Found my first Becker under the tree todaya BK-2. First impression, it's so damn big! Not long, but beefy, thick, and such a wide chord for the length of blade. That said, it is the PERFECT size for what it is. Half an inch shorter and I would have to re-set the blade too often while batoning, half an inch longer and I would want a narrower blade. I have big hands, and I appreciate both the fullness and the length of the grip. It's nice to be able to use a full four-finger grip without scrunching by fingers up.
I went out in my parents' backyard and found a good dead branch on their red-tip photinias and went to work. The first thing I noticed is that I was DEFINITELY going to need a lanyard to chop effectively with this blade.
Tied up a a paracord lanyard, nothing fancy, and went back at it. Did really well, even on the harder-than-expected photinia wood. Chopped it down into two-foot chunks and went to work batoning it into splitwood and kindling. Batoned through a couple largish knots (against Ethan's recommendation in his Equip 2 Endure interview), which it handled with minimal friction. The idea was to test it in a controlled environment before I found myself needing it (in accordance with Ethan's advice in the same interview).
Needless to say, the BK-2 handled everything I threw at it, and was still sharp enough to make a half-decent feather stick afterwards. At one point I accidentally bounced the edge off the patio concrete after the blade surged past one of the knots. I was worried I was going to have to spend some quality time with the Lansky, but nothing more than some tiny (grain-of-sand sized) bruises in the edge. Wouldn't shave hairs after that treatment, but it still shaved paper, which is great edge-holding in my book.
Some finish loss and scuffing from the batoning, but I like a knife to look like it gets used. Haven't decided yet if I'm gonna strip it or let the finish wear off as it gets used.
Super happy with my first Becker, and already trying to decide which one I want next!
I went out in my parents' backyard and found a good dead branch on their red-tip photinias and went to work. The first thing I noticed is that I was DEFINITELY going to need a lanyard to chop effectively with this blade.
Tied up a a paracord lanyard, nothing fancy, and went back at it. Did really well, even on the harder-than-expected photinia wood. Chopped it down into two-foot chunks and went to work batoning it into splitwood and kindling. Batoned through a couple largish knots (against Ethan's recommendation in his Equip 2 Endure interview), which it handled with minimal friction. The idea was to test it in a controlled environment before I found myself needing it (in accordance with Ethan's advice in the same interview).
Needless to say, the BK-2 handled everything I threw at it, and was still sharp enough to make a half-decent feather stick afterwards. At one point I accidentally bounced the edge off the patio concrete after the blade surged past one of the knots. I was worried I was going to have to spend some quality time with the Lansky, but nothing more than some tiny (grain-of-sand sized) bruises in the edge. Wouldn't shave hairs after that treatment, but it still shaved paper, which is great edge-holding in my book.
Some finish loss and scuffing from the batoning, but I like a knife to look like it gets used. Haven't decided yet if I'm gonna strip it or let the finish wear off as it gets used.
Super happy with my first Becker, and already trying to decide which one I want next!
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