New Ontario RAT-7

panella

panella

Joined
Sep 2, 2003
Messages
1,577
Got my new RAT-7 from Ontario knives today. I love the look of this knife, especially the hefty blade and the aesthetic proportion between the blade and handle. Neither one dominates this knife.

Blade length is 7" (6.5" cutting edge) with the balance just about where the blade meets the handle although it feels blade heavy when chopping. Otherwise it's fast handling. The canvas micarta grips are a little beefier than my Battle Rat, which I like, and don't slip when wet. The full tang protrudes from the back of the handle. The knife feels substantial, solid, comfortable, big but not clunky.

The RAT-7 came with a very coarse-ground edge. It would barely shave one direction, with effort, out of the box, and would not slice free hanging paper. No biggie, that's what Edge Pro's are for. The cordura sheath with kydex liner is made by Spec-Ops and seems about the same as other sheaths of similar type that I'm used to. All in all, I'm really lovin' this knife.

But. . . . . .

after reading Minuteman's recent post about his bad experience with the full size Ontario RTAK where the blade blew out after about 15 light chops on soft pine ("Six knives and a 2X4" on this forum), I was wondering about the durability of the blade. So after playing with the knife for about 3 hours I just had to test it.

I went out back and chopped through a piece of 2" thick pine and a 2" thick piece of mystery wood (redwood?) that were laying around. No technique, I just whacked away. Hard. Anyway, the blade, and the black phosphate finish were unaffected. Looks just as it did when I took it out of the box. I'm no expert on "testing" so I won't report on ease or effectiveness of chopping. I didn't even sharpen the blade before using it. I just wanted to make sure that the edge would stand up to light-medium use without blowing out. It did.

My initial impressions are all very good.Glad I bought it.

See the knife here:

http://store.knifecenter.com/pgi-ProductSpec?ONRAT7

-panella
 
Glad you like the RAT panellaI had my car broken into 2-weeks ago and lost my beloved and much used Bk-7. On an impulse I ordered the RAT-7 instead when I jumped on-line to replace it. I'm currently waiting for it to arrive.

After so much hard use of the Becker I'll be able to give a fair comparison within a few days. Watch this space.......
 
Sorry to hear about your car.

I'll be glad to see your opinion. In the meantime, I'll be giving the knife a few more workouts. I have no idea whether it'll be a match for the Becker BK-7. You'll be a much better judge of that. At this point I'm really more concerned whether the knife will hold up to the moderate use that I'll be likely to give it rather than hard use that others have in mind.

However, if you've got any suggestions for tests, let me know.

I guess it remains to be seen whether this knife is a "winner."
 
Update -

I reprofiled the blade on my RAT-7 using an EdgePro. Brought the primary bevel down to roughly 38 degrees included. I then finished by polishing with 3000 grit to a mirror finish. It was razor sharp and would push cut and shave easily.

After reading so much about the value of a secondary bevel adding to edge strength and durability, I added a secondary micro bevel at about 42-44 degrees. This seemed to reduce the push cutting ability slightly. I'm not surprised because I'd never added a second bevel before and I don't think I did much more than a passable job. But I think it really made a big difference in the overall edge retention and cutting ability.

I then cut through a 3/4 inch x 6 inch plank of pine by chopping down 3 in. per side using heavy strokes. I deliberately chopped near, but not through some knots. Cutting was fairly easy as long as I chopped into the wood at over a 30 degree angle from perpendicular.

I then took some 3/4 to 1 in limbs off a cherry tree and did the same to a couple of peach trees in my back yard.

Finally, I stabbed the point of the RAT into the pine board and pryed it out both with the grain and against the grain.

Results: Although I didn't examine the edge under my microscope, the knife would still shave (with reduced efficiency) and slice hanging paper. There was no apparent chipping to the naked eye. The point was still extremely sharp and had no deformation.

The one thing that surprised me was that some of the black phosphate finish rubbed off near the spine while I was sharpening it on the EdgePro. I should've taped it.

All in all, this seems like a very tough knife.
 
Panella, thanks for the review!


How would you rate the handle for comfort?


About what angle was the factory edge at before you re-profiled to 38 Degrees?





- Frank
 
Frank -

I'm anything but an expert on rating stuff. The handle is very hard canvas micarta. It's heavy and it feels almost metallic when you pick up the knife. As a consequence, it has no "give". The handle on my Battle Rat, by contrast, is made of Respirene (which is sort of like a very firm plasticized rubber - if that makes sense) and feels "softer". Both handles are comfortable, but I'd give the edge to the Battle Rat even though I like the thicker handle on the RAT-7. Strictly a matter of preference.

If I had to guess, lots of chopping might be uncomfortable. But I don't think I'd usually do more than I did today at one sitting with a 6.5 in blade. For just light work, I really like the feel. It responds very fast and is easy to control.

The factory edge was about as sharp as a horseshoe. It must've been about 50 degrees if that sounds possible (just an estimate) considering how long it took me to reprofile. I only know the finished edge because I can set it on my EdgePro.

Hope this helps.

-Paul
 
Nice review. I like the design of rat7, it looks much better than my bk7 and the micarta should be less slippery than the Swiss stuff used in the Bk line. Would be interesting to see how those two would score against one another. The becker might pull ahead due to slightly better steel but who knows.
 
Just got my RAT-7. Initial impressions are good. It's supposed to be heavier than the BK-7 but feels lighter. The smaller, more profiled handles probably create this illusion (if it is an illusion). The jungle/survival influence is there in the blade shape with just the hint of bolo/parang in the way the blade widens slightly towards the distal end. The faded look of the micarta scales also adds to the organic feel. This is ooposed to the more Military/functional look of the BK-7.

I seem to be able to get a better wrist snap when chopping than the BK-7, so I would prefer it slightly as a copper. But let's face it - all blades of this size are horrible choppers and would be awkward to use as such for extended periods. My need for a 7 inch blade is for it to do an adequate job in a pinch and both are fine for this.

Mine had an asymetric grind and was barely shaving sharp. A couple of minutes on a fine diamond stone fixed that and it is plenty sharp now.

The blade also seems to be more springy/flexible than the BK-7. I'll be out and about in the dunes this weekend so I'll put it through some more paces. I'm particularly interested in rust resistance on the coating.

Not that this is critical, cosmetically the BK7 took a while to grow on me. The RAT is like a pair of jeans that you put on and look great right from the first time you wear them. The BK7 had to be broken in.
 
Ming65 -

Glad you got it. I think you're going to like it alot. Looking forward to more comparisons with the BK-7.

-panella
 
Made my RAT-7 handle a little more comfortable by rounding off the micarta edges a bit with a file & sandpaper. Also added a thin coat of clear poly varnish to the handle to seal the micarta & the screws against absorbing sweat from my hands. This worked well on my RTAK and it did not make the handle slick. Performed my own unscientific chopping test using some 4 inch cypress logs left over from the last hurricane. Deliberately chose the toughest, most knotty pieces I could find, cut them up into sections & split the wood into kindling. Seven inch blade is not a champion chopper by itself but it does OK, especially with a baton driving the blade. I thought the knots and twisty grain would do some damage to the edge but didn't happen. No nicks, no roll-overs, edge still very sharp after an hour's work. I was tired, the knife was not. The black finish had a few rub marks but most came out when cleaned up with a rag & oil. Seems like a pretty tough knife.
 
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