My BK9 Chipped Out...with pics

I think you've got a good grip on what happened mook. Glad you're here and thanks for the post. You just got a taste of why everybody loves these knives.
 
Well you are right, I probably didn't NEED to split the logs to get the fire started again. It's more that I just wanted to. I guess I just enjoy just the feel of my Beckers in my hand and take every opportunity to use them, and yes sometimes even MAKE opportunities to use them...just 'cause I like it. There probably are more specialized tools better suited to each particular outdoor task, but I like the idea of one tough tool that you know like the back of your hand, combined with good skills which can allow you to be sufficient at most if not all outdoors tasks. Guess I'm just lacking in the skills department. I do take your point and intend to be more selective of tasks in the future.
 
Hey Mooks....

Please oh PLEASE, let us NOT talk about a certain hungry, tired and frustrated knife designer using a small sledge to baton his way thru a chunk of desert juniper one fine evening......I was LUCKIER than you....softer steel too...........What you most likely got out of this and helped a bunch of other people get their thoughts sorted out about is when you ARE in an Oh F%&k oh dear what are we ever gonna do NOW situation. is use the gear but, use it with care..... One of the smartest people I have ever known Dr. Mel "Kevlar" Otten says often "Technology will ALWAYS fail you----it is just a matter of when...........Words that echo around the old cranium from time to time and never sound dumb......Sometimes the club wears out first !!!!!!!......Anyhoooo......Tooj' s email is pault@ka-bar.com......I just tried to reach him and he is not in yet......We will get you fixed up !!!!

All Best....

ethan
 
Mooks100,

Your post has not fallen on deaf ears. The break has most likely occurred because of a knot. It seems that knots are a place where some very hard mineral deposits tend to migrate. Some of these deposits have hardnesses in the ceramic hardness range. We have had posts in the past concerning them. A hard lesson learned. Having said all of this doesn't make your blade repair itself.
KA-BAR will take care of this. Because you are in OZ Land, please give me a day or two to figure out how we will proceed. Overseas transactions are trickier to deal with and our foreign accounts lady; Carole, is out today.
Please e-mail me at: pault@ka-bar.com. I need to know where you purchased the knife, your name and address, etc.
We'll take care of you.

Best Regards,

Paul Tsujimoto
Sr Eng
Prod Dev and Qual
KA-BAR Knives
 
Mooks100 said:
IMG_0267.jpg
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That will buff right out !!! no worries :D

Cold??? I wouldn't consider (5-10c) 40-50 degrees fahrenheit cold especially cold enough to do this kind of damage..

odd
 
Mooks100,

Sorry for the second post but I wanted to get the replacement action moving and revisit for a better explaination on the fracture.
The Guyon is correct. You were attempting to baton around the curved section of the knot. Being wedged between a very hard (Harder than the steel) knot and a vice grip of slightly softer wood, the blade edge was trying to curve around the knot while the batoning motion was trying to drive the blade downward into the knot. Part of the blade went around the knot and the rest of the blade when straight. Note the angled frature face on the blade.
In Metalurgical terms: A lateral Stress fracture of a transcrystalline nature. In laymen's terms: It done broke!
Right now you are sadder but wiser. We will work to get rid of the saddness.
Hope this helps.

Best Regards,

Paul Tsujimoto
Sr Eng
Prod Dev and Qual
KA-BAR Knives
 
Great to see the excellent Becker Kabar customer service still live and kicking, I'm sure Mooks will be well taken care of.

Jose Diaz, a certified BladeSports International cutter and Instructor, came down to Australia some time last year. No matter what anyone thinks of the actual idea of BladeSports, Jose did specifically mention that the woods in Australia were significantly harder than those in the US during his stay. And these were just regular pinewood 2x4s he was testing. Can't imagine how hard wood up in the Bunya Mtns early in the morning must be...
 
Mooks, sorry about the busted blade. The topic of battoning always stirs the pot a little, don't be dismayed, or swayed toward anything but common sense and smart tactics. I have never "needed" to baton, and yet do use the techniques now and again to have in my mental tool box. I do much more often whittle some wood wedges and use them, as they are durable, disposable, and plentiful, and usually pop the wood open just fine. That said I have baton split seasoned red oak stove wood with a Mora with no ill effects, so it is not as if it's kryptonite for blades. But I avoid knots no matter what tool I am using whenever possible, they're just mean and ill natured.
 
Those are some nasty chips that appear to have been caused my some hard chopping AND twisting. While this damage might surprise some, I am not shocked in the slightest. The BK 9 is a fine piece of cutlery and should work as a serviceable tool for many years. It is NOT an axe. Avail yourself of a Gilpin, Keech or better still a Trojan Blue...all available in your neck of the woods if you'll do your homework.
 
wow, that's painful to see. i've beaten the crap outta my ex bk-9 (it's gonadz' knife now) through plenty of iron wood and not a single problem. a lesser quality knife would've easily snapped in half at that point. nice to see the bk-9 can take a beating and still leave you with a very usable blade in a survival situation.
 
JV3 said:
wow, that's painful to see. i've beaten the crap outta my ex bk-9 (it's gonadz' knife now) through plenty of iron wood and not a single problem. a lesser quality knife would've easily snapped in half at that point. nice to see the bk-9 can take a beating and still leave you with a very usable blade in a survival situation.
Click to expand...

That's a good point JV3, a very good point indeed. Good call.

Moose
 
I learned a lot of axe techniques, but know very few large knife techniques for splitting wood. That being said, I know 'of' a lot of things, but haven't really 'tried' a lot of these things. (but I'm workin on it) One thing I've heard also is before you use a blade (though it was in reference to an axe, the same rules apply) Sleep on it (or with it near your body heat) cold steel turns brittle.

I found batoning with a large knife is great once you split the log a few times and it gets too small to work easily with an axe. Like the stuff that is after kindeling, but before anything of size can be burned. I'm pretty sure the idea of batoning is that the driest wood is in the center of a log, even if the outside is wet. The triangle shape of the splits is also going to burn better than the round shape of natural sticks. So in a survival situation where you've got 1 match or limited light, or have spent an hour with a bow and spindle to make a friction fire, you want the best chance you can get to catch the wood before the tinder goes out. My plan is both, axe and knife. Downside is the weight of the 2 tools as opposed to just 1.

In other news, my 9 and 2 aren't here yet. But I can say I have no second guessing about buying from a company that shows such dedication to it's customers and the pursuit of knife excellence. It really is impressive on a whole nother level. If I weren't so broke, I'd get another BK&T to celebrate... Sadly I just spent my food money on the 2 and 9, so... :)
 
I'm with Bladelite on this issue. In all my years of backpacking and camping, it just made more sense to drag a log into the fire instead of cutting. Only once could I have used a baton to cut through wet wood, but didn't even have a knife. That was a cold night of camping.

And by the way, Mooks100, those chips will polish out, they're tiny little dings, just kidding! If/when I ever have to baton my knife through hardwoods, I will be "slicing" from the edge not "splitting" through the middle of a log. Never know when a knot, rock, or other object is inside the wood.
 
foxx said:
I'm with Bladelite on this issue. In all my years of backpacking and camping, it just made more sense to drag a log into the fire instead of cutting. Only once could I have used a baton to cut through wet wood, but didn't even have a knife. That was a cold night of camping.
Click to expand...

+1. I'm a big fan of drag and burn. I only baton (a) for funsies, or (b) to make some initial kindling.
 
Toooj said:
Mooks100,

Your post has not fallen on deaf ears. The break has most likely occurred because of a knot. It seems that knots are a place where some very hard mineral deposits tend to migrate. Some of these deposits have hardnesses in the ceramic hardness range. We have had posts in the past concerning them. A hard lesson learned. Having said all of this doesn't make your blade repair itself.
KA-BAR will take care of this. Because you are in OZ Land, please give me a day or two to figure out how we will proceed. Overseas transactions are trickier to deal with and our foreign accounts lady; Carole, is out today.
Please e-mail me at: pault@ka-bar.com. I need to know where you purchased the knife, your name and address, etc.
We'll take care of you.

Best Regards,

Paul Tsujimoto
Sr Eng
Prod Dev and Qual
KA-BAR Knives
Click to expand...
Makes me wanna buy another KA Bar
 
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