IntheWoods
Banned
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2006
- Messages
- 190
Living out in the woods, I have and use various cutting and chopping tools to tame the great outdoors.
Recently I decided to upgrade my old 1095 Ontario machete beater with some sort of bowie knife that would perform the dual purpose of hacking weeds, branches, discouraging wildlife with attitude problems, cleaning game, etc.
Having had alot of experience with Kabar from service in the Marines, and having had one in one version or the other (all USMC or next gen. varieties) since my service, and never having had one fail to perform, I was naturally drawn to this company for such an all purpose big knife.
I initially thought about the Kabar cutlass machete, but drawing on my experience with the Ontario machete I also wanted something that could perform the dual purposes of a knife if necessary.
Therefore, I saw the Kabar heavy bowie and was immediately drawn to the idea. A heavy knife with the chopping authority of a machete or an axe, with the cutting, slashing, and stabbing ability of a knife. And with a Kraton G handle (once you've used Kraton G, hard to go back to slippery handles).
After setting out to research this knife, I was less than enthused although it looked like a decent design. Almost no reviews about the knife in action. Although I found a few guys that had the knife, said it seemed decent but found the handle too large for medium hands etc. (which mine are). This makes sense because this knife is new, and was just released recently.
But for $39.00 I said what the heck. If nothing else I will just abuse the heck out of it and get something else if it aint worth a dang.
The knife arrived today, and I'm very impressed.
This is no sissy knife. It's all business. No pretty knife here.
The 9" 1085 high carbon, epoxy coated steel blade is thick. Almost 1/4 inch. It tapers to a useful point, but not so much as to make the point weak. Nothing weak about this knife. Hence the beefy kraton G handle molded around the full tang. I find the handle to a very good size, especially for such a large knife. I wouldn't be impressed with a skinny stick handle and the corresponding thin tang, considering the potential use of this knife. It has a sleeve mounted in the rear of the handle for a lanyard, which is a necessary feature in my view. The grip is very good to excellent.
The edge comes shaving sharp at 20 degrees. In fact it's interesting to see how Kabar packages this knife (very securely), since one could seriously hurt themselves taking it out of the box.
It is said in Kabar's ads that this knife was desiged to give a pry bar and a shovel a run for their money, and I have no doubt this is the case. It is thick, so I have every reason to believe that unlike the Ontario machete (1095, and relatively thin blade), chips in the blade are going to be far less likely.
Seriously, I have no doubt if you needed to extract someone from a vehicle, or yourself for that matter, this would be the knife to have. No doubt it would make quick work of a side window, seat belt, plastic debris, seats, etc. This thing chops almost like a short sword, and makes quick work of sapplings, tree branches, arms, legs, pit bull necks, .....you get the idea. Did I mention it's potentially dangerous out here in the woods? You know the old saying, better to be prepared.
Considering a decent sheath/scabard is very important for a knife of this type, I was a little less than enthused about the pictures I saw online.
But I'm here to tell you this sheath is easily the equivalent of the knife itself. Rugged and heavy duty. And repairable. Most of it is heavy, full grain leather, the front covered by cordura with heavy rivets. There are a couple of polymer pieces that appear to be very strong used to attach the sheath to the belt loop (easily replacable if necessary with nothing more than nylon cord, wire, etc.).
One more thing I like about the sheath is it's design. It fully holds the knife in normal handling without the two keepers and snaps near the handle. In fact, the only time I can see someone using these snaps, is possibly if they were engaged in some type of rough and tumble work. This is a nice feature because once this knife is on your belt it's instantly available and easy to draw.
And once drawn one gets the impression of Arnold Swarzenegger taking on the Predator in the movie by the same name, Rambo in first blood, or perhaps the Romans hacking their way through northern Europe. And would probably send Crocodile Dundy packin'. This is no toy.
This knife is intimidating at 14+ inches, and all black. So let's just say wearing it around town probably isn't the best idea, unless necessary.
Some may have a problem since Kabar is getting these knives made in Taiwan. I personally don't have a problem with this, as far as quality is concerned, especially after examing the knife (high quality). Because one of the best folding knives I have in AUS-8 is also made in Taiwan, a Boker/Magnum Kalashnikov AK-74.
For the price this knife is a steal. It's a keeper, and a valued addition to my collection. And if I was on the way to the Amazon, I would feel well equipped with this knife. All for 39 bucks + shipping? Amazing.
I plan to wear it and use it heavily. I have no doubt it's up to the task.
Recently I decided to upgrade my old 1095 Ontario machete beater with some sort of bowie knife that would perform the dual purpose of hacking weeds, branches, discouraging wildlife with attitude problems, cleaning game, etc.
Having had alot of experience with Kabar from service in the Marines, and having had one in one version or the other (all USMC or next gen. varieties) since my service, and never having had one fail to perform, I was naturally drawn to this company for such an all purpose big knife.
I initially thought about the Kabar cutlass machete, but drawing on my experience with the Ontario machete I also wanted something that could perform the dual purposes of a knife if necessary.
Therefore, I saw the Kabar heavy bowie and was immediately drawn to the idea. A heavy knife with the chopping authority of a machete or an axe, with the cutting, slashing, and stabbing ability of a knife. And with a Kraton G handle (once you've used Kraton G, hard to go back to slippery handles).
After setting out to research this knife, I was less than enthused although it looked like a decent design. Almost no reviews about the knife in action. Although I found a few guys that had the knife, said it seemed decent but found the handle too large for medium hands etc. (which mine are). This makes sense because this knife is new, and was just released recently.
But for $39.00 I said what the heck. If nothing else I will just abuse the heck out of it and get something else if it aint worth a dang.
The knife arrived today, and I'm very impressed.
This is no sissy knife. It's all business. No pretty knife here.
The 9" 1085 high carbon, epoxy coated steel blade is thick. Almost 1/4 inch. It tapers to a useful point, but not so much as to make the point weak. Nothing weak about this knife. Hence the beefy kraton G handle molded around the full tang. I find the handle to a very good size, especially for such a large knife. I wouldn't be impressed with a skinny stick handle and the corresponding thin tang, considering the potential use of this knife. It has a sleeve mounted in the rear of the handle for a lanyard, which is a necessary feature in my view. The grip is very good to excellent.
The edge comes shaving sharp at 20 degrees. In fact it's interesting to see how Kabar packages this knife (very securely), since one could seriously hurt themselves taking it out of the box.
It is said in Kabar's ads that this knife was desiged to give a pry bar and a shovel a run for their money, and I have no doubt this is the case. It is thick, so I have every reason to believe that unlike the Ontario machete (1095, and relatively thin blade), chips in the blade are going to be far less likely.
Seriously, I have no doubt if you needed to extract someone from a vehicle, or yourself for that matter, this would be the knife to have. No doubt it would make quick work of a side window, seat belt, plastic debris, seats, etc. This thing chops almost like a short sword, and makes quick work of sapplings, tree branches, arms, legs, pit bull necks, .....you get the idea. Did I mention it's potentially dangerous out here in the woods? You know the old saying, better to be prepared.
Considering a decent sheath/scabard is very important for a knife of this type, I was a little less than enthused about the pictures I saw online.
But I'm here to tell you this sheath is easily the equivalent of the knife itself. Rugged and heavy duty. And repairable. Most of it is heavy, full grain leather, the front covered by cordura with heavy rivets. There are a couple of polymer pieces that appear to be very strong used to attach the sheath to the belt loop (easily replacable if necessary with nothing more than nylon cord, wire, etc.).
One more thing I like about the sheath is it's design. It fully holds the knife in normal handling without the two keepers and snaps near the handle. In fact, the only time I can see someone using these snaps, is possibly if they were engaged in some type of rough and tumble work. This is a nice feature because once this knife is on your belt it's instantly available and easy to draw.
And once drawn one gets the impression of Arnold Swarzenegger taking on the Predator in the movie by the same name, Rambo in first blood, or perhaps the Romans hacking their way through northern Europe. And would probably send Crocodile Dundy packin'. This is no toy.
This knife is intimidating at 14+ inches, and all black. So let's just say wearing it around town probably isn't the best idea, unless necessary.
Some may have a problem since Kabar is getting these knives made in Taiwan. I personally don't have a problem with this, as far as quality is concerned, especially after examing the knife (high quality). Because one of the best folding knives I have in AUS-8 is also made in Taiwan, a Boker/Magnum Kalashnikov AK-74.
For the price this knife is a steal. It's a keeper, and a valued addition to my collection. And if I was on the way to the Amazon, I would feel well equipped with this knife. All for 39 bucks + shipping? Amazing.
I plan to wear it and use it heavily. I have no doubt it's up to the task.
