RAT RC-6, Cold Steel SRK, or Ka-Bar BK7?

Morales said:
The SRK has a hollowground blade, so I'd go for either the ESEE-6 or the BK-7, which do have flatground blades.
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THAT is a good reason. All previous models of the SRK were Sabre ground, and are good to excellent medium-sized survival knives.
 
I prefered the ESEE-6 over the BK7. I didn't like the sheath on the KaBar or the smooth grips (I did consider bead blasting them to roughen them up) so I bought the ESEE. Cold Steel isn't known for it's high quality anymore so they weren't even in the running.

It cost more but the bulletproof warrenty made it worth it to me.
 
canadiantrailman said:
The OP does not indicate the need or purpose of the knife choice but assuming they are for the wilderness or survival purposes and not just for whittling a weenie roasting stick over a campfire at a local KOA, I would like to pose a suggestion. Hopefully this won't hijack the OP's thread.

At the risk of being stoned, does the "bullet proof" warranty really matter if your knife gets damaged during a survival situation and perhaps becomes largely unusable putting you at risk of your very own survival?

As a case in point, I just read on another thread about someone batoning an ESEE 3 and it became damaged from batoning. If I need to trust my life on a knife I would want to know that it was "bullet proof" during the time I need it and not after the fact through a warranty.

Perhaps the ESEE 6 does fit this bill but it is not the thickest/strongest blade for all surivial aspects one may encounter far out in the wilderness, facing dehydration, hypothermia, starvation, to name a few. Perhaps an ESEE 5 would make more sense or even something with more length.

It is sort of like buying a boat that is touted as unsinkable but if it sinks the company will replace it. I am not sure if this would help at the time it was needed if it indeed sank.

For the record, I am not knocking ESEE products as I am a proud owner of one of their knives. I just think the warranty needs to be taken into proper context. Just my $0.02.
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This knife will be multi-purpose. It will be used for camping and survival but it would also be something I'd carry for security work. That's why I'm looking at something in the 6" - 7" range.

In the future when I have more some more money I'll probably buy a dedicated knife for camping/survival and another for security.
 
I'd go with a Fallkniven A1. It's very similar to all three mentioned, but better.

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Deebo said:
Why don't you feel that the SRK should be ranked in the same group as the other two?
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ESEE has a better warranty, ESEE and KABAR both have better heat treat and steel, better quality finish, better customer service and company in general, and they're USA made (if that matters to you)
 
Scrapyard regulator, hard to beat price hard to beat knife..
 
I have a BK-7 and I think it is a great knife - but would you prefer Micarta scales and a Kydex sheath? If so then you could still get a BK-7 and buy better scales & sheath or you could go with the ESEE RC-6 - either would be a good choice and there wouldn't be much difference in price. If you are happy with the cheaper sheath and scales then the BK-7 is quite a bit cheaper at around $70.

Unless you are going to abuse the knife in an extreme way I can't see either failing - KA-BAR and ESEE use good steel with a good heat treat and there knive will handle a wide range of usage without a problem.
 
knifenut1013 said:
Scrapyard regulator, hard to beat price hard to beat knife..
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If we are looking at more options than the original three knives, I have to agree with the Regulator recommendation.

At 1/3 of an inch, it is the thickest knife I own. It is built like a tank and will definitely take a beating.
 
I essentially all three knives, although I have the ESEE-4 and the Becker BK10 Crewman.

In order:

ESEE-6
Becker
SRK

Quite frankly, you'll do with any of them. However, I bet you'll be far happier with the -6.

My .02.

Al
 
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