Ok, here is the deal. Whereismyclock sent me a BK11 that he modded about a month ago, and I've been so busy since then that I haven't had the time it would take to do a proper review.
Well, I had some spare time, and decided to do Whereismyclock justice with something approaching a proper review of the knife he sent me, a comparison of the BK11 to the ZK Archeron, and to show off the liners that he sent me
.
Well first off, on to the main purpose of my post.
I got my ZK Archeron when I got my ZK War Sword a few months back, and have often wondered how it would compare to the BK11 or the BK14 since they are so similar in size. Here is a shot comparing them.
In hand, I find that the Archeron is a bit small for me. Its not so much the length, as the height of the handle that is more of the problem. When in hand, I almost can't keep ahold of it because the handle is so short that when you clench your hand, it is small enough that I hit my fingers to my palm before I feel like I have a secure grip on it.
The BK11's handle is a bit taller, but about the same length. This helps it fill out the palm when compared to the Archeron. Truth be told, I was given the BK11 because clock didn't quite like the choil he put on it. I happen to love it, and it helps me get all my fingers on the knife, and really helps it feel a bit more secure.
I put these blades through a couple of tests to see how they compare.
Batoning. Thats right, batoning, even with these small blades. I know that the BK11 can handle it (its a becker...), but also wanted to know how the archeron would hold up.
I did one smaller piece with the each, then went on to larger ones. This wood was quite dry, so it was actually really easy for both of them. I will say that the archeron hurt more than the BK11 did to baton, and the BK11 did seem to split the wood a bit better.
Don't worry, I went to side of that not, and it did just fine.
BK11 shot, just because.
Here they are with their trophies
Next I tried carving up some quick feathersticks.
Both did just fine with this dry wood, as both were quite sharp (forgot to mention I'd made a point to sharpen them both up, and shred some newspaper before I got started).
Here is the damage they did. The BK11 on the left, and the Archeron on the right.
Now comes the drilling.
The archeron drilled through this board really fast, thanks to its super pointy tip. It also drills smaller holes than the BK11, thanks to that smaller tip. It probably went through the board in roughly a third of the time that it took the BK11.
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I also made a point on a thumb sized stick with both of them (no photos), and found the BK11 much better at this than the archeron. The reason I say that is the previously mentioned smaller handle on the archeron made it hard to put any real pressure on the knife, and made it feel less safe.
I also let me wife give whittling with them a try to see what she thought about them. My reasoning here was that if my hands were to large to work well with the Archeron, maybe my wifes smaller hands would prefer it. Turns out, she also preferred the BK11 to the ZK Archeron, for the same reasons listed above.
All said, I will say that the BK11 wins this comparison review hands down. It really comes down to the ergonomics of the knife. I prefer it even without the choil, but like it even more with it (THANKS CLOCK!). The ZK Archeron is by no means a bad knife, but I feel it is better suited to people with smaller hands, or as a backup blade used soley for small tasks.
Now that review is done, I also wanted to send another shout out to clock for something else he did for me. In addition to the knife in the package I received from him, I also got some red liners for my BK9, and a waterproof match-sized container.
I added the liners to the 9, and it immediately found it more comfortable, plus it looks pretty sweet as well.
And now for my first family shots.
Once again, thanks for the blade clock, I really appreciate it. I'm just sorry it took me so long to get this posted up (wrote 120 pages of papers the last two weeks of the semester, then left town for Christmas and was sick then anyway). Hopefully this helps make up for that.
Cheers!
Well, I had some spare time, and decided to do Whereismyclock justice with something approaching a proper review of the knife he sent me, a comparison of the BK11 to the ZK Archeron, and to show off the liners that he sent me
.Well first off, on to the main purpose of my post.
I got my ZK Archeron when I got my ZK War Sword a few months back, and have often wondered how it would compare to the BK11 or the BK14 since they are so similar in size. Here is a shot comparing them.
In hand, I find that the Archeron is a bit small for me. Its not so much the length, as the height of the handle that is more of the problem. When in hand, I almost can't keep ahold of it because the handle is so short that when you clench your hand, it is small enough that I hit my fingers to my palm before I feel like I have a secure grip on it.
The BK11's handle is a bit taller, but about the same length. This helps it fill out the palm when compared to the Archeron. Truth be told, I was given the BK11 because clock didn't quite like the choil he put on it. I happen to love it, and it helps me get all my fingers on the knife, and really helps it feel a bit more secure.
I put these blades through a couple of tests to see how they compare.
Batoning. Thats right, batoning, even with these small blades. I know that the BK11 can handle it (its a becker...), but also wanted to know how the archeron would hold up.
I did one smaller piece with the each, then went on to larger ones. This wood was quite dry, so it was actually really easy for both of them. I will say that the archeron hurt more than the BK11 did to baton, and the BK11 did seem to split the wood a bit better.
Don't worry, I went to side of that not, and it did just fine.
BK11 shot, just because.
Here they are with their trophies
Next I tried carving up some quick feathersticks.
Both did just fine with this dry wood, as both were quite sharp (forgot to mention I'd made a point to sharpen them both up, and shred some newspaper before I got started).
Here is the damage they did. The BK11 on the left, and the Archeron on the right.
Now comes the drilling.
The archeron drilled through this board really fast, thanks to its super pointy tip. It also drills smaller holes than the BK11, thanks to that smaller tip. It probably went through the board in roughly a third of the time that it took the BK11.
I also made a point on a thumb sized stick with both of them (no photos), and found the BK11 much better at this than the archeron. The reason I say that is the previously mentioned smaller handle on the archeron made it hard to put any real pressure on the knife, and made it feel less safe.
I also let me wife give whittling with them a try to see what she thought about them. My reasoning here was that if my hands were to large to work well with the Archeron, maybe my wifes smaller hands would prefer it. Turns out, she also preferred the BK11 to the ZK Archeron, for the same reasons listed above.
All said, I will say that the BK11 wins this comparison review hands down. It really comes down to the ergonomics of the knife. I prefer it even without the choil, but like it even more with it (THANKS CLOCK
!). The ZK Archeron is by no means a bad knife, but I feel it is better suited to people with smaller hands, or as a backup blade used soley for small tasks.Now that review is done, I also wanted to send another shout out to clock for something else he did for me. In addition to the knife in the package I received from him, I also got some red liners for my BK9, and a waterproof match-sized container.
I added the liners to the 9, and it immediately found it more comfortable, plus it looks pretty sweet as well.
And now for my first family shots
.
Once again, thanks for the blade clock, I really appreciate it. I'm just sorry it took me so long to get this posted up (wrote 120 pages of papers the last two weeks of the semester, then left town for Christmas and was sick then anyway). Hopefully this helps make up for that.
Cheers!
