, I can't help but wonder if I switched to maybe a BK9 if I would be better off. I actually have a BK9 that has been used a lot, but not like that.

I was not fair to the knife or nice to it. It was beaten on like a rented mule, and when it went dull, I put a working edge on it with a belt sander and put it back in service. However, I never threw the knife (I don't know any knives) and I used a hardwood baton that I whittled a handle into on it. I never use a hammer. Like I said though, it has been dropped and pried with, and generally just used to the extreme.

Just want it to be clear...I am not complaining, just more trying to see if anyone else uses their USMC like this and their experiences.

I have axes, hatchets, and mauls as well, but honestly, for safe, carefree wood splitting of a reasonable size, I prefer a knife. Just my preference, though
 
Let me put it to you this way. If you love something, you don't toss it away, never again to see the light of day. You use it as was intended, clearly showing you gave the knife the love it deserved. If you are wondering why Kabars from WW2 are still around and kicking while the current models seem to break left and right, it's probably because the old timers didn't do the things to their knives that we do to ours.
 
I'd recommend that you try the KABAR Becker BK9 also called the Combat Bowie. Seems like a better fit to the things your doing with a knife.
 
I agree with IWHAF,

I was out by the fire tonight thinking to myself, that guy needs a BK-2 Campanion,
Great minds think alike,

If you break that one switch to oil heat
 
I would suggest replacing it with something from the Becker line, a potbelly, or one of the zombie knives. The Toooj handles also seem to hold up well despite being stick tang.
 
I agree, get a bk2 for your right hip, a bk9 for your left cross draw, an 11, 14, 24 for your boots and neck, bk10 across your chest, bk5 across the small of your back, a grass machete and kukri slug over your back like sword, a 7 on your thigh, then carry all the tweeners in your teeth... did I miss something? :D
 
iwouldhurtafly said:
I agree, get a bk2 for your right hip, a bk9 for your left cross draw, an 11, 14, 24 for your boots and neck, bk10 across your chest, bk5 across the small of your back, a grass machete and kukri slug over your back like sword, a 7 on your thigh, then carry all the tweeners in your teeth... did I miss something? :D
Click to expand...

Someone with a crane to pick you back up if you trip???
 
The Becker line is way tougher than the old USMC knives. I own both and would take a Becker any day over my USMC knife.
 
Knowing that the tang is tapered like it is I would never beat on the handle of my KaBar USMC. If it gets stuck in a log I use a wedge to get it out. Nonetheless it appears that you got tons of use out of yours, OP.
 
It's threads like this, that serve as a point of comfort to those of us who own what's more or less the quintessential kabar, but haven't yet used it for general utility duties.
 
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