KA-BAR BK 10 or BK2 - help with deciding

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pilotranger

Joined
Dec 4, 2013
Messages
9
Hi guys,
I'm new to BladeForums and looking to get my first Ka-Bar knife for camping/outdoors/survival. I know after doing some research and reading some of the reviews the BK 2 and BK 10 are very similar knives with the main difference being the blade width of the two (BK2 is .25 inch and BK10 is .18 inch). I will use this knife for general purpose use, camping, bushcrafting, cutting, chopping, etc. Will the BK10 with it's thinner width withstand the abuse I'll be putting the knife through or should I get the thicker blade?


THanks,
pilotranger
 
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the ramp on the BK10 is kinda painful for delicate tasks
the weight is only a couple ounces and is not that big of a deal.
both would sustain anything you should throw at it
i would go for the BK2
hope that helps!
Thomas
 
Thanks for the feedback!


TheSnakeman said:
the ramp on the BK10 is kinda painful for delicate tasks
the weight is only a couple ounces and is not that big of a deal.
both would sustain anything you should throw at it
i would go for the BK2
hope that helps!
Thomas
Click to expand...
 
Having owned both (several of both), I'd go with the BK10. The ramp can always be filed off, if you don't like it, but the BK10 is a fantastic all-purpose camping knife design.
 
I have a BK2 and while it is a great knife, I found it cumbersome. If you really need 1/4" of steel, then get it, but I can't think of many situations I'd be in where I'd really need that much steel. It is a beast of a knife and can handle pretty much anything, but when I was using it, I was wishing it wasn't so thick/heavy.
 
The BK-2 and BK-10 are both too short for effective chopping with a knife. Certainly the weight and increased strength the extra steel provides would make the BK-2 a better chopper. But in my opinion, it's still too short. If you like this size or design in general, I would choose the BK-10 as a general purpose woods blade. But, I prefer the BK-16/BK-17 for this purpose.

Think in terms of two knives for the woods.....

If you are set on getting a chopper knife, consider the BK-9 or if you want something a little shorter, the BK-7 (both with 0.188" bar steel). An alternative is to get a short machete that you like as your chopper. Kabar makes the Cutlass Machete which is more of a big knife than machete. Or my preference is the Condor Pack Golok or Village Parang.
 
BK10 is the better performer of the two for cutting tasks being that it's thinner. Neither will chop worth a darn. If you want to chop you need a BK9. It Does everything well.
 
There are too many variables to give a simple answer to your question bud. I suggest watching videos\reviews on youtube of the knives mentioned. Beckers are as tough as any, tougher than many, knives out there. But they are still knives, not hatchets. Some have no use for the 2 because it's on the heavy side for its size, and it is. But I carried one most of a summer and fall one year and often forgot that it was on until I bent down and it bumped the ground. One big plus of the 2 is that you can baton the crap out of it with pretty much zero worry of it breaking (battoning with wood, not a rock or whatever). A sweet Becker is the 16. If a guy treats the 16 with some common sense and doesn't beat the crap out of it like a Neanderthal, it should do all that is asked of it. A 16 ,a Bahco or Silky folding saw and a decent hatchet could do most of what a fellow needs done outdoors. But of course I am semi irrational with outdoor cutting tools and just enjoy using them for the hell of it. So I carry\use all kinds of knives etc. Hell, a machete can be great fun out there.
 
I agree that the 16 and 9 would be a better choice than just the 2 or the 10. As for the 10 vs 2, the 2 is a better chopper and better for batoning, but the 10 is better for most other work. It's a tough call, as both knives will get the job done, but personally I prefer using the 10 for most tasks, so I would choose the 10. The 2 is a good chopper for its length, but it's still only a 5" knife, so I wouldn't buy it for that reason--a 9 would out-chop it by a lot. The 10 just feels better to me.
 
Thanks for all the feedback. I ended up purchasing the BK10 for it's all around functionality. I agree with everyone the BK 2 is probably a better chopper and for batoning, but the 10 is a better slicer, but can also do some light chopping/batoning as well. Just got the BK 10 in the mail today and ordered from Amazon. Super fast delivery!! :)
 
nice choice I have both and I like them both!! if the world was ending and I had too grab 1 knife and co it would be the bk2 for its thickness it should last forever. but for everything else its the bk10!
 
I have both and they both are great. I reLly like the 10 for primitive fires as the blade point is center line of the handle which makes it great for making pivots for bow drills. Also the thinner blade makes it great for food prep. It can baton well too so you won't be dissapointed. Next step for you is to buy the 2
 
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