I don't buy this "Beckers are cheap" crap...

Beckers are the right price for me but may not be for everybody. I'm happy paying $70 for a sturdy fixed blade.
 
For me, beckers hit a sweet spot for price and utility. They're inexpensive enough that I don't expect an ideal sheath or handle. I'm not unhappy modding the handle for a better grip, if that strikes me. I'm going to make my own kydex sheath anyway, so I don't want to pay extra for a really nice sheath. I do want something I can drop the blade into, until I make something more to my liking.

The price is again just right that I feel comfortable modding the blade itself. If I'm paying $150+ for a knife, I expect to use it in the original configuration, and that it will work well for me. So I hesitate buying more expensive blades; none of them look ideal. With a becker, I know I'm going to strip it and file down a firesteel striking surface. And if I do something particularly stupid, replacing the blade isn't difficult.

I think my attitude towards knife modding has changed significantly, because of my becker purchases. Beckers are a gateway drug to modding.
 
For the quality you get, Beckers are a bargain. I was all set to pay $100 for a folder when I stumbled upon the Throne Room for the King.

For under $100 I'm amazed and continue to be amazed.

I can see where the OP was going with the thread - I expected a ref to how the knives are so good for their price you end buying more and more and more of them which CAN get expensive. (In a good way ;) )
 
quality, value, price

that's nice

no wait, that's furniture :D
 
I wouldn't worry about the local know -it -alls, chances are they have no experience with using a BK knife and don't know what they're missing. If ignorance was bliss theyed be rich and would buy a Becker or 12.
For me its about price and quality if BK prices go up I would still be saving money compared to the other knives on the market and would still be purchasing the top quality product for my budget. I don't need all the fancy I saw it on Tv killing zombies and costing 7 times as much knives, I need a knife that's going keep performing no matter what I'm using it for and you get that in Becker knives.
Sorry for rambling.
God Bless
Tracy
 
My BK16 is a well made, durable, well priced "tool". If I break it I replace it and don't spend all day crying over the loss and cost of replacement. I'd not act this way with a $300.00 blade...I'd leave it at home hence I don't own one but do own my 16 and use it as often as possible.
 
You can pay a LOT more for a knife & not get a better knife, than a BK&T. So, knowing you could pay more & not get more, is why most of us own BK&T products. :D
 
I really like my BK16 but is it in the same league as my customs or Swamp Rats no it is not, then again its not meant to be. IMO Beckers are HIGH VALUE outdoor fixed blades. As far as over all fit and finish, warranty, and sheaths I don't think the Beckers are in the same class as the ESEE knives are either.

Just because someone says a Becker is a good value doesn't in anyway mean they are saying they are cheap, in my eyes those are two totally different things.
 
I probably miss the point here, but I wanted to mention that money is just paper, guys. I'm not a millionaire, but I just don't care for the price when I buy a knife. If Beckers were twice as much, I'd still buy them, because they are just awesome and I like them so much more than others. Ok, that's probably just me, Kabar :)
 
Just to put my two cents into this. Ethan and I were sitting by the fire last night discussing pretty much this topic. We were talking about what a vast array of people and backgrounds that came to the gatherings. There are doctors, professors, engineers, laborers, machinist, active and retired military, active duty police, fire, ems, students, authors and the list goes on. Ethan said that he really liked that all different types liked the Becker knives due to the quality, design and affordability (I really like that term better than bargain, cheap etc.). Also where else are you able to put out a "I am unhappy with this BK-XX." on an internet forum and get a response from the man who designed it asking what the issue is and can he do anything to help. The reason I bought the first of many Beckers was that I met Ethan one day while looking at knives (when Sam worked at the shop) and we talked for about an hour about them. You could tell he was passionate about the knives he designed and quality means a lot to him. Affordability is just a bonus and means I have money left over to get knives for my boys too.

The point I am trying to make is they are well made quality knives that are affordable by anyone that enjoys real working knives. If you want to baton with your Tops, go ahead but I wont and I bet you would pull out your 2, 9 or 10.

Thanks and have a good day.
Hawk.
 
Hawk590 said:
The point I am trying to make is they are well made quality knives that are affordable by anyone that enjoys real working knives. If you want to baton with your Tops, go ahead but I wont and I bet you would pull out your 2, 9 or 10.

Hawk.
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No doubt about it, my Beckers are my workhorses and my favorite knife brand, not because they cost less but because I enjoy using them more and it is a rarity for them to be outperformed by another 1095 knife. The fact that Ethan Becker personally responds to messages and meets with you Beckerheads says volumes about the company...and it shows that some people still know how to treat their customers. So far in my experience, Dillon Reloading and Becker Knives have the best customer service I have ever experienced. When I say "customer service" I basically mean they are very nice when I call to ask questions about their products, because I haven't had a Becker or a Dillon break yet....but it's nice to know if they do I will be taken care of.
 
Inexpensive is a better word than cheap. Cheap implies low quality. Just sayin'

I tend to disagree with the premise as well. Beckers are substantially cheaper than ESEE, and sure, if you want to buy someone else's custom work to make your Becker your own, you will indeed pay a premium. But modding is a time-honored tradition among Beckerheads. I'm not fond of micarta, or the ergos of ESEE, for that matter. And if you don't like the package that an ESEE comes in, you're going to be spending a lot more to make it your own than you will to get a Becker to where you want it. And you get a perfectly functional knife even if you don't mod it. The handles aren't elegant, perhaps, but they do the job.

So yes, if I want to buy someone else's micarta, and someone else's kydex sheath, I'll end up paying the same amount as an ESEE. But I'm going to have a better quality sheath, for one. And if I am reasonably handy, and make my own scales and sheath, I'll pay considerably less than an ESEE when all is said and done, and I'll have a product that's far more to my liking.

Not to mention, I just can't fathom how people can whine about the sheath for a Becker, and then happily turn around and buy a Busse.

Beckers are inexpensive. You just can't get around the facts. CUSTOM work to upgrade your Becker may be more expensive, but it's not necessary, you don't get any more function out of it, and the argument only applies if you think that ESEE's handle scales and sheaths are the cat's meow. Me, I'll take a Godspeed, Azwelke, or 710 sheath over a stock ESEE sheath any day. And that's not even getting into leather... And it applies even less if you make your own modifications. I can outfit a BK9 with stabilized wood scales and mosaic pins, fitted water resistant leather sheath, and modified grind, for far less than the price of anything else competitive on the market. For that matter, it's only barely cheaper for me to buy my own steel and have it professionally heat treated.

We buy Beckers for the value, the community, and the fact that you get a great knife that you can make your own in a way that no other knife company seems to come close to.
 
I love my Beckers, and I also like ESEE.
They use very similar steel, and heat treatment. The factory edges on my Beckers weren't noticeably different than my ESEE.
I suppose the coating on my ESEE is a little tougher than on my Beckers, but in the end it wears off during hard use anyways.
The ESEE does come with "blocky" micarta scales, and kydex sheath, which I promptly ditched for my own custom scales, and kydex sheath.
I also ditched the Grivory handles on my Beckers, but I felt less guilty than when I ditched the Micarta from the ESEE.

In the end the only thing that I feel is much better with my ESEE is the warranty.
But that being said, I'm pretty sure Kabar has some type of warranty, plus they're a bit more affordable.

Not much for major differences between ESEE, or Becker knives.
I have no idea how anyone can say that ESEE is in a whole other class than BK&T.:confused:

Someone must have watched the youtube video of the idiot beating an ESEE-5 into a BK2.:rolleyes:
 
Found a quote from Ethan from 2003 discussing the price point of Beckers and wanted to share:

"Thank you too for the kind words about our quality... I am very proud to think that in Tac knives that we are one hell of a value.
I used to be quite a Cognac snob(maybe I still am) and Cognac taught me some interesting lessons...one is that above a certain level there is no clear best. My old favorite was about fifty bucks a bottle and to my pallette there was no clear better until you got above a hundred and a half. Even then the Delamain was right in there....sooo I like to think we are the Delamain pale and dry of the tactical knife world...a damn comfortable place ... that is some FINE booze. Thanks for giving me a chance to toot the horn and beat the chest a bit.... I am really proud of the Knives that Camillus makes from my designs!!
 
acerpower said:
I have no idea how anyone can say that ESEE is in a whole other class than BK&T.:confused:
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In terms of comfort in hand, I think they definitely are... but not in the way the fine folks at ESEE would probably hope. At the risk of getting too snarky, I'll just say that "barely knocking the corners off" a slab of roughly-finished micarta does not count as building a proper handle in my book.
 
james terrio said:
In terms of comfort in hand, I think they definitely are... but not in the way the fine folks at ESEE would probably hope. At the risk of getting too snarky, I'll just say that "barely knocking the corners off" a slab of roughly-finished micarta does not count as building a proper handle in my book.
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I am with you 100% on this. I love everything about Esee....except how their knives feel in my hand. The first time I picked up an Esee 4 I held it for about 1.5 seconds, set it back on the table and haven't looked at an Esee since with the exception of the Izzy 2
 
Doc8404 said:
I am with you 100% on this. I love everything about Esee....except how their knives feel in my hand...
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And quite honestly that's one of the first things I look for in a knife. Even the super-duperest steel and awesomest edge geometry ever don't mean squat if I hate using the thing because it feels like a brick and gives me hot-spots or blisters. On the other hand, a great handle and good balance will make me want to use a knife, even if I have to sharpen it more often or tweak the grind/edge to suit my purposes.

I'm not out to bash any particular company. But I will point out that I think the handles are a huge reason for the Becker line's success. Many, many people find them very comfortable and secure right out of the box. Yet they're also efficient to manufacture and assemble (keeping costs down, I presume), and easy to replace if one chooses. For a guy like me that finds them a bit short, it's actually not much work at all to modify the tang a bit for more wiggle-room, while keeping the basic shape.

I don't think that's an accident. In fact, I'm beginning to think Ethan knew exactly what he was doing when he designed them :D
 
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