Camillus BK7 contrasted to RC-6

kgd

kgd

Joined
Feb 28, 2007
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This weekend I met up with Doc Canada and a bunch of his buddies for a bit of learning and socializing. Doc brought a few trade items with him, among them a genuine Camillus BK7 which I had my eyes on and managed to twist his arm in the trade. I will work up a thread on our outing later this week, but just got back from my meeting tonight and haven’t enough time to wade through all those photos yet. So for now, here is my mini-comparison of the BK-7 and the RC-6. Truthfully, aside from fuzzies and a little bit of cutting I haven’t used the BK-7 all that much yet. These observations are mostly descriptive based on impressions and comparing the two of them together.

Specs:

RC-6:
Blade length: 5.75”
Blade thickness: 3/16”
Steel: 1095
Handle: Black linen mircate with green liners
Overall Length: 11.75”
Weight: 11.75 oz

Camillus Becker Combat Utility 7 (BK-7)
Blade length: 7”
Blade thickness: 3/16”
Steel: High carbon 0170-6C
Handle: Glass filled nylon handle GV6H
Overall Length: 12.36”
Weight: 13.30 oz

The Knives:

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Obviously, the BK-7 is longer than the RC-6, but sometimes looks can be a bit deceiving. Despite the different sizes, to me these blades feel very similar to one another in the hand. In other words, the BK-7 doesn’t feel like a large knife and the RC-6 like a smaller knife when using them. This is different compared to the Scrapyard SOD which feels like a much bigger knife owing to the greater thickness (1/4”) and pronounced weight forward balance. Aside from being able to baton a slightly longer piece of wood with the BK-7, I view these two blades as highly comparable, falling into the venerable mid-size do it all size range. Some folks hate this, too big for small chores, too small for chopping, while others really like this size. I tend to appreciate the mid-size blades for their potential even though I often have more than one knife on my person.

Both the BK-7 and RC-6 are neutrally balanced. As an all around knife I tend to prefer this. Neither feels particularly heavy in the hand and despite the 1.55 oz different in measured weight it is difficult to discern the difference in how it feels.

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Here are the knives in profile:

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As you can see, the handle is quite a bit thicker on the BK-7 compared to the RC-6. From the side profile the handle of the BK-7 also looks bigger, but this is a case where again looks can be deceiving. Although the BK-7 handle is considerably fatter the nature of its shaping also makes it a tighter fit.

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more coming...
 
Personally, the BK-7 fits my hand pretty good, but if you have a wide hand you might have some trouble because of the shaping. I actually tend to prefer the thickness of the RC-6. On a knife this size, that fatter handle does tend to produce a bit of hand fatigue for me. One interesting aspect of the handle butt of the BK-7 is that you can grab hold of it from behind to facilitate chopper. The combined attributes of heavier weight, longer length and ability to hold it by the back end of the knife make the BK-7 a better chopper compared to the RC-6. Both knives are not in the same league compared to the SOD at this activity.

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The other difference between these two knives is the size of the choil. The RC-6 sports a full choil that you can use to choke up on the blade. The BK-7 has a tiny choil whose function is to aid in sharpening. The issue of choils on knives always sparks a lot of debate. In the case of this size category of knife I find that I really like and prefer the choil. The ability to choke up with index finger in the choil really does improve fine detail use of the knife. Also, I’m so used to using a choil on large knives that I found myself a couple of times reaching around and placing my finger on the edge of the BK-7 – not good! Last aspect here is that the finger notch on the RC-6 locks your fingers in better than the BK-7. Even the guard of the BK-7 is a bit bigger, the rounded shape makes it a bit more slippery than the RC-6.

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The BK-7 sports a thumb ramp with aggressive knurls, the RC-6 has thumb notching but they are less deep and it also lacks the thumb ramp. Between the two, I far prefer the RC-6. I don’t like ramps all that much, but the aggressive teeth on the ramp of the BK-7 make it uncomfortable. I was shaving with both today and using my thumb on the spine. On the RC-6 the textured pattern did its job holding my thumb in place. On the BK-7 I found my thumb in pain and quickly learned to not put my thumb on the thumb ramp.

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Both knives sport a protruding tang and lanyard hole. The configuration of the BK-7’s is kind of interesting in that it can be used to hammer a flat portion of the pommel or a pointed part by angling the knife with your hand. The RC-6’s is flat for hammering but does not have the pointed part, which I find useful. However, I give the nod to the BK-7 for being more versatile in design here.

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Both knives are made of 3/16” stock steel, yet the spine of the BK-7 is wider because it sports a high sabre grind rather than the full flat of the RC-6.

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The BK-7 sports a rather aggressive clip and unsharpened swedge to remove metal and produce a thin and sharp tip. The RC-6 has constant tapering to the tip and a drop point. I find the curve of the RC-6 visually more appealing than the clip + swedge. Functional both tips are great. Nice and sharp and appear quite robust in drilling uses.

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Overall fit and finish. The RC-6 is clearly superior in this regard. First, just the virtue of the handle materials. I know a lot of people like the nylon or grivory (Kabar version) handles, but they simply feel like plastic to me. They just don’t compare to the feel of quality grade mircata like those used in the Rats. It looks like plastic and feels like plastic.

Even though Doc Canada had this knife for a while, the flaws I am pointing out is from the factory not from usage. You can see little dings and marks in the tang of the Becker on both sides of the handles. The dings have intact coating so this is why I believe it came from the factory that way. The RC-6 is perfect as were all the knives I purchased from them. From what I’ve seen of Kabar’s, these kinds of small cosmetic issues are apparent in that line also. I should stress that these are just cosmetic things, not actual flaws that will affect performance.

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You also note that those plastic handles aren’t perfectly mated to the knife on the BK-7. On the RC-6 it is a perfect fit on every knife. Little touches like the green liners also spiff up the appearance of the RC-6.

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more coming...
 
Sheaths. The Camillus came with a nylon sheath with plastic liner. I generally hate these things, at least I hated the one that came with my RD-9, but on the Becker I think the sheath is pretty good. Doc Canada did a few mods drilling small holes in the liner and sewing the liner to the bottom of the sheath to keep the liner from slipping out. One thing I like with the BK-7 sheath is that the liner hugs the knife pretty good so the blade doesn’t rattle around in the sheath like the RD-9 one did.

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The utility pouch is quite handy. You can’t get an altoid tin in it, but there is enough room for a smaller PSK, small knife or multi-tool. I was able to fit my JK kit knife, a tiny tin containing PJCB and a army fire steel, the fire steel fitted to through the retention band and held in place with shock cord.

The RC-6 sheath is a molded plastic sheath which has great retention similar to kydex. The RatCutlery sheaths are very good with lots of lashing points throughout. You can loop paracord belt loops and configure it for vertical or horizontal carry. On this knife, you do get the poke you in the ribs syndrome somewhat when carried vertically. I do like lashing the RC-6 to my pack. Rat Cutlery will soon have a molle plate available which will enable a drop down carry and improve belt carry of its sheath. Overall, I think the RC-6 sheath is much better than the BK-7. However, I’ve come to appreciate the RC-6 sheath system over time in using all of my Rats. Newer users probably will like the BK-7 sheath better.

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Cutting performance isn’t something I’ve really tested enough to comment on and I would like to convex the Becker to match that of my RC-6 first. My little bit of wood carving and fuzzy making had me liking the feel of the RC-6 better.

When talking about the price of these blades, the current Kabar offering is about $75 (not much different than what the BK-7’s used to go for) versus the RC-6 which runs for about $130. Which is a better value? That really depends on what you are after. I feel as though the kabar, particularly the famous Camillus ones as I was lucky enough to receive from Doc, is every bit as tough a knife as Rowan’s 1095 + heat treat. I think both knives will do pretty much equally well in function as your all in one outdoor blade. The BK-7 is 1.25” longer than the RC-6 but on this class of knives I don’t see that as adding too much of an advantage. The BK-7 is likely a better chopper, but both knives are poor choppers compared to real chopper blades like the SOD or longer blades like the RD-9.

From a knife appreciation perspective, I can see why the Rowan’s have that extra $50 cost to them. Better, more expensive handle material. Better fit and finish and little touches like the liner and a well thought out sheath. I have no empirical proof of this, but I suspect the powder coating on the rat is a little stronger than the Becker, but time will tell on that one. There is also of course the no condition warranty offered on rat cutlery. Camillus went bankrupt so no going back there! To be fair, I think Ethan has been taking care of the couple of incidents reported on the Kabar versions of his knives. Unfortunately, it seems a lot of people are nit picking small finishing details on the kabars which I think are part and parcel of the price point.

Overall two great knives. If you are on a budget and want a great blade to get the job done than I recommend the Becker BK-7. If you like those finer points of the finishing that comes with the RC-6 then I think it is well worth the extra dollars and for me a touch better of a blade. Personally, I'm just glad to be a happy owner of both of them.
 
Thats a great review. :thumbup:

Not being a Rat-o-phile, what does "Rowen" mean?

One thing I do not care for with the Rat is that it does not come with tek-lok or other means of securing it to your belt, does it?
 
powernoodle said:
Thats a great review. :thumbup:

Not being a Rat-o-phile, what does "Rowen" mean?

One thing I do not care for with the Rat is that it does not come with tek-lok or other means of securing it to your belt, does it?
Click to expand...

Rowan is the manufacturer of all Rat Cutlery products, like Kabar is currently to Becker.

No the Rats do not come with a tec-lok but they designed to be fitted to one if you like and want to get an aftermarket tec-lok. They come with paracord that you string through the sheath to make paracord belt loops. They also come with molle locks to allow you to thread it to molle webbing. The design of their sheaths has much to do with military and LEO application - hence the emphasis on molle locks and fittings. The RC-3 also comes with a boot clip plate that can be screwed to the molded plastic sheath.
 
Great comparison, Ken. It's unfortunate that you couldn't do a side-by-side of the RC-6 and the BK-2, which happens to be my go-to, do it all knife.

RE the powder coating: I'm a Becker fan, but I think the coating on the RAT's is better, IMHO. I would like to pick up a RC-4 at some point, when I have the money, just to try the RATs out (Sigh. So many knives, so little money.).
 
Great review for that short of a time to compare them! Thanks for the write up, Ken.
 
Nice comparison, thanks! It's really a shame that so many companies are going out of business, I'd like to see more knives with the 0170-6C steel. Good stuff!
 
Good review!I own two Camillus Beckers,a BK2 Companion,and the BK9 Combat Bowie.I'm not a fan of the Grivory handles either.I put the aftermarket tan micarta handles on from Tomars Kabars a week ago.What a difference that made,you might want to consider doing that.
 
good work ken, this is where I stand on the two knives as well, for what its worth, my BK7 is convex, I can try cutting and chopping tests on them tomorow?
 
GRIM 62 - there is a good chance that I'll pull for the aftermarket mircata grips. I just love mircata so much.

Hey Fonly, yeah if you want to do some chopping and slicing comparisons go on ahead. I suspect the Becker will chop better and the RC will slice better just based on the dimensions and grinds.
 
Great review. I appreciate the even hand used in assessing the knives and the obviously unbiased approach. Liked the pictures, too!

Nicely done.

Robert
 
Great Review man ! The RC6 is what made me sale my BK7' s I'm not a fan of swedge tips and to me only down side to the BK7 for my usage
 
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