NEW BK2 1st gen problems

C

camper870

Joined
Jan 25, 2010
Messages
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Im new to the forum but have collected and used knives for as long as I could remember.I love pry bar type knives, so I decided to get a BK2 I figured cant go wrong with a 1/4 inch piece of steel made in the USA. I have read several reviews on most of the Becker line and noticed some quality issues such as bent blades in the BK9,warped handles in several models and the sheath on the BK2 having to much friction on the blade itself. Now having read these threads I was worried but decided to get the BK2, knowing that I might possibly end up with one of the above issues.

SORRY no pics
On arrival of the of the knife my first impression was what a tank,I loved it. Nice balance, thick blade and a functional pommel the thing I noticed off the bat was the sheath was tight on the blade, in fact most of the knife retention was due to the friction on the blade itself. Not bein a major problem, practically speaking a cosmetic one I decided to let it go. Later on before some light use I decided to look the blade over again I looked to see if there was a gap in between the handle slabs and the tang of the blade, damn there was a gap between the handle slabs and the tang where I guess one would call the finger guard at the front and the rear of the handle.Enough of a gap to see light and slide a dollar bill folded several times into the gap. Now Im getting upset I took the slabs off and put it on a flat surface there was indeed a slight taper on both inner sides of the handle slabs. Ok now I have noticed 2 out of 3 QC issues, now to check for the blade being true, with the handles off I looked down the spine as if aiming a rifle. I could not believe my eyes it looked to bend to the left maybe a 1/16 inch I had several other people look it over without telling them my conclusion and they noticed the same bend, put the blade handles off on a flat surface aswell, there was a noticeable warp in the blade.I could not believe my luck it had all three qc issues I was worried about.

Now Im NOT trying to nock Ethan Becker or Ka-Bar, I have great respect for both but I found all this unacceptable.Im not going to send it back seeing how I spent $60 for the knife and total shipping would be at least half of that. Now regardless I still love the BK2 and plan on it bein a nice beater and back up to my ESEE-5. Im still wondering how the BK2 was able to be bent somewhere along the way:D. I apologize for the lengthy post but found it important to share the info to whom it may concern. THANKS
 
it might be early production run i think they had cases of QC problems but those were fixed. all i can say is my 2nd gen bk2 is perfect
 
$15 shipping? really?

please post photos of the knife when you get a chance, esp of the naked blade laying flat on something true-flat, like say, a marble countertop, or a mirror/glass plate, or something, both sides... you have my curiousity...

now, the handle can probably be made true flat with bit of circular polishing on a sheet of sandpaper (on something true-flat). can't speak to bent steel though.

@
 
Well I thought it must be early production run, I guess Ill have to get a 2nd gen some time in the future:D as for the handle /sandpaper fix Bladite I was thinking the exact same thing before I even posted and already started on it using 400 grit wet-dry on my counter top. Thanks for all the replies
as for the shipping $ I spoke of I figured shipping insured both ways would be atleast 20 and more if I wanted something expressed.
 
camper870 said:
Well I thought it must be early production run, I guess Ill have to get a 2nd gen some time in the future:D as for the handle /sandpaper fix Bladite I was thinking the exact same thing before I even posted and already started on it using 400 grit wet-dry on my counter top. Thanks for all the replies
as for the shipping $ I spoke of I figured shipping insured both ways would be atleast 20 and more if I wanted something expressed.
Click to expand...

even USPS flat rate should be under that... not EXPRESS, but fairly fast. they have a $9ish flat rate box, fill it with rocks, they don't care, still $9ish... insurance on $49 would be pretty reasonable... MIGHT be close to $11-12 then, so yeah, maybe sure.

good luck on the fixing... course, if you want, you could get the micarta grips later - very sweet.


Bladite
 
The blade did not get bent, but warped a bit during heat treat. My friends Rogue bowie has almost a .5" warp to the blade, and it is a 170 dollar knife. Talk about po'd. My BK2 from the early production did not have even grinds. The edge was not centered, but a bit to the left. Luckily, i'm pretty handy with my belt grinder and reground the blade to get the angle the same, as the top of the grind was even. The grinds are a bit higher on one side, but she works great. The heat treat is dead on, and the steel performs great. My BK7, and BK9, both came perfect, with no issues. I want a new generation BK2, then a BK camp knife, then a BK10 crewman. Ya that's the ticket. :D
 
Here are few pics of my BK2.
Shows the off center grind. Not bad, but there.
006.jpg


Regrind lines. You can see the additional metal that I removed to even up the grind angle. She is one of my treasures. Convexed and sharp as you could ever want!
007.jpg


008.jpg


Ya Baby!!:D
 
Oh man, just checked my grind and it is also to the left. Ive been considering convexing mine aswell but am worried because the warp is just forward 1/4 inch in the B in BK and Ka-Bar stamp, Im new to convexing and was wondering how it would affect the process or outcome. Since some how I have ended up with so many QC issues I honestly cant believe, I have decided I will not take this knife into the field but will either get a BK2 2nd GEN or a RC5.This knife will become my do it all pry-bar/beater knife for "yard work" etc.
Thanks for all the input, and nice job on that convex regrind
 
Last edited:
cody1 said:
Here are few pics of my BK2.
Shows the off center grind. Not bad, but there.
006.jpg


Regrind lines. You can see the additional metal that I removed to even up the grind angle. She is one of my treasures. Convexed and sharp as you could ever want!
007.jpg


008.jpg


Ya Baby!!:D
Click to expand...
what angle would you guess that your cutting edge is ground at? it looks to be kinda thin imo, but maybe thats just the pics
 
cody1 said:
My BK7, and BK9, both came perfect, with no issues. I want a new generation BK2, then a BK camp knife, then a BK10 crewman. Ya that's the ticket. :D
Click to expand...

Just got in a new generation BK2 and I'm very impressed.

Sold my first generation (Ka Bar) version. It was a good knife, but the new one's even better in fit & finish.
They did a real nice job with it.

I'm also definitely looking forward to the Magnum Camp Knife. :thumbup:
 
I would guess the angle is about 15 degrees. It looks thin, but remeber that the stock is .25" thick. It's a zero degree convex now. Not a full convex grind on a very thick knife. I have had no chipping or roling issues. :D
 
cody1 said:
The blade did not get bent, but warped a bit during heat treat. My friends Rogue bowie has almost a .5" warp to the blade, and it is a 170 dollar knife. Talk about po'd. My BK2 from the early production did not have even grinds. The edge was not centered, but a bit to the left. Luckily, i'm pretty handy with my belt grinder and reground the blade to get the angle the same, as the top of the grind was even. The grinds are a bit higher on one side, but she works great. The heat treat is dead on, and the steel performs great. My BK7, and BK9, both came perfect, with no issues. I want a new generation BK2, then a BK camp knife, then a BK10 crewman. Ya that's the ticket. :D
Click to expand...

I had the same issues with uneven grinding. The primary grind doesn't really bother me much, except for the fact that I'm anal about it. I did regrind the bevel, though. Oh well. I love the knife anyway. I'm probably going to pick up a 2nd gen, because I love the new pommel.
 
My second gen came with an offcenter grind as well(the angle appeared different on each side as well). Was able to FINALLY put a semi-decent edge on it, but it won't hold with use, so has to be semi-sharp I guess (otherwise micro-chipping results). It is a camp knife after all.
 
I ordered mine even after seeing some neg reviews, but with all the good stories I figured I had to have one!

Living in Australia the postage was a killer and a return was out of the question, and when I ordered the 'first gen' was advertised.... but I was stoked to receive one of the first 'second gen' BK2's and its.........

PERFECT!!!!!!!!!!

i love my BK2
 
I'm an engineer, and I'm PICKY! I do see a little bit of off center grind on my BK-2, but no more or less than I have seen on some of my Schrade 165s, one of the high quality US knife makers. I like everything to be centered myself, but if the off center grind is not enough to affect performance, then it should not be an issue.

Bottom line: Tighter tolerances and tighter quality acceptance standards WILL affect the price point of this knife, and after all, that is one of the things we all like about the BK-2. $70 or less delivered to your doorstep!

Nice work KA-BAR! (BZ = Good job!)
 
I also thought I was buying Gen 1 as there were no pics of Gen 2 on google but hate the bloody pommel. The original plan was to put timber slabs(scales) on but that will look awful with the pommel sticking out the back other than that she's bloody awesome. Love the sheath now that I've built up enough muscle to pull the knife out. Hate the ridiculously large belt loop, I think its a cheap and nasty way to make you buy a tdi clip from the same company bugger 'em I'm gunna buy a tek lok instead. Before you buy from America check out cuttingedgeknives.com.au that where I bought my bk2.
Catchya!
 
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