HELP: Choosing a Bark River (the first one...)

Don't forget to consider the River's Edge. Its a rarely discussed Barkie, but a damn goodun.
 
I love the TUSK. And thats just was it is a Totally Useful Small Knife. Its awesome, easy to keep sharp. Took it out last weekend. It did all i needed it to do, from tent pegs to a hiking staff, it cut through all of it, and was still paper slicing sharp.
 
I have two Nebulas and love them. I wish I had two Auroras instead though. I am not a huge fan of scandi grinds (don't hate them just don't love them). The Lite Hunter is a very nice knife as is the Gameskeeper. Can't really go wrong with any of them, I like their stainless as much as their A2 versions.

pete
 
Que tal hombre :)?
For sure these knives are difficult to put in hand here, I found this one, my first Bark Fox River and I've been really impressed with its cutting ability and its edge holding, so I imagine that others are in the same range.
This is my toy for bushcraft.
Good luck with your research.
http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r255/aussonelle/IMGP0497.jpg
 
Fox River was the knife that first piqued my interest in Bark River - I ended up getting a Bravo-1 but will likely get a Fox River eventually as well. All of their knives seem to be high quality - so it does boil down to personal preference in blade size and shape. It seems like you're leaning towards the Fox River - just do it! ;)

I picked up my knife from knivesshipfree.com and the service was outstanding. (International shipping is $12 according to the website). DLT trading company is another big dealer as texastony pointed out.
 
I personally love the Bravo-1 and have never regretted its purchase. DLT Trading Co is where it was bought.
 
Thank you all for the input. I am fiercely checkin all the stores you mentioned and doing my math to see where I can get the best deal. I will probably ask any of them if they can ship my package in a sterile box... Sure a plain brown box atracts less attention than a shiny one covered with logos from a cutlery store. I don't think that is much of a problem.

www.knivesshipfree.com charges $12 for international shipping but I have to ask the other ones about their shipping rates because I couldn't find it online (they say it varies with the weight and such... just as I expected...)

Mikel
 
Mikel,
I don't think you need to worry about how it's shipped. I have yet to receive a Barkie from DLT or ShipFree that wasn't completely inocuous....they don;t even put their complete name on the return label so nobody can figure out there might be a knife inside. Plus, they're usually shipped box inside a box.... no worries there.
 
Thanks a lot StretchNM! The only time I had a package stopped by customs was like 7 years ago... a package from www.bestknives.com (I haven't seen it mentioned anywhere on BF... is anything wrong with this guys?). They screwed me badly... well... I should say US because I got a friend of mine involved as well. Can't remember how much we got to pay.

Now I have to decide which one I will be getting... and then try to finde the best handle stile/price ratio among all the available in the stores. Not an easy task by any means! I have seen prices for the same knife going from $102 to $150 with the same handle style.

Mikel
 
StretchNM said:
Mikel,
I don't think you need to worry about how it's shipped. I have yet to receive a Barkie from DLT or ShipFree that wasn't completely inocuous....they don;t even put their complete name on the return label so nobody can figure out there might be a knife inside. Plus, they're usually shipped box inside a box.... no worries there.
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My packets from DLT are VERY clearly marked and even have custom's paperwork in an attached sleeve on the box.THIS attracts a LOT of attention:grumpy:
 
I've included a picture of my Brak Rivers - and a Benchmade BM201 Activator+ on the left. Going to the right, the BR knives are a Huntsman, Fox River, Gameskeeper, Limited Edition '07 North Star, and a '07 T.U.S.K.. I was in search of the 'ultimate' bushcraft knife - for me. I have too many good choices!

The Huntsman's grip is just a bit short for serious day in/day out use for me - my hands are a bit over medium sized. The Fox River is great - and it provides some forefinger protection, even if the finger guard is not separate like the Huntsman's. The point of the North Star reportedly makes it easier to drill with. I like using it, but if I was in the woods in a srvival situation, the safety of my forefinger would be more important - a slight slip with your grip on the North Star, and that forefinger is on the blade. Do note that mine is minus the lanyard extension. Both the F R & the N S are .170" thick A2 steel - and they peel kindling easily, as does the Mighty Mite Huntsman's .187" A2.

I guess my favorite for bushcraft is the Gameskeeper. Of course, it's the heaviest - 6 oz vs the 5.8 oz F R and 4.5 oz NS, which is likely due to a somewhat skeletonized tang. It's 4.5" blade is just longer than the 4.25" blades of the F R and N S. Also, it has a .215" maximum thickness - and real finger guard. It works kindling well, too... but just fills my hand better than the other two - maybe due to the mid-palm swell. The T.U.S.K. is reportedly a good bushcrafter - but to me, it's a carver! As a woodcarver, it's a great knife for removing material and most detail... I am greatly impressed with it.

The lowly Huntsman is in my pocket most days - in a leather sheath that 'knifes ship free' offers - along with a small LED flashlight. It's great for hikes - some stake cutting, carving, and even steak cutting! Gotta remember to clean them when you cut food - and mineral oil is great for protection (They are all A2!). I hope this - and the comparison picture - helps! Best of luck in getting just one... I got all five between Christmas Eve and New Years - one from KSF, four from DLT. The Benchmade is not a favorite here - it isn't fair - it arrived with the Huntsman - it never had a chance.

John

IMG_0467_edited.jpg
 
willgoy said:
My packets from DLT are VERY clearly marked and even have custom's paperwork in an attached sleeve on the box.THIS attracts a LOT of attention:grumpy:
Click to expand...

That's too bad that happened. Maybe, on second thought, it would pay to make mention of shipping in the "remarks" column so they don;t make a mistake. Also, I'm in the USA. It's possible there may be some shipper's restrictions about shipping foreign - maybe they have to openly display the contents. Some customs thing, perhaps.

I can say, however, my Barkie collection has grown to 9 now, I think, and nary a one could anyone discern from the outside what might be inside. Except for one bought from a fellow Forumite, all have been bought from DLT or ShipFree. Both DLT and KnivesShipFree hide their business name - DLT by shipping under their broker name. It's a good thing yours arrived ok anyway, willgoy.
 
Stainz said:
...I guess my favorite for bushcraft is the Gameskeeper. Of course, it's the heaviest - 6 oz vs the 5.8 oz F R and 4.5 oz NS, which is likely due to a somewhat skeletonized tang. It's 4.5" blade is just longer than the 4.25" blades of the F R and N S. Also, it has a .215" maximum thickness - and real finger guard. It works kindling well, too... but just fills my hand better than the other two - maybe due to the mid-palm swell...
Click to expand...

Thanks a lot for this picture Stainz... it really helps to see them all lying side by side.

When I read about blades lenght I always have the same doubt... do the mean the full lenght of the blade or just the sharpened edge? As you said the Gameskeeper has a longer blade than the FoxRiver but... the usable edge seems shorter.

Mikel

How did you remove the lanyarnd extension of the NorthStar? Just grind it off? If I get a FoxRiver I will probably try to get it with hollow pins so I can get rid of the extension as well (if it bothers me in any way I mean) while still having the chance of attaching a lanyard.
 
I guess another piece of information may help - and it concerns the sheaths. They all fit and function quite well, and are made as well as the knives they hold. The Fox River, North Star, and T.U.S.K. sheaths also have a loop for a 3/8" OD cerroferium firesteel - the Huntsman and Gameskeeper do not. Also, the Gameskeeper does have a shorter edge than the Fox River or North Star. I still like the Gameskeeper best - but the FR is right behind it. Oh, my North Star is an '07 'Limited Edition', a purchase made because I liked it - and it was the least expensive model (Sale!), something you can see as a thread running through my Bark River purchases - I buy the least expensive version! I want the knife as a user - not as art. Oddly, that choice is usually black micarta, my favorite anyway. It is considered as a more dear material by some - Falkniven, for example - their rubber handled F1 is ~$100 here - in black micarta - it's $250!

You can't go wrong with any B R choice. I still say it will be interesting to see if you can stop with one, however. Good luck!

Stainz
 
Stainz said:
...The Fox River, North Star, and T.U.S.K. sheaths also have a loop for a 3/8" OD cerroferium firesteel - the Huntsman and Gameskeeper do not. Also, the Gameskeeper does have a shorter edge than the Fox River or North Star.
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I bought 6 10mmx100mm rods from eBay... I will have to check if they fit. If they don't I think it won't be hard to size the loops correctly.
What you pointed out about the edge lenght is exactly what I noticed on the picture you posted before. I am not a fan of choils and I like to have the edge as close to the hand as possible for more control.

Stainz said:
...I buy the least expensive version! I want the knife as a user - not as art. ...Falkniven, for example - their rubber handled F1 is ~$100 here - in black micarta - it's $250!
Click to expand...
That is exactly what I plan to do. So far the cheapest and most common handles I can find is Ivory Micarta... any input on this?

Stainz said:
...I still say it will be interesting to see if you can stop with one, however.
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I will tell you as soon as I get my hands on one!

Thanks a lot,
Mikel
 
Mikel 24:
I also usually go with the least expensive handle material offered. That's probably going to be micarta,but that's just fine with me.
Here's a pic showing some of the different handle styles & sizes (& colors) that are available:
DSCF2918.jpg

Of these,I would say that I get the most use out of the two at the bottom right...the black micarta handled Nebula & Aurora.
As has been said before,you really can't go wrong with any Bark River product. The hard part is picking just ONE that you like.
They all work well...the convex edge seems to take a lot of the effort out of the work you're doing & really is easy to sharpen.
Cliff
 
Thanks a lot for that picture Cliff, it helps a lot to get an idea of sizes.

I have a request for you:

Can anyone post a picture of some Barkies with an F1 nearby so as to compare sizes with a knife I already own?

Mikel
 
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