KA-BAR make quality knives?

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Razorsharp1986 said:
No way man, I think RAT Cutlery is better!
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Id have to agree. A RAT rc-6 is an about perfect knife. when you throw in the warranty and good folks your supporting theres no better knife out there unless you want to drop the money on a busse or a custom. :thumbup:

I bought a kabar a few months ago and after 1 month of light use it already looked crappy the coating had completley flaked off of the first half inch of the knife, and the factory edge which had come dull was almost worthless. The handle wasnt very comfortablen until i wrapped it with camo wrap.

The sheath was pretty interesting but theres no reason not to have a kydex sheath or a spec-ops combat master or eagle brand style sheath.

Just because a knife was the best back in world war two (which i dont think the kabar was, plenty of soldiers took custom bowies or daggers, and of course the famous randal model 1 military knife.) doesnt mean that its still the best today. technology and progress continue to move along. its been over 60 years and there are much better options available today at nearly the same price point.
 
The OP asked about Kabars quality,not RATs.I'm a 47 year old former Jarhead and have carried many a Kabar,yes,they make good knives.Their Becker line is top notch in my humble opinion and a great value.I'm not knockin RATs,I have several and love them.
 
Buck nighthawk is a better knife for less money in that size range and it's stainless or at least supposed to be. Another option would be a Glock field knife, both are better knives for less money IMHO. Even a LMF II Gerber would be a better option in that price range, although it's shorter. Again, IMHO, people that are big fans of ka-bars often have some nostalgia thing going on...
 
knarfeng said:
Well that was suitably humorous. Doesn't properly sharpen it, then complains about its ability to chop.
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Overall Nos4's destruction test speaks favorably of the D2 Ka-Bar, especially if you continue to watch. It only breaks when he puts the blade in a clamp and bounces up and down on the handle with all his weight.

It ended up outperforming the Chris Reeve Pacific, which costs over three times as much.
 
Beckers are the bomb, and there's a reason USMC's are the standard in combat knives. They have some design flaws but still hold up under rough circumstances and come back asking for more. For a 50 dollar price tag the USMC knife is a damned fine tool and weapon. The Becker line is about as good a value as you can get for outdoors/survival/bushcrafting use.
 
Tony_A said:
The blade is held in place by a single pin driven horizontally through the endcap and tang--no epoxy or anything else. If that pin breaks (from say, pounding with the butt of the knife,) the whole thing falls apart.
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Tony, I challenge you to go out and beat on it till the pin breaks, you better pack a lunch....

I just took an oldie apart to mod the handle and I couldn't do it till I just sawed off the end-cap.
 
Generally the pin doesn't break but the end does break off at the base.I broke a next generation 440 A steel like that.The distruction test that nos did on the 1095 kbar did not help its reputation.I have both of them and I like them but I'm being pulled to the Esee(Rat) side.
 
Nice necro.
I guess this is the debate between people who use knives as knives and knives as crowbars. I use knives as knives.
 
I have three Ka-Bars, and out of all my knives I would take one of those into a situation if I could only have one knife. They can definatley take a beating. I think the blade is more suited for combat, but I have confidence it'll hold up to any outdoor chores. I do prefer the smaller USMC's though.
 
Being and old Marine..........I have 5 ka-bars...2 at the 3/4 size , 1 100yr , 1 P4 (OT) and one of my all time Fav's is a small folder called the "Thorn" a dozier style neat little folder in D2.....
as with any/all production knives there will be some build better then others...
I will keep relying on my Ka-Bar's .....Semper Fi.
 
I have owned two Kabar fixed blades. A short classic kabar which I didnt like due to the grip and a USMC model which held a good edge but rusted in the leather sheath so I let it go. They make good knives for the money and have alot of history behind them.
 
My USMC Ka-Bar 1095 has taken all abuse without flincing. I mange once batoning tree, hit hard piece granite. No visual damage. I used it 12 years batoning like no other. Even as prybar and it never has failed. My only problem is hand guard. You should remove top ones as it intends to press nasty way between thumb and index finger.

i got Becker BK7 too, but its made by Camillus so I can't really say much about that.
 
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