Seems like everyone is leaning towards the Becker Bk2. I have been looking for places to buy one, but it seems like the cheapest place is Tomars Kabars for around $70.00 shipped. Any other suggestions?
Of those three the BK2 is indeed the best choice. Though it would not be my first choice as a survival knife.
Myself I would team up a larger camp knife/chopper with a smaller knife fro the fine work. Just make very sure the small knife is capable of being used for it all in a pinch. i,e. ESEE4 or Fallkniven F1 etc. for the small blade. Team it with a BK7 or BK9 or ESEE Junglas etc. for the camp knife (Beker Magnum Camp is a good one as well).
This. In my first answer I assumed that if you added many more knives to the available choices, they would all remain no bigger/heavier than the BK2, in which case the BK2 would still be my choice.
That said, I would never limit myself to such a choice. All of my bug-out packs have at least two knives in them, one a chopper and the other a fixed blade smaller one. My main pack that I keep at home has the Fallkniven F1 for the small blade, and a CS Gurkha Kukri for the chopper. I know, I know, folks around here hate CS's advertising, but that kukri is one helluva chopper, and to my way of thinking, the best way to survive in the field is to limit to the greatest extent possible how many calories are burned performing the tasks that it takes to survive. The most efficient chopper I've found, including camp-axes, is the kukri shape, and the CS version balances size, weight and length for the purposes I need it for as well as anything else I've tested for chopping.
My "get-home" packs that I have in mine and my wife's vehicles have a Kershaw Outcast and BK9 for the chopper respectively, and BK2s for the smaller blades in both. I'm seriously considering removing the choppers from those bags, as they really are just for getting home, and the added weight, especially for my wife, is more than needed for, at the most, being outdoors for one or two nights. Haven't decided on that yet, but....
See, the thing is elitebrothers8, there simply is no single "perfect" survival knife. These kinds of threads are fun and interesting for gauging the group's consensus (or lack thereof) on favorite brands, steels etc., but they're not really helpful in preparing for real life survival situations because you're putting unrealistic and arbitrary limitations on choices. That's something one doesn't have to do if they prepare and train far in advance and efficiently for survival in as many scenarios as you can envision for yourself in the area(s) you live.
That said, I'm glad to see that so many knowledgeable folks agree with me that Becker makes some damned fine survival tools! :thumbup:
Blues
