Help me choose between these three fixed blades!

tueller

tueller

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Please help me decide. Esee 5, bark river bravo 1 w/ a2, or swamp rat ratmandu?? Letting me know why would help too. Thx!
 
All of the above - because choices like that cause undue stress.
If you MUST choose, you need to consider what you will be doing with the knife, and how much you want to spend. I don't have a Bravo 1; but I'll post a side by side with the ESEE 5 and Ratmandu in a few minutes.
 
I would say the Bark River . It has a thinner blade than the ESEE 5 making it both lighter and thinner at it's edge so it will cut better . It's a little thicker than The Swamp Rat RMD but it has a higher saber grind again making the blade angle better or as good at it's edge . Personally I have always found the edges of Swamp Rat knives too thick . Lastly , both the ESEE and the Swamp Rat are coated blades where as the Bark River is not . Again making it cut better and bind less when battoning or carving .

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HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS !
 



FWIW, the ESEE 5 weights almost 5oz more than the Ratmandu.

The Ratmandu is new/unused. The Esee 5 is a couple years old, and minimally used. I have no issue with the size or weight, I just have other knives that I usually grab out of habit. I actually like the thick blade...but I find it unnecessary at this length. Both are great knives.
You might want to consider the SYKCO 511, as well. The resiprene handles are more comfortable than the RMD or ESEE.
 
I've had all 3.

The ESEE-5 got sold right away. It really felt like a "sharpened prybar" and was aweful when used as a knife (for cutting things).

The Ratmandu is a great knife. It balances well, is light and thin, and very strong. I don't really like the choil, but it doesn't get in the way. It doesn't come with a sheath, so you'll have to make one or have one made.

The Bravo 1 is, by far, the best of the 3. Bark River's A2 is excellent, and even with the thick .020" Bravo 1 blade it cuts like crazy thanks to the convex edge. I've used my Bravo 1s (in A2 and S35VN) for everything you can use a knife for, and it handles batoning, carving, or any other task with ease. It also looks beautiful and is comfortable in use. I don't like leather, so I made my own kydex sheaths for my Bravo 1s. Oh yeah, you can get just about ANYTHING for a handle on a BRKT. I like Canvas or G10 for use, natural materials can expand and contract and break free from their adhesive when exposed to the elements.

Get the Ratmandu if you like coatings and can make your own sheaths, and get the Bravo 1 if you don't mind learning to sharpen a convex edge and like leather.

My current "go to" knife, since I got it a couple of years ago, a Bravo 1 in S35VN:

 
Oh man, all three are great knives for their intended uses. There is no "wrong" answer. The one and only deciding factor is "you". Which one you like. You will not get an overwhelming "this one is the best" here. Why? Because there is no "best". Only best you you. It boils down to how it fits you, how you use it, and steel choice. Barrie's use A2, Essees are 1095, and the Rat is SR101, which is a bad a$$ heat treat on 5160 or 52100, can't remember right this second. All are good, I would give the edge to the SR101 on the Swamp. A2 is NO JOKE though.

I'm probably not giving you "the" answer. That's because it comes down to you and your likes. Any will serve you well.
 
Vegas Blade said:
Oh man, all three are great knives for their intended uses. There is no "wrong" answer. The one and only deciding factor is "you". Which one you like. You will not get an overwhelming "this one is the best" here. Why? Because there is no "best". Only best you you. It boils down to how it fits you, how you use it, and steel choice. Barrie's use A2, Essees are 1095, and the Rat is SR101, which is a bad a$$ heat treat on 5160 or 52100, can't remember right this second. All are good, I would give the edge to the SR101 on the Swamp. A2 is NO JOKE though.

I'm probably not giving you "the" answer. That's because it comes down to you and your likes. Any will serve you well.
Click to expand...

Sr101 is 52100. :)
 
Wow. Thanks for the awesome replies and pics. You guys hit the nail on the head as far as a lot of my concerns. I am concerned the Esee is a little thick, too square of a handle and too similar to a bk2 which I already have. My only concern for the bravo is the convex edge. I use stones and finish on a strop but I am nervious about sharpening a convex edge, especially in the field. As for the ratmandu, I just don't know much about it. It is the only knife of the three that I have not handled and the only steel (sr101) that I have no history with. But the pics do bring me from 6 to 12, lol. As for blade coatings, I prefer non coated but could always strip an Esee or find a ratmandu in satin. Thx for the advice and I will keep reading for more opinions but so far it is already a big help. I am finding myself moving away from the Esee and trying to decide more between the bravo and ratmandu.
 
I have the esee and bravo and on top of what the previous posters have said, the weight and thickness of the esee is manageable, but for me it's all about the blocky handle on the esee. It's just not comfortable to use for extended periods. It's a fine knife and if you go that route you will get a great knife. I have a esee 6 and recontoured the blocky scales (exact same as the 5) and it's better feeling in the hand but still not ideal for extended use. I can't speak for the ratmandu, but the bravo is a great all around knife.
 
I would personally choose a Bark River. You'll learn how to sharpen the convex edge. You have the right approach already.

If I were leaning toward ESEE, I would simply bump up to the ESEE 6 over the ESEE 5 (or go with the BK-7). Yes, the ESEE 5 is much like the BK-2 which I seldom use for much of anything. I find the BK-16 the most handy of them all which takes me to the Ratmandu and steel thickness. That would be your call on that choice as I have no practical experience with it. I will say that you might consider the Fallkniven knives as an option and they do come with a sheath. The F1 is a great knife.
 
For me, the Bravo without a second thought. I don't like Essee and the RMD is a nice knife but I don't like the blade coating or having to provide my own sheath for a knife in that price range. Or waiting. And the Bravo beats the other two in the hand, for me anyways. It is a very comfortable knife.
 
As far as the fallkniven f1 and someone else mentioned the sycko511... I just don't like the cosmetics of the handles. I know its silly and they are great functional knives but at the higher price points, I have to like the cosmetics too. The bk7 is a great knife and I have several beckers but its time to try something new and want to raise the game a little (don't tell the wife, if she ever sells my knives for what I tell her I pay for them... One of you guys will be getting some great deals : ) thx for all the input.
 
I'd pick between the Ratmandu and the Bravo. The ergos on both are great. And they both have a no nonsense warranty (the Esee has same warranty, but you are leaning away from it). I wouldn't hesitate to go with the Bravo because of the convex edge, I recently got a couple of BRKTs and find that maintaining the edges is a breeze.
 
Yup so I have decided against the Esee 5. No offense to Esee, my Esee 3 serves me well. I am leaning towards the bravo but still very undecided and still liking the ratmandu. I should be ok sharpening the bravo at home because on the work bench I can use various strops with various compounds and even use sandpaper on a mousepad if I have to. My concern is sharpening the convex edge in the field. I don't like carrying that stuff and usually only have a small fine stone or a smith's double sided diamond sharpener. Wouldn't using that straighten the edge to a V grind and thus screw up the convexness? Yes I am making up words.
 
tueller said:
As far as the fallkniven f1 and someone else mentioned the sycko511... I just don't like the cosmetics of the handles. I know its silly and they are great functional knives but at the higher price points, I have to like the cosmetics too. The bk7 is a great knife and I have several beckers but its time to try something new and want to raise the game a little (don't tell the wife, if she ever sells my knives for what I tell her I pay for them... One of you guys will be getting some great deals : ) thx for all the input.
Click to expand...

I know what you mean about raising the bar a bit on a new knife over the Beckers. Not much of a bar raise with ESEE actually, but they do have a better sheath and the micarta handles if you like the design.

As far as the handle ergos on the F1.... I don't have one of the less expensive plastic handled ones. I have a micarta handled one. Bark River for a while did a bunch of custom handled F1's. But like you said, these raise the price point considerably. My F1 was one of the more expensive fixed blades I owned to that point. It is a Fallkniven white micarta and the price bothered me... but I handled it and I just couldn't get it out of my mind. It was beautiful for a factory knife!

I recently picked up a Bark River Nomad that is a smaller version of the Blackjack 125. I really like the Blackjack 125 actually and of course Bark River builds them.
 
Use one of those:

image.jpg

Load them with black compound on one side (I'd recommend Dico's black compound since it is so easy to apply) or you can use the new CBN emulsion in maybe 8 micron and a finer one on the other side. You can apply it at home and only bring the strop. Nothing wrong with applying a micro bevel in the field on a convex grind with the tools you have either but don't let the micro bevel become a macro bevel.

Here is a picture of Dico's black emery compound:

image.jpg
 
I own an ESEE 5 and i used it twice !!!! Great knife but it is just to much for my needs....Not sure if you had a chance to hold an Esee 5 but its a big chunk of 1095.. I bought an Esee 3 and its worked out much better for me ...
 
tueller don't worry about sharpening a convex edge. It is very easy. I too was worried since I use a Lansky system for all my knives. I wanted to buy a Bark River Classic Drop Point Hunter but was concerned about the difficulty of maintaining the edge when I only have a Lansky. Well I've used only my strop with black/green compound on each side to keep the Barkie sharp and it is one of the easiest knives I've ever sharpened. Matter of fact, to me, it is the easiest of all my knives to touch up on the strop and takes very little time.

I'm a fan boy of the classic drop point hunter and Bark River's version is quite a knife as all Barkies seem to be.
I'd go with the Barkie were it me. I'm not a fan of coated blades.
 
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