Is Bark River Slipping?

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PsYCHoT|K

Joined
Mar 10, 2012
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Hello knife people,

Please, before anyone throws stones, understand that this is an honest inquiry and not an unfair criticism or a bashing. I have a Bark River Bravo 1 that is one of my all-time favorite knives. I am wondering, though, if I simply had a rare experience or if things at Bark River are changing. I purchased an Aurora LT recently and was pretty disappointed when it arrived. It had rust on the tang (not a huge deal, honestly, but not exactly a plus), and the scales were not finished properly (there were still sharp lines as if it was sanded with rushing being the priority over quality — my Bravo 1 scales display no such similarities). Overall, there were other minor things as well, and that just made it feel as if I just payed full price for a "used" knife (having personally purchased used knives in better condition). Now, bad knives slip through the cracks, let's be realistic here; I understand that, and I'm not all that offended or upset about it. I returned the knife, hassle free, for a full refund and the overall experience with the company was very pleasant. I also feel bad if anyone gets the impression that I am throwing Bark River under the bus because that is most certainly not my intention, and I apologize to Mike Stewart, and Bark River as a collection of people, if he or they feel that this post is out of line.

Is there anyone who could please chime in who has purchased Bark River knives recently and let me know if my experience is an aberration or if there is a trend? I purchased my Bravo 1 about 2 years ago, and as I stated, it is excellent quality. I also owned a Gunny about 4 years ago that I unfortunately had to sell after I lost a job, and the Gunny was absolutely exceptional quality. Any feedback is appreciated, and if this post is inappropriate please feel free to delete it. Thank you.
 
I have had Bark River knives with all the issues you mention. I think you'll find that Bark River has had lemons get out there for any time period you research, so it's good to use a retailer that will let you exchange it if you're not satisfied.

You are not going to determine from a forum thread whether this is a trend or not, as there are many flaws in this approach (low n, sample bias, no reliable time sequence, self-reported, confirmation bias, etc).
 
Thank you for your response. I'm really wanting to get the Bark River Gunny Vortex, but I'm incredibly worried that I will get a "First Production Run" knife that is very sub-par in quality. *Sigh*, I guess I'll wait a few months to find out how the first run of those are, quality-wise, but if I know myself, what that means is that I'll get impatient and buy a different knife—LT Wright?
 
Search the GB&U forum for Bark River or its owner Mike Stewart, that will give you an idea of quality over the years.
 
My latest Bark River is one of their newest models (mini-Aurora) and less than a month out of dealer inventory. It has no issues at all. It's a First Production knife. It came in perfect condition. I've been buying Bark River knives for about 4 years now (around 15 so far) and I've never had an issue with any of their knives that I've bought. Only one Nothstar EDC that I traded for had any kind of problem. That was a wood handle scale that had separated from the tang in one spot.

I don't have any concern about buying from Bark River. If they make something I like, I order it. Never been disappointed so far.
 
I think all manufacturers produce sub standard knives at times. I think that we knife buyers become more discriminating as we buy more of a particular brand. The last knife made by Bark River that I purchased was a Nomad and it was quite nicely finished.
 
Thanks for the help everyone, I do appreciate it. While I try to figure out what to do (what knife to purchase), I'm going to play with my Bravo 1 for a while =]
 
Bark River makes something like 35,000 hand-finished blades a year. There are going to be lemons here and there that escape the QC process. Bark River will gladly fix any problems if you have them and aren't a complete jackass when you contact them about it. In my experience watching Mike Stewart fix issues on a Facebook group, he's happy to fix his knives if there's a problem, but like any other man on earth (especially a crusty old Yooper) if you're a dick to him he'll give back the same.

That said, I've purchased five Bark River-made knives in the last year and examined fifteen or sixteen in person (including Blackjack and Ambush knives). All of them were very nice blades with perfect fit and finish. Of the five I've purchased, I've used the crap out of them and have been nothing but impressed. I bought a Bravo 1 yesterday in fact and looked at three of them in black, green, and antique ivory micartas, along with a Bravo 2 and a Blackjack 14-7. I bought the one Bravo 1 in green canvas, but had a really hard time choosing between them all. All of them had perfect convex grinds and the handles were comfortable, rounded, and good looking. There were tiny variations in heights of the grinds and shape of the handles on the three Bravo 1's because they are in fact hand-finished, which is one of the reasons I've been buying BR knives lately. I've had no issues whatsoever with mine.
 
wasatchdan, that is very helpful. I think I'll start looking around and give Bark River another go. If it's from Knivesshipfree or DLT, the customer service is excellent and I have nothing really to fear. I just wanted to get some sort of idea before I make the plunge.
 
One bad knife does not a bad company make. Reminds me of the recent thread where a guy got a bad military and claimed the whole company was slipping. Lemons get through. Address the issue with your dealer or the company.
 
PsYCHoT|K said:
wasatchdan, that is very helpful. I think I'll start looking around and give Bark River another go. If it's from Knivesshipfree or DLT, the customer service is excellent and I have nothing really to fear. I just wanted to get some sort of idea before I make the plunge.
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I only have experience with DLT so far, but I've found them to be a class outfit. I usually buy my micarta-handled Bark Rivers from Blade HQ since I live only twenty minutes away and can actually fondle the knives before I buy. Plus they're nice people. They've got a cute, blue-eyed redhead with a southern accent working there that knows her blades and loves to talk about them, so there's one good reason to show up and by from them.:D I need to buy one or two from Knivesshipfree at some point. Derek seems like a great guy and I'd like to support him too.
 
I've bought three Bark River Knives in the past few years and had no problems with almost perfect fit and finish. That is except for the one that was essentially my fault that the warranty covered no questions asked.
 
wasatchdan, that sounds like a sweet setup (having actual blades you can check out before buying them)!

Also, after playing with my Bravo 1 for a day, the Bark River bug is starting to bite. If I could guarantee that my next Bark River knife will be the same quality as my Bravo 1, I would purchase one tonight! Being that I don't have that level of confidence quite yet, I'll pick out the knife I want and make the nice people at DLT or KSF check the blade out for me before I purchase it =]
 
Sounds like your knife was sitting in inventory for a while before you bought it, probably accounting for the rust. With as many knives are Bark river makes its not surprising that a few lemons slip through, it happens to every company out there.

I'd either do an exchange or send it into BRK for a tune up, Mike Stewart is great about fixing things up for customers (see the facebook group for examples). I've seen issues people have had with them, but I've heard far more great experiences than bad with Bark river, I've had nothing but great experiences personally as well.
 
A clinker coming out of BRK indicates no change in the quality of knives coming out of their shop. They have a long and documented history of individual bad pieces coming out, bad sheaths coming from their (I believe) former sheath maker, as well as entire models whose design didn't work, cuasing the knives to fail.

Now, that said, if Mike Stewart decides your clinker is not caused by your user error, he will fix it.

Some people think that is great customer service, some dont. That's your call.

As for rust, and where and when that happened, I believe that BRK does not have inventory. BRK's dealers have the inventory. Everything BRK makes is "on demand" from its retailers, if I recall how their model works.
 
PsYCHoT|K said:
It had rust on the tang (not a huge deal, honestly, but not exactly a plus), and the scales were not finished properly (there were still sharp lines as if it was sanded with rushing being the priority over quality.
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As someone who has handled many thousands of them over the years...

The two issues you referenced happen from time to time. If a knife spends too much time on a dealer's shelf and they missed a spot with oil, rust happens. Usually the issues with scales come from less stable materials (i.e. natural or the boutique micartas) that have some movement. They are smooth and nice when they leave the shop, but in changing conditions they may expand or contract as they settle out.

Bark River can always take care of those things or (as you experienced) your dealer will help.

As to the overall direction of the quality of BRK knives... They keep getting better and better. I have never seen them more consistently excellent than they are right now.

Like people said, everyone has a few slip by, but it is very impressive the number of hand finished knives they put out at the level of quality they do. My hat is off to them.
 
PsYCHoT|K said:
wasatchdan, that is very helpful. I think I'll start looking around and give Bark River another go. If it's from Knivesshipfree or DLT, the customer service is excellent and I have nothing really to fear. I just wanted to get some sort of idea before I make the plunge.
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You should definitely feel confident to give Bark River "another go" They have an amazing warranty. I have heard some great stories from people that have experienced Bark River Warranty. They are often pleasantly surprised. Bark River wants you to be thrilled to own their product and have confidence in it. Also, as mentioned previously, we would be happy to inspect a purchase or help you handle a warranty. I have handled many and I'm always excited and impressed at how much knife you get for the price.
 
"As to the overall direction of the quality of BRK knives... They keep getting better and better. I have never seen them more consistently excellent than they are right now."

Hey Derrick, did anyone ever tell you that you might be good in sales? ;) I think your vote of confidence (you made a pretty confident statement) seals the deal for me. Any word yet on how the first run of Gunny Vortex's are? They look great in the pictures!
 
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