Got it narrowed down, need some opinions

C

cwalker28

Joined
Oct 14, 2010
Messages
14
Ok. I am looking for a general taskmaster, survival type knife. I own many different blades for more specific purposes but I want a good hard duty knife.

The Options:

SOG Seal Pup
Gerber Prodigy
Gerber LMF II
Gerber Big Rock Camp
Buck ErgoHunter (the $59.99 one)
Ka-Bar Companion

Sheath is important too, more carrying options, but not as important as the tool itself. What say Ye?

Oh, I'm in Nashville with tons of stores around me so I would like to pick one and go tomorrow!!!:confused:
 
cwalker28 said:
Ok. I am looking for a general taskmaster, survival type knife. I own many different blades for more specific purposes but I want a good hard duty knife.
Click to expand...

Welcome to bladeforums!

Here is the good thing about bladeforums... not all of us agree, and you an get many opinions.

Here is the bad thing about bladeforums... not all of us agree, and you can get many opinions.

In my opinion, this is the best value you will find in that category of knife that I have any experience with...

An ESEE 6, although the other models are great too depending on your size preference...

esee-6.jpg


Others to check out are Becker Knife and Tool. Explore the Becker and ESEE forums and you may find your list realigned a bit...

Welcome and good luck making your choice.

JGON
 
If the scales on the Campanion (also known as the becker BK2) fit your hand comfortably, I'd go with it. If not, I've heard a lot of good things about the big rock camp knife.
welcome to the forums
 
If i were you i would check out ESEE knives. They make some of the best knives around and have an unbeatable warranty.
 
The Esee's look nice. Just a td bit more than I was looking to spend, bit if I could handle one here before I leave, I Could be persuaded. Thank you for this recomendation, but now my dwcision is harder.
 
I also recommend any of the ESEE knives, they are fantastic.

I don't recommend any Gerber, but that's just me.
 
Of the knives you've listed I would go with either the SOG Seal Pup or Ka-Bar Companion. I think the SOG may have a slightly more versatile blade shape. Gerber is not highly thought of on these forums. Yeah, they look cool, but for the price either of the above 2 are of better quality.

Since you are buying from a store, try to handle the models that interest you. See which ones are comfortable in the hand. A good handle is just as important as a good blade! Let us know what you came home with!
 
I vote Esee as well if its available to you. Kabar becker is my pick from the ones listed. There is always the old Buck 119 special. Not sure how hard you plan to use this blade. Esee is worth the extra $ just for their warranty alone if you can swing one. I have a 4, and use it for about everything. May check out some Condor blades too. All around $30 or so and are hard workers. Hope this helps
 
I'm a HUGE fan of the SOG personally. I have the seal 2000 and consider it one of the best blades I've ever owned.
 
Of the listed knives, I would definitely choose the Ka-Bar Becker BK-2 Campanion.
If you can afford it, you can also order canvas micarta handles scales for it if you find the grivory ones are too slick for you. Good luck with your purchase, whatever you choose!

Kyle.
 
From your List...Campanion all the Way. The BK2 is a very good knife and more so for the money! LMF II has serration (not a fan). Seal Pup has a rock hard tuning fork for a handle (so does the BK2 but you can get Micarta scales for it). The BK2 is the toughest of your group. The Big Rock is the cheapest...19 bucks on amazon, its decent to use and abuse without worry! As other have mentioned ESEE as well but if you are going to spend money wisely I would do a Fallkniven and be done with it either an A1 or an S1. I love my F1 the most but it is a shorty of a blade. Nowhere near the lengths in your group. But still an excellent if not the best blade in that length. The Fallkniven dont have the warranty like the ESEE but I significantly like their knives better than ESEE. They hold up extremely well and have taken an absolutely beating in my hands!
 
Oh and if you get a fallkniven skip the black coating...it will come off quick and look like hell. Their coating is nearly as good as ESEE. But that has to do with coating sticking to the two different metals. VG-10 a stainless is much harder to coat then 1095 a non-stainless.
 
Go check out the esee 5 or 6. I think the 5 is thicker blade at 1/4 than the 6 at 3/16, please correct me if I am wrong. The companion is a stout knife too, but I also heard the new sheaths with the companion may be rubbing the blade inside the sheath, not a big thing if you intend heavy use.
 
Avoid the Seal Pup from SOG. The handle shape is about the only thing going for it. The steel is AUS-6A and is usually found on much cheaper knives. The sheath is not covered under warranty so if you recieve the plastic sheath you'll be disappointed because it won't hold up. The blade's edge is very limited because the serrations take up almost half the edge. Not really a problem if you like the serrations but the ricasso takes up too much of the blade. Your "blade formula" comes out to be 1/3 plain edge, 1/3 serrations, and 1/3 ricasso. On a scale from 1-10 I'd give the Seal Pup a score of only a 3.:(
 
If you chop alot the ESEE 6 and 5 Handles are not great for chopping...especially compared to the BK2. The butt of you hand will nest nicely in the BK2 handle where as your hand can slip off or down the ESEE handle. There isn't much support for the butt of your hand on the ESEE handle. I like the ESEE handle...just not for chopping. I have used all 3 and the BK2 out chops the ESEE...all because of the handle.
 
Nix on the Gerber's.

I don't like coated blades or the handle on the Becker's (too big for me) so not that one either/

Not the ESEE's since they're coated too. Wish they did them in satin finish.

The Ergo Hunter is ok, but... something about it turns me off.

Have you looked at the SOG Northwest Ranger? In your size range, AUS8A is a great steel for general use, and there's no coating on it. You can find them for around $55 or so online.

Falknivens are sweet but more than you want to spend, I think.
 
From the list I'd pick the Ka-Bar Becker Campanion. Within that price range I'd also consider Cold Steel SRK.
 
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