Review of Big Country Kampr

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May 21, 2001
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I've had this knife long enough now to write a preliminary review.

The Big Country Kampr is made in Seki City, Japan, and is a fairly large knife. The drop point style blade is 7 and 3/4 inches long, sports a full convex grind and a swedge grind about 2 and 1/2 inches long. Blade thickness is right at 3/16's of an inch. The blade has a full belly, which I think contributes to good slicing ability. One item of note. The website shows two versions of the knife. One has a large choil and the other a significantly smaller choil. I thought I would have preferred the larger choil for choking up on the blade, but when mine arrived it had the smaller choil. As it turns out, this was not a problem as my medium sized index finger fit the choil okay. Larger fingers may be a problem. The blade steel is AUS 8, with a RC of around 55-57, which seems about right for a blade of this size and intended use. The knifes overall geometry is very reminiscent of the Busse Basic line, particularly the Busse #7, as the handle drops in an arc from the blade's spine. The handle material is unknown to me, but it appears to be a fairly hard elastomer of some kind with a lightly stippled surface and (for me) excellent ergonomic shape.

One very positive addition to this knife is its sheath. The sheath is a large retangular leather pocket held together with brass rivets. Brass loops are set at the corners and in the middle of each of the rectangles longer sides. A strap with brass carabiner type hooks on each end allow the user to set up the sheath for a variety of carry methods. I found I preferred to carry the sheath horizontally under my arm, like a shoulder holster. This puts the knife readily at hand and avoids the problems associated with long sheaths attached to the waist and leg. The sheath holds the knife securely (and it fits my Busse Basic #7 too, added bonus).

The knife balances in the hand well, with a weight forward feel. Actual weight is similar to the shorter Busse #7 due to the Big Country's thinner blade. The knife came from the box hair popping sharp. I immediately took it out to a treed lot in need of some brush clearing. Chopping small branches and brush was fairly easy. I found I could sever one inch spruce and birch with a single wrist snap swing. Larger material took longer, about comparable to my Busse #7. Light brush would fall in clumps with full arm swings. After the chopping session, I examined the edge. It remained shaving sharp without any evidence of edge deformation or chipping, which is to be expected considering the kind of material cut. I used the back of the blade to pound in some wooden stakes. It functioned well in this mode, and I felt very little vibration through the handle. I did not notice any hot spots on my fingers or palm as a result of friction, but I did not chop for more than an hour.

Back at home, I stropped the edge on some new cardboard. This brought the edge back to hair popping sharpness. I preceeded to use the blade for kitchen chores and it performed well at chopping onions, slicing tomatoes, and slicing meat, although not as well as a flat grind chef's knife. Afterward, I simply wiped the blade and put it away in its sheath. Several days later I inspected the blade for signs of corrosion and could not find any evidence, although I did not use a scope to check the edge.

At this point I would consider the Big Country Kampr to be a good value in a big camp knife. The convex edge grind appears stout, and the AUS 8 is fairly rust resistant for those carefree camping chores. At its price point, no one should feel queasy about beating it up if the situation calls for it. Service from Knifeware.com was fast and trouble free. In fact, I recieved a personal call from Ken Warner to ensure he was sending the knife to the correct address. That was a nice touch. :)
 
Follow-up. I pulled the knife from its sheath last night and noticed some slight discoloration on the blade. I cleaned it with some Flitz and then lightly oiled the surface. There is a point at which this AUS 8 will start to rust in the sheath if left uncared for after use.
 
thanks mike!
I might have to get one of these, I did look at their sight though and I only had seen one version of this particular knife.
 
Very glad to see you post this up, a nice line of knives I had missed seeing :

http://www.knifeware.com/bigcounkniv1.html

They make a point to say several times that the edge is very "robust". Does it cut as well as the Basic #7?

The Hookr would have been nice to see with a slightly longer blade for more machete type usage.

-Cliff
 
Nice review Steelhed. I've been mildly curious about this line for awhile now because I have a Blackjack Kampr.
Is the convex edge on your sample thin or tending more towards the thick side?
 
Nice review , mate. I own the "Workr" model with a modifed
sheepsfoot blade and find it to be an excellent all round knife just
as advertized. ;) It's too bad that these knives don't get much
attention as they are everything Ken say's they are for a fair price.:D

To me they are what a good knife truly is........not much flash but a whole
lot of delivery. :) :)
 
Well I ordered a couple of the kamprs!!! Ken was very nice and cordial!!! I'll be taking one with me on a camping trip soon so we'll see how it works!!!!
 
for anyone interested in knifewares "big country" knives be aware that the $88 dollar price is for a plain black sheath not the one shown in the pictures (the square tactical sheath).
 
I just posted on the other thread regarding this knife. I would answer Cliff by saying, no the Kampr does not perform as well as the Basic #7 in my hands, but it is close. It in no way performs as well as my new Camp Tramp, which chops better and performs better in the kitchen too (more edge contact while slicing and dicing than the Kampr). The Kampr has what I would call a middle ground edge, not thick and not too thin. Because it sports a convex grind from top to bottom the knife is fairly robust, but the edge thins out nicely and is easy to strop sharpen.
 
Excellent review.., thanks!


"Hunters seek what they [WANT].., Seekers hunt what they [NEED]"
 
Juat to add: The orginal brown large leather sheath is being replaced with the black leather sheaths as the new ones come out, thats my understanding of it.

PB190035.jpg

workr.jpg
 
NGK is correct on the sheaths. When my "workr" arrived it had the
black belt sheath , which in my case was not what I ordered. I contacted
Ken Warner to ask about this and as a true gentleman he told me that the
the web orders , for now, would be shipped with the brown multi purpose
sheath. He sent me the brown sheath so that I could chose which one I wanted
and return the one I didn't or buy it for $ 20. Fair enough I thought.:)

When I got the brown sheath I found it to be closer to what I needed for the
"workr" so I very reluctantly returned the black one. The black one gives up
nothing in quality or purpose to the brown they just approch carry from
different directions. If you plan on belt carry get the black sheath. If you
want over the sholder as I did then the brown. Either way you get your monies
worth:D
 
When I ordered mine I asked Ken about the sheath, He informed me I had a choice between both sheaths. the price on the web of $88 was for the regular sheath, and the higher price was for the mutli-carry sheath. All in all Kens a pretty good guy, nice to talk to. I havent seen the basic sheath, but I do like the multi-carry one I purchased, it was a good idea, especially if you do alot of backpacking.:)
 
Yeah, like I said some folks don't care for the multi-purpose sheath, others do. I find it difficult, well uncomfortable, to carry a long bladed knife on my hip, especially while sitting, so I end up throwing it in my day pack most of the time. The multi-purpose sheath that came with my Kampr offers a compromise and allows me quicker access to the knife than if it were inside a day pack. BTW, the multi-purpose sheath works well with a variety of knives. For example, it will hold a Busse Basic #7 or a Swamp Rat Knives Camp Tramp just as well as the Kampr.
 
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