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JK Bushcrafter Review
- Thread starter ChapmanPreferred
- Start date
- Joined
- Oct 7, 2006
- Messages
- 2,437
Hi Pitdog,
I would guess this will answer your question.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=624105
Thanks,
Doug
I would guess this will answer your question.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=624105
Thanks,
Doug
JK Knives Bushcrafter Review.
Thanks to John (Stomper) Ive had the chance to put this JK Handmade Knives Bushcrafter to the test as part of a passaround. :thumbup:
John tells me the steel is O1 and that the handle scales are made from Tulipwood
(this is the first time Ive seen this wood used on a knife handle; I believe it is a type of Poplar
Or Maybe NOT!!!).
There are Red Liners under the scales that look good next to the pinkish hue of the Tulipwood.
Here are the specs as I measured them.
Overall Length: 8-5/16.
Blade Length: 4-1/8.
Handle Length: 4-3/16.
Blade Height: 7/8.
Spine Thickness: .120.
Initial impressions where that I liked the look of the knife.
Overall the fit and finish was very good.
The spear point blade looked right for its intended task as a bushcrafter.
It had an even grind and what I would call a satin belt finish.
The cutting edge had a convex geometry.
The handle was nice and beefy, fully contoured and featured a slight self guard and pinky hook along with a nicely rounded butt.
The scales and liners had very attractive appearance that kicked the overall look of the knife up a notch.
Some might complain that the handle is too short when held in a hammer grip, but I rarely hold a knife that way in use and know from experience that this handle would work fine for me even though I have large hands.
As I handled the knife one thing became apparent, the contours on the sides of the handle did not seem to look well with the way I held the knife.
But knife handles can be deceptive; often what seems odd at first becomes a non-issue in use.
The pouch style sheath is nicely crafted from heavy leather and has a fold over belt loop.
It fit the knife very well; the simple design was well executed.
Out of the box the edge would not slice paper cleanly, but this is a passaround knife so I dont hold that against the maker.
A little time on the Leather Hones (Strops) first with some 2000 grit paper then black and green compound gave me the kind of working edge I like.
Thanks to John (Stomper) Ive had the chance to put this JK Handmade Knives Bushcrafter to the test as part of a passaround. :thumbup:
John tells me the steel is O1 and that the handle scales are made from Tulipwood
(this is the first time Ive seen this wood used on a knife handle; I believe it is a type of Poplar
Or Maybe NOT!!!).
There are Red Liners under the scales that look good next to the pinkish hue of the Tulipwood.
Here are the specs as I measured them.
Overall Length: 8-5/16.
Blade Length: 4-1/8.
Handle Length: 4-3/16.
Blade Height: 7/8.
Spine Thickness: .120.
Initial impressions where that I liked the look of the knife.
Overall the fit and finish was very good.
The spear point blade looked right for its intended task as a bushcrafter.
It had an even grind and what I would call a satin belt finish.
The cutting edge had a convex geometry.
The handle was nice and beefy, fully contoured and featured a slight self guard and pinky hook along with a nicely rounded butt.
The scales and liners had very attractive appearance that kicked the overall look of the knife up a notch.
Some might complain that the handle is too short when held in a hammer grip, but I rarely hold a knife that way in use and know from experience that this handle would work fine for me even though I have large hands.
As I handled the knife one thing became apparent, the contours on the sides of the handle did not seem to look well with the way I held the knife.
But knife handles can be deceptive; often what seems odd at first becomes a non-issue in use.
The pouch style sheath is nicely crafted from heavy leather and has a fold over belt loop.
It fit the knife very well; the simple design was well executed.
Out of the box the edge would not slice paper cleanly, but this is a passaround knife so I dont hold that against the maker.
A little time on the Leather Hones (Strops) first with some 2000 grit paper then black and green compound gave me the kind of working edge I like.
Last edited:
I started out with some testing in my kitchen using this knife on meat and vegetables.
And from there I worked my way out to testing in the woods, using it as I would any knife, giving it chores like whittling, fuzz sticks and some light baton work.
All in all the knife did what I asked of it without complaint and the edge held up well.
In finer cutting tasks the edge geometry seemed a little thick to me for a knife with this blade length, it’s a stout edge that will take abuse with ease.
If this knife was mine I would thin the edge a bit and blend the secondary bevel into the primary grind.
Of course, this is strictly a matter of personal preference, I usually carry a bigger blade that I would employ for baton work of other heavy duty jobs so the trade-off to a thinner (weaker) edge would be worth it to me.
But as I have already stated, the edge as delivered did all I asked of it, and if this was the only knife I was carrying the thicker edge would give me some added confidence.
I also realize that this knife was built as a passaround knife and the maker knew it would see some hard use, this means a thick edge is the safe way to go; I’m sure John would provide a thinner edge if requested.
And from there I worked my way out to testing in the woods, using it as I would any knife, giving it chores like whittling, fuzz sticks and some light baton work.
All in all the knife did what I asked of it without complaint and the edge held up well.
In finer cutting tasks the edge geometry seemed a little thick to me for a knife with this blade length, it’s a stout edge that will take abuse with ease.
If this knife was mine I would thin the edge a bit and blend the secondary bevel into the primary grind.
Of course, this is strictly a matter of personal preference, I usually carry a bigger blade that I would employ for baton work of other heavy duty jobs so the trade-off to a thinner (weaker) edge would be worth it to me.
But as I have already stated, the edge as delivered did all I asked of it, and if this was the only knife I was carrying the thicker edge would give me some added confidence.
I also realize that this knife was built as a passaround knife and the maker knew it would see some hard use, this means a thick edge is the safe way to go; I’m sure John would provide a thinner edge if requested.
The overall shape of the knife is very straight, the spine of the blade and the top of the handle are flat from were the drop point begins to the curvature at the rounded butt.
If find this to be fairly common among bushcraft knives and does facilitate using the centralized point for drilling.
Here are a couple of comparison shots showing the JK Bushcrafter with a Koster and a Bark River (my main bushcraft knife).
I like the look and feel of the curved spine of the Bark River knife, but again that’s strictly a matter of personal preference and I’m not one who does much drilling.
The handle scales are quite ample and fill the hand well.
I like the slight self guard and pinky hook, and found they gave me good reference as to where the knife was in my hand.
Any change that I would make in that regard would be to add a sight finger groove for the index finger thus making the self guard a bit more pronounced, I think this would add to how the knife indexes in the hand; but again this is just personal preference, the handle indexes naturally as it is.
The length of the handle never was an issue for me as I used the knife, in fact the combination of handle length and the wide rounded butt work very well for me when I held the butt in the palm of my hand, a style of grip I often employ.
Now on to those contoured handle slabs; they never did win me over.
They widen at the first pin, just where I like to hold the knife in a pinch grip.
From there they taper in before flaring out again, this is just where I would like more of a swell.
I do have large hands; these contours might work better for someone else, but for me slab sided scales would be preferred to the contouring on this handle.
The bottom line is that this knife did work well,
...and being it is a custom I could easily have John modify his design slightly to meet my needs.
The price on this JK Handmade Knife is only $120,
...and considering the quality of the overall knife and sheath,
...I’d say it is quite bargain. :thumbup:
:thumbup:
"If you're not living on the edge, …you're taking up too much space."
Big Mike
If find this to be fairly common among bushcraft knives and does facilitate using the centralized point for drilling.
Here are a couple of comparison shots showing the JK Bushcrafter with a Koster and a Bark River (my main bushcraft knife).
I like the look and feel of the curved spine of the Bark River knife, but again that’s strictly a matter of personal preference and I’m not one who does much drilling.
The handle scales are quite ample and fill the hand well.
I like the slight self guard and pinky hook, and found they gave me good reference as to where the knife was in my hand.
Any change that I would make in that regard would be to add a sight finger groove for the index finger thus making the self guard a bit more pronounced, I think this would add to how the knife indexes in the hand; but again this is just personal preference, the handle indexes naturally as it is.
The length of the handle never was an issue for me as I used the knife, in fact the combination of handle length and the wide rounded butt work very well for me when I held the butt in the palm of my hand, a style of grip I often employ.
Now on to those contoured handle slabs; they never did win me over.
They widen at the first pin, just where I like to hold the knife in a pinch grip.
From there they taper in before flaring out again, this is just where I would like more of a swell.
I do have large hands; these contours might work better for someone else, but for me slab sided scales would be preferred to the contouring on this handle.
The bottom line is that this knife did work well,
...and being it is a custom I could easily have John modify his design slightly to meet my needs.
The price on this JK Handmade Knife is only $120,
...and considering the quality of the overall knife and sheath,
...I’d say it is quite bargain. :thumbup:
:thumbup:"If you're not living on the edge, …you're taking up too much space."
Big Mike
Great pics!
The Tulipwood on this knife isn't the wood related to Poplar. It's a tropical rosewood which is related to Cocobolo, Indian, Honduran and the famous and rare Brazilian rosewood. It's much harder than Poplar and should hold up well as knife scales. It's also really pretty.
The Tulipwood on this knife isn't the wood related to Poplar. It's a tropical rosewood which is related to Cocobolo, Indian, Honduran and the famous and rare Brazilian rosewood. It's much harder than Poplar and should hold up well as knife scales. It's also really pretty.
- Joined
- Jan 21, 2008
- Messages
- 3,346
as always, great review and pics mike! i am really looking forward to my turn/
I got home from work to find a nice package in my mailbox.
YES!!! The Bushcrafter arrived unscathed from Big Mike.
I've got some report cards to do right now (well, after surfing and reading here for a spell
) so I'll get working on a review in a couple days.
Initial impressions are really good. Great size for lots of chores. Looks great, both sleek and useful. I love the Tulipwood. Sharp (thanks Mike!) and feels solid in my hand. The contour around the first corby bolt feels different. Not sure how it'll feel in use. We'll see... Anyway, I think I'm gonna like it.
YES!!! The Bushcrafter arrived unscathed from Big Mike.
I've got some report cards to do right now (well, after surfing and reading here for a spell
) so I'll get working on a review in a couple days.Initial impressions are really good. Great size for lots of chores. Looks great, both sleek and useful. I love the Tulipwood. Sharp (thanks Mike!) and feels solid in my hand. The contour around the first corby bolt feels different. Not sure how it'll feel in use. We'll see... Anyway, I think I'm gonna like it.
- Joined
- Aug 19, 2007
- Messages
- 39,286
Great pics Mike. I really liked seeing the comparison shots.
Your comments on the handle opened my eyes as well. We all have different size hands and hold things differently. This would make a big difference in how to order a handmade knife.
Thanks again.
Your comments on the handle opened my eyes as well. We all have different size hands and hold things differently. This would make a big difference in how to order a handmade knife.
Thanks again.