- Joined
- Feb 23, 2010
- Messages
- 284
Hello all-
I've lurked on this forum for as long as I've had an account on the forum. I've learned a lot, but I never really felt that I had anything to add. Now that the year is closing, I feel that I should at least post my experiences with Becker Knife and Tool.
I should start at the beginning. Last Christmas, my best buddy got a new RC5, and was beyond excited. Now, at this point, I had an interest in knives, but it wasn't anything dangerous, and his new knife wasn't nearly as interesting to me - until I handled it. That set me off. Yes, it was Rat Cutlery/ESEE that started this obsession with knives.
So why am I posting this here (you folks don't need more fuel for the cross forum competition
), in the Becker forum? Well, I'll be darned if I wasn't researching 5-6" survival knives within 10 minutes of getting home. It was through the wonders of the internet that I discovered the Becker brand under KaBar. I had heard of KaBar - who in the knife world hasn't? - and thought that this must be something quality. And there it was, the BK-2 Campanion. For $60. Half of my friend's RC-5. Pfft, no way.
I was intrigued. How did this $60 knife compare to a $120+ one? So I did more refined research. Youtube videos, forum reviews, magazine articles...I came to the common conclusion that this knife was a winner. So I pulled the trigger on one, and the next four days were terrible to endure.
But, the UPS man saved me, and delivered one of the best knives I've ever held. So I held it in awe, and swished it about, and I knew I had something special. So, the only logical thing to do was gloat. I called my friend up, talked about knives, and told him he got jipped. We met up, compared blades, and aside from some fugly green coating and micarta scales, the knives were near identical. Weight, length, overall shape differed slightly, but more or less the same knife (grind/heat treat/handle shape notwithstanding). He wasn't convinced right away. So, the next camping trip, we both brought our knives, and did a little (limited) testing. We came to the conclusion that he was in fact, jipped. I even got a confession out of him that if he had known about the Becker first, that's what he would have bought instead. Oh well, life lesson.
The BK-2 has been my lab rat of choice, and it has performed like a champ. I've stripped part of it, convexed its edge, tried to force a patina (it smelled like mustard for a couple weeks) and generally been making it its own brand of purty. My only regret is not doing even more with it over the year. But I suppose that's what the future is for! The BK-2 influenced my next purchase, and that was a BK-11. Man, that little necker is handy. I take it wherever I can when I can, cause it is so handy. This little knife is subject more to indoor tasks than outdoor, though when it goes outside it revels in it. However, it has not been spared from my tinkering and modding - I must say, a convex edge on the BK-11 is pretty awesome. It was also a test subject for trying to engrave and the effects it would have on coatings. In the vein of its big brother, the BK-11 took it like a champ.
Of course, another awesome blade can not be kept a secret, so I told the same friend as before, who was in fact looking for a neck knife at the time. He got an Izula (God bless his poor, misguided heart) after much debate.
So, In the end, I suppose I am saying thank you to Mr. Becker, Tooj, and all the people at KaBar. Because of you, I have had the pleasure of using two high-quality, low-cost, unbeatable-value blades throughout the year, and for many more in the future. If ESEE started the obsession, all BK&T did was agitate it beyond comprehension! But, if I'm angry at anything, it is that you took a lot of the fun out of knife collecting cause all my other knives sit on the shelf
!
Happy holidays, folks, and keep using those Beckers!
(Nothing against ESEE. Their knives are top notch, and they deserve every ounce of respect they have. I would trust their knives with my life - I just don't want to ruin that purty finish they have!)
I've lurked on this forum for as long as I've had an account on the forum. I've learned a lot, but I never really felt that I had anything to add. Now that the year is closing, I feel that I should at least post my experiences with Becker Knife and Tool.
I should start at the beginning. Last Christmas, my best buddy got a new RC5, and was beyond excited. Now, at this point, I had an interest in knives, but it wasn't anything dangerous, and his new knife wasn't nearly as interesting to me - until I handled it. That set me off. Yes, it was Rat Cutlery/ESEE that started this obsession with knives.
So why am I posting this here (you folks don't need more fuel for the cross forum competition
), in the Becker forum? Well, I'll be darned if I wasn't researching 5-6" survival knives within 10 minutes of getting home. It was through the wonders of the internet that I discovered the Becker brand under KaBar. I had heard of KaBar - who in the knife world hasn't? - and thought that this must be something quality. And there it was, the BK-2 Campanion. For $60. Half of my friend's RC-5. Pfft, no way.I was intrigued. How did this $60 knife compare to a $120+ one? So I did more refined research. Youtube videos, forum reviews, magazine articles...I came to the common conclusion that this knife was a winner. So I pulled the trigger on one, and the next four days were terrible to endure.
But, the UPS man saved me, and delivered one of the best knives I've ever held. So I held it in awe, and swished it about, and I knew I had something special. So, the only logical thing to do was gloat. I called my friend up, talked about knives, and told him he got jipped. We met up, compared blades, and aside from some fugly green coating and micarta scales, the knives were near identical. Weight, length, overall shape differed slightly, but more or less the same knife (grind/heat treat/handle shape notwithstanding). He wasn't convinced right away. So, the next camping trip, we both brought our knives, and did a little (limited) testing. We came to the conclusion that he was in fact, jipped
. I even got a confession out of him that if he had known about the Becker first, that's what he would have bought instead. Oh well, life lesson. The BK-2 has been my lab rat of choice, and it has performed like a champ. I've stripped part of it, convexed its edge, tried to force a patina (it smelled like mustard for a couple weeks) and generally been making it its own brand of purty. My only regret is not doing even more with it over the year. But I suppose that's what the future is for! The BK-2 influenced my next purchase, and that was a BK-11. Man, that little necker is handy. I take it wherever I can when I can, cause it is so handy. This little knife is subject more to indoor tasks than outdoor, though when it goes outside it revels in it. However, it has not been spared from my tinkering and modding - I must say, a convex edge on the BK-11 is pretty awesome. It was also a test subject for trying to engrave and the effects it would have on coatings. In the vein of its big brother, the BK-11 took it like a champ.
Of course, another awesome blade can not be kept a secret, so I told the same friend as before, who was in fact looking for a neck knife at the time. He got an Izula (God bless his poor, misguided heart) after much debate.
So, In the end, I suppose I am saying thank you to Mr. Becker, Tooj, and all the people at KaBar. Because of you, I have had the pleasure of using two high-quality, low-cost, unbeatable-value blades throughout the year, and for many more in the future. If ESEE started the obsession, all BK&T did was agitate it beyond comprehension! But, if I'm angry at anything, it is that you took a lot of the fun out of knife collecting cause all my other knives sit on the shelf
!Happy holidays, folks, and keep using those Beckers!
(Nothing against ESEE. Their knives are top notch, and they deserve every ounce of respect they have. I would trust their knives with my life - I just don't want to ruin that purty finish they have!)
