Gerber Bear Grylls Ultimate Knife

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jacktrades_nbk said:
how about the tang ? can you see it trough the "pommeless" handle ?
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Nope. I am holding the knife now. The tang ends short of the pommel. I can't see it at all. Bad idea. They should have pinned the tang to the pommel, like any normal knife maker would.
 
Horn Dog said:
Nope. I am holding the knife now. The tang ends short of the pommel. I can't see it at all. Bad idea. They should have pinned the tang to the pommel, like any normal knife maker would.
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Agreed, I "assumed" it was pinned to the stick-tang inside the plastic handle.
Shame on Gerber for allowing junk like this to go out.
 
"Shocked?" Well, there would have been a day when I said "yes." Today isn't that day, though.
 
There was a time when Gerber meant quality. I had one in the Army. It is sad to see a fine name sell junk. I am returning the knife to Amazon.com. What a piece of junk.
 
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Artfully Martial said:
seriously, is anyone shocked that Gerber let this through?
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Actually...yeh, I am. I didn't expect it to be fantastic, but Gerber produces stuff that at least works normally...and Bear Grylls, depsite the goofyness of his show gives the impression that he wants to be taken seriously...

So yeh, breaking in a back yard test is shocking. The last time I heard of proformance this bad it was one of those hollow handle survival knives, and that one cost $5 knife from Harbor Freight Tools.

I would even ague that it's irresponcible to market such in inferior tool as one suitable for preserving life in an emergency.

lol it looks like the little whistle is the best piece of gear in that kit. I feel in love with those things ever since the one that came with my Izula. :D
 
morning horn dog
glad you did this review and hope it keeps some unsuspectings from taking that thing into the woods.
on the other hand, i have an 11 yr old nephew, who has really been hinting at me for this knife for the holidays.(i'm considered the "knife knut" in the family tho his papa is a chef and has a great deal of respect for and knowledge of quality knives) what am i gonna do? hate to hand him over that POS. but he's not likely to break it as readily as you did. but he does go camping, and is learning to use knives appropriately. he REALLY wants that knife....:(
 
Excellent review, Dog. Although I wouldn't buy another Gerber, your review was great! Loved the photos and captions. Thanks again!
 
sadiejane said:
morning horn dog
glad you did this review and hope it keeps some unsuspectings from taking that thing into the woods.
on the other hand, i have an 11 yr old nephew, who has really been hinting at me for this knife for the holidays.(i'm considered the "knife knut" in the family tho his papa is a chef and has a great deal of respect for and knowledge of quality knives) what am i gonna do? hate to hand him over that POS. but he's not likely to break it as readily as you did. but he does go camping, and is learning to use knives appropriately. he REALLY wants that knife....:(
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Get him ESEE-4 or a Mora 2000. Or the SOG Seal Pup is nice. There are many, many fine knives out there from $30 to $600 that beat this knife. I can understand him wanting one that says "Bear" on it, but I think he is likely to be disappointed when the pommel on his falls off, as it surely will. Or you can just get one of those Air Force pilots survival knives. Maybe a Buck Special will do. Or if you must have some gadgets, Schrade has some solid steel hollow handle survival knives with tools in the handle that are very tough. Have a look at some of the Ontarios and Beckers. Then there are all the nice Busse family knives and Bark River knives, it you want to spend more. Trust me on this, an 11 year old boy can destroy a lot more than an old man can. You could get him the Bear knife and leave it in the plastic like a Barbie collectible and get him a Mora to use.
 
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sadiejane said:
morning horn dog
glad you did this review and hope it keeps some unsuspectings from taking that thing into the woods.
on the other hand, i have an 11 yr old nephew, who has really been hinting at me for this knife for the holidays.(i'm considered the "knife knut" in the family tho his papa is a chef and has a great deal of respect for and knowledge of quality knives) what am i gonna do? hate to hand him over that POS. but he's not likely to break it as readily as you did. but he does go camping, and is learning to use knives appropriately. he REALLY wants that knife....:(
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Will second Horn Dog, though will specify the never lost or whatever the name is for the orange MORA 2000. That or an orange ESEE4. Depends on why he wants it. I'd imagine it is more for the looks, considering he is 11yr. Then again he may be more outdoorsy than most peeps.
 
At age 11, I was destroying Tonka trucks, for Pete's sake. That knife wouldn't have lasted long.
 
It doesn’t look bad for the price but IMO for around the price of a tank of gas over the Gerber I ‘d get something by ESSE.
 
riz_aaroni said:
Will second Horn Dog, though will specify the never lost or whatever the name is for the orange MORA 2000. That or an orange ESEE4. Depends on why he wants it. I'd imagine it is more for the looks, considering he is 11yr. Then again he may be more outdoorsy than most peeps.
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I gave one of those orange Mora 2000s to a friend's son who wanted a good fixed blade knife. I bet he has neither lost it nor broken it. You would be amazed at the abuse that knife can take, and it is anything but heavy duty feeling. Even with all that plastic and that thin blade, the Mora 2000 held up to my typical tests, which include baton work. I used to laugh at the Mora fans, so I bought a few as a joke, with the intent of showing how weak they were. They have proven to be the most useful and rugged knives for the money that I have ever tested. Looks can be deceiving.
 
J.Mattson said:
It doesn’t look bad for the price but IMO for around the price of a tank of gas over the Gerber I ‘d get something by ESSE.
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I love ESEE knives. As simple as they are, they work. You can buy firesteels and sharpeners. They don't have to come attached to the sheath. ESEE knives are designed by real survival experts and they are quality made, too.
 
Disappointing!
The only Gerber i have liked recently is the Big Rock, which in the $30-$40 price range is actually a decent knife.
I was really hoping the Big Rock was signs of Gerber maybe returning to its better days, but now i'm thinking the good quality of the Big Rock was merely an accident.
 
Thanks for the review...

I am glad you are sending the knife back- I sincerely hope Gerber gets hold of it for forensic analysis-

Putting a hammer pommel pinned into a plastic handle = Fail.

Bear uses a $750 custom for a reason I guess? Or was that 750 Pounds Sterling.

I bet the Bear Grylls Ultimate Knife II will be better...
 
In this case, the causes of the failure are obvious: Poor design and poor construction. It was made to fail. I cannot believe that this knife passed any serious use tests by the manufacturer or by Bear Grylls. I see no reason that all these knives wouldn't fail if used as I used this one, which is why I chose refund over replacement. I don't want such a shoddy knife in my collection. I don't think that this particular knife is any more defective than the rest of them. Does anyone seriously think that the hammer pommel being pinned to thin plastic will stay on if somebody uses it as a hammer? It couldn't even survive the shock of stiking the blade with a baton.

As Bear says in his promotional video,"On the bottom of the knife, it's got a very heavy duty pommel acts like a pounding hammer head". Then later on, speaking of his survival instructions, he says, "Let's hope you never need it for real". I agree. Let's hope you never need this knife for real in a survival situation, especially if all you can find to eat are Hickory nuts and you want to use the pommel to crack them.
 
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Thank you for the review and for the pics.
I also wanted to offer a couple such knives as gifts to some friends who appreciate Bear Grylls' show. After reading this thread, I am a bit reluctant, although the ones for whom the gifts are intended are merely backyard barbecue outdoorsmen.
Maybe the folder will be better than the fixed blade? :confused:
 
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