- Joined
- Nov 14, 2005
- Messages
- 11,135
I have been interested in Becker knives for a looong time. I never have bought one though, too many cool blades so little time.....
The Becker line was brought into form by a man named Ethan Becker. He has designed alot of really cool gear like the Becker patrol pack, and also puts pen to paper in The Joy of Cooking a very popular cooking book. The blades went out of sight for a bit after Camilus went the way of the dodo, but he has breathed life into the line once again by teaming up with Kabar, a really old company with a good reputation.
My buddy Troy(cmdr249) offered one up for passaround recently and I jumped aboard anxious to see what all the fuss was about. These blades have cult-like following like so many other great makers. The knife arrived after making a few stops around the map, and I was exited to get some dirt time in with the blade. Well, as things have tendency to do, I got really swamped with classes for work, home issues and other things on my plate and the becker got set aside. I was cleanin up my various gear piles I have strewn about my house and came across it sittin there lookin all sad. I was like F%^&!!! I had totally forgotin about it. I emailed cmdr and told him what I had done and how big of a :jerkit: I was for doin this, and how sorry I was and I felt like a dick, and he told me no worries to keep it as long as I needed to get some time with it. He is a great guy. One of the coolest cats on the block.
The first thing I noticed was the blades overall size! Its a beastly blade with a wide 5in spearpoint blade, 5.5in handle of 1095 cro-van carbon steel. The handle material is called GFN, and it feels almost ceramic in nature. REALLY tough stuff. The blade is coated black, and it comes with a very neat plastic or kydex sheath that is ambidextrious by design. The blade fits in either way into the sheath, making it a very versitle rig. I really think that this sheath is a winner. I am happy to see manufacturers puting more stock into a good sheath. I remember a time when you would get a great blade in a crappy sheath. Not this time baby!!!!!!!
The blade is pretty heavy, but well ballanced. The handles are contoured somethin sexy, and really worked well to lock the knife into my hand. The scales on the passaround knife are a little off. Kabar really should take the extra time to fit them correctly. Its not by much, I didnt notice it while using, but it is noticeable to the eye. The coating is very tough and evenly applied. Its pretty smooth in nature, smoother then a RAT. The saber grind makes for a very strong tip, but the profile makes it a very pointy usable one. The scales are also removable for maintnance and can be hollowed out to stash some small last ditch items in. James Bond styley!!!!
I carried the blade on a few outings. And used it alot on a short 5mi hike earlier this week. It performed overall well. The edge is pretty thick, making it more of a hard use type knife, but it still is very managable for the small tasks. The thing this blade really shines at is the dirty stuff... Dirty Girl.
The wide blade and strength of it make it a great splitter for the firewood, and an excelant chopper for its size. Its wide enough to use as a small shovel if you need to. Be good for diggin up some nightcrawlers or for clams. Its thickness makes it a sturdy instrument for some light prying etc...
Overall this is a great basic no frills survival knife. Its a little big and heavy for the hikes where you traveling fast and light, as I tend to do, but for an overnighter or a general camp blade, its the bees knees. This blade would make a great blade to pack in the truck in a BOB, or just in your toolbox as a hard ass implement of sharpness. I can really see this at home with a soldier. Myself being prior service, if I was gonna deploy, this knife would be at the top of the list for a potential combat companion. Cheap enough that if someone walked off with it, you could replace it easily for a great price, and its readily available from several vendors. I would be happy to carry this blade off to war, and bet my bacon on its durability.
Now off to the pron.....
Next to my goto blade the Bravo1 for a size referance....
big fat wide saber ground goodness!!
works suprisingly well for the small tasks!
sexy contours!!
A splitin machine!
Wonder if I could dig to china?
The Becker line was brought into form by a man named Ethan Becker. He has designed alot of really cool gear like the Becker patrol pack, and also puts pen to paper in The Joy of Cooking a very popular cooking book. The blades went out of sight for a bit after Camilus went the way of the dodo, but he has breathed life into the line once again by teaming up with Kabar, a really old company with a good reputation.
My buddy Troy(cmdr249) offered one up for passaround recently and I jumped aboard anxious to see what all the fuss was about. These blades have cult-like following like so many other great makers. The knife arrived after making a few stops around the map, and I was exited to get some dirt time in with the blade. Well, as things have tendency to do, I got really swamped with classes for work, home issues and other things on my plate and the becker got set aside. I was cleanin up my various gear piles I have strewn about my house and came across it sittin there lookin all sad. I was like F%^&!!! I had totally forgotin about it. I emailed cmdr and told him what I had done and how big of a :jerkit: I was for doin this, and how sorry I was and I felt like a dick, and he told me no worries to keep it as long as I needed to get some time with it. He is a great guy. One of the coolest cats on the block.
The first thing I noticed was the blades overall size! Its a beastly blade with a wide 5in spearpoint blade, 5.5in handle of 1095 cro-van carbon steel. The handle material is called GFN, and it feels almost ceramic in nature. REALLY tough stuff. The blade is coated black, and it comes with a very neat plastic or kydex sheath that is ambidextrious by design. The blade fits in either way into the sheath, making it a very versitle rig. I really think that this sheath is a winner. I am happy to see manufacturers puting more stock into a good sheath. I remember a time when you would get a great blade in a crappy sheath. Not this time baby!!!!!!!
The blade is pretty heavy, but well ballanced. The handles are contoured somethin sexy, and really worked well to lock the knife into my hand. The scales on the passaround knife are a little off. Kabar really should take the extra time to fit them correctly. Its not by much, I didnt notice it while using, but it is noticeable to the eye. The coating is very tough and evenly applied. Its pretty smooth in nature, smoother then a RAT. The saber grind makes for a very strong tip, but the profile makes it a very pointy usable one. The scales are also removable for maintnance and can be hollowed out to stash some small last ditch items in. James Bond styley!!!!
I carried the blade on a few outings. And used it alot on a short 5mi hike earlier this week. It performed overall well. The edge is pretty thick, making it more of a hard use type knife, but it still is very managable for the small tasks. The thing this blade really shines at is the dirty stuff... Dirty Girl.
The wide blade and strength of it make it a great splitter for the firewood, and an excelant chopper for its size. Its wide enough to use as a small shovel if you need to. Be good for diggin up some nightcrawlers or for clams. Its thickness makes it a sturdy instrument for some light prying etc...
Overall this is a great basic no frills survival knife. Its a little big and heavy for the hikes where you traveling fast and light, as I tend to do, but for an overnighter or a general camp blade, its the bees knees. This blade would make a great blade to pack in the truck in a BOB, or just in your toolbox as a hard ass implement of sharpness. I can really see this at home with a soldier. Myself being prior service, if I was gonna deploy, this knife would be at the top of the list for a potential combat companion. Cheap enough that if someone walked off with it, you could replace it easily for a great price, and its readily available from several vendors. I would be happy to carry this blade off to war, and bet my bacon on its durability.
Now off to the pron.....
Next to my goto blade the Bravo1 for a size referance....
big fat wide saber ground goodness!!
works suprisingly well for the small tasks!
sexy contours!!
A splitin machine!
Wonder if I could dig to china?
Its worded funny, I meant the steel is 1095 crovan and slabs are GRN or Grivory.:thumbup:
