What is your favorite Becker and why?

L

Lawrence Helm

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Jul 24, 2014
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I can't swear it will be my favorite forever, as contrary as I am, but at the moment it is the BK7. The BK7 was my first Becker purchase but I was never completely happy with the sheaths I had. I thought the newest sheath I bought (from KBknives) was going to do the trick but in wearing it about today couldn't keep it from unsnapping and the only thing keeping the knife from falling out is the snap -- if the sheath gets tilted at an angle where the knife can slide out. I suppose this wouldn't matter too much as long as I'm hiking but I trust it a lot less than when I took hiking last; so I'm back to using the Skystorm sheath. It's a better sheath no doubt but it was too tight to be able to get the knife out quickly. But it isn't really hanging up now to the point where I have to use two hands to get the knife out; so it will probably be okay.

And, the BK12 which I thought might be my favorite knife sticks in its Skystorm sheath once again, but even assuming that problem works itself out I prefer the size and shape of the BK7 to the BK12.

I don't know how much I'll be using the BK9. Getting the knife in and out of the Skystorm sheath, even before taking it on a hike has been a hassle. Just from trying to work the sheath, putting the knife in and out, I cut the little cord on the snap and am gouging out the leather a bit where the knife gets inserted. Maybe the BK9 is too large for taking on a hike anyway but I intended to try once I got the sheath to loosen up -- and Skystorm is the only sheath-game in the eBay town.

The BK10 and BK2 are a wee bit short it seems to me, but that is probably only because the BK7 was my initial ideal.

I bought a BK5 because I'm doing the cooking for my ailing wife. I'll be using the KBknives sheath in the future when I carry it down to the kitchen, but it hasn't been as useful for the sorts of things I am doing; so I just the other day ordered a BK15.

I bought a BK17 a while back because I like a clip point but the knife didn't measure up well against my KaBar 3/4 sized USMC fighting knives (never can remember their ID numbers) -- at least for hiking -- at least in my opinion. So will I be able to use the Skystorm sheath I bought for the BK17 for the soon-to-arrive BK15? If so I'll put the BK17 back in the sheath it came with and use the BK15, in the Skystorm sheath, for cooking. If I tackle anything heavy-duty I'll carry the BK5 as well.

I probably shouldn't have but I sent for another KBknives sheath -- a different design -- for the BK7. As I did it I conceded to myself that I was eventually going to buy a second BK7. If it is indeed my favorite Becker then I need two of them. I had two BK2s but gave one to my son. I considered buying two BK12s but I might not if the BK7 turns out to be my day in and day out favorite Becker hiking knife.

I haven't tried every single Becker knife, but it seems to me I've tried every one that might be suitable as a hiking knife. I'd be interested in other opinions for however you use your Beckers. I know some have indicated the BK5 is their favorite, but I can't see taking that hiking -- can't get my mind around the idea.

Lawrence
 
Ethan Becker. Such a nice fellow! opens up his house to a bunch of strangers for a very nice stay, yummy food, good times... :D
 
My favourite Becker, by far, is the Cincinatti Machax (BK-4). I've had it for approx. 25 years and it's never let me down. It's a great chopper, especially for it's size and weight, easy to carry, and carves wood like a much smaller knife. I'm happy to see a lot more people have started to appreciate its finer points (no pun intended :D) of the Machax. The handle on it is excellent (estaloc, I believe Ethan called them) - non-slip and very comfortable.

However, you seem to be looking for a smaller, non-chopper. I also was looking for a smaller Becker to accompany the 4, so I bought a 2 - I find that the 2 is too short for the thickness. I would love to see this thickness in a 7.5" - 8" knife, though. I also had a 7 - didn't really like it much, although that was just the esthetics of the knife. Other than that it was a good knife. I realize that form should follow function, but you have to like your knife.

I tried the tweeners and the handles just seem too short for me.

I also don't like the esthetics of the 5, although all reports say it's a great knife.

So all this led me to recently buy a 12 which I received a couple of days ago. Haven't had a chance to play with it yet. I watched a couple of youtube videos of the 12 and the guy didn't seem to like it too much - said it wouldn't make feather sticks and couple of other negative comments, so I'm looking forward to taking it out and shooting down his critique. I think it will be an excellent knife.

I also have a 14, which I would like to like, but the handle is just too short. I'm waiting for some enterprising soul to come out with some scales that will effectively lengthen the handle. Not holding my breath, though.

Might as well round out my Becker report :rolleyes:. I have a 9 but it's just a bit too heavy for hiking, at least for me - great camp knife though. The remaining knife, that I really like is the 3. Most of my outdoor activities, these days, is hiking and learning and practising various survival skills, such as trap making, wild foods etc. I find that the 3 is small enough to carry in my pack but is versatile and strong enough for many tasks - prying apart stumps for fatwood, digging up plants and roots (Spruce root for cordage), chopping the odd bit of wood, etc. without worrying about damaging the knife. I know a lot of people don't consider the 3 to be a bush tool. I strongly disagree.

Anyway Lawrence, good luck on your quest.

Doc
 
Still the 10. Short enough to carry, stout enough for anything, light enough not to be a burden.
Though the 9... really impressed me recently. And given that I don't have cause to carry the 10 much, I might end up reaching for the 9 for pruning duties and general tom-foolery.

I do feel like the entire full-size line (minus the 5) would be improved by Ka-Bar raising the grind another 0.25" or so, at least to right under the logo. From pictures it appears that the Camillus models were ground a bit higher.
 
I would have to say that my 9 is my favorite knife, but ill be getting a 10 soon to compare to the 2, and ill see how I feel after that :-)
 
Bk9. Versatile knife that can chop fairly well and balanced enough to do some smaller tasks. Its not all too heavy as well and looks great. The bk2 would be a closer second for me.
 
it would be the BK9 for me follow by a 16 and 14. Im still thinking for maybe a BK7 or BK10 next.
 
The mighty Machax!

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BK10 - but I am keeping my options open for a new favorite Becker.
After all, it is getting close to Christmas!
:-)
 
BK10 - but I am keeping my options open for a new favorite Becker.
After all, it is getting close to Christmas!
:-)
 
BK-5.

It's the goddess of all butcher knives, yet still tough enough to serve as a short machete.

It's slicey, it's choppy, it's pointy. It's perfect.

All that in a quick and agile package.
 
Yesterday I would have said 9 but today I finally spent some wood/brush clearing time with a Cincinnati Machax I picked up a couple months ago, but hadn't used yet. I would be hard pressed to pick one over the other. Both feel great in hand. Both handle processing wood with ease. Guess I need to do more research. Soooo.....I'm not gonna pick one over the other....and you can't make me. :playful:
 
A semi-snarky, but true, answer is which ever Becker knife is being used at the time. My primary-use Beckers are the 9, 6, 16 and 11.

Overall, I prefer the 9 because I like larger, heavy knives. The weight and length work well when chopping small trees/tree limbs. The extra 2 inches are nice when leaning over to chop the head off the rattlesnake I just stepped on. Don't have to lean over as far.

When clearing over-grown green Johnson grass or giant ragweed, the BK6 Patrol Machete (unfortunately not picked up/produced by Kabar) slices through these much more cleanly than the 9. Must be the lack of resistance of the grass stems and the fibrousness of the ragweed. The longer length would seem to be better for rattlesnake beheadings, but the overall curvature makes the standard guillotine thrust less effective. There's a reason I carry the 9 even when working with the 6.

For kitchen work I really like the 16, but that may change as I recently received two pair of 5s and 15s - (for Christmas gifts to give, not for myself, although after removing them from the boxes to check them out, I may keep a set. :D )

I have found the 11 to be an all-round decent everything knife. It has handled apples, pb&j, pencil sharpening, paint scraping, label removing, cardboard cutting, package opening, splinter removal, push point pushing, window putty removing, pecan hull scraping, car registration sticker removal, corn and pepper harvesting, just to name a few tasks it has been used for. On top of that, it opens beer bottles pretty good too. :D The only thing it isn't real good at is opening watermelons; it's too short. But that's why Ethan made the 9 - that puppy will open a watermelon up like a chainsaw through balsa wood.
 
BK-16. If I could only have one production knife to carry everday, everywhere, all the time, for the rest of my days, city town country or boondocks, that's what I would keep handy.
 
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james terrio said:
BK-16. If I could only have one production knife to carry everday, everywhere, all the time, for the rest of my days, city town country or boondocks, that's what I would keep handy.
Click to expand...


Yes, if...
If I could only have one field knife then it would be the BK-16
Light, length, and strength
The trouble of trying to get one knife for all things, is it does not do all things
But the 16 is a complete design to itself and stands strongly to its range of usage, so can be stretch outside this range for lighter and heavier use
 
james terrio said:
BK-16. If I could only have one production knife to carry everday, everywhere, all the time, for the rest of my days, city town country or boondocks, that's what I would keep handy.
Click to expand...


Yes, if...
If I could only have one field knife then it would be the BK-16
Light, length, and strength
The trouble of trying to get one knife for all things, is it does not have the range
But the 16 is a complete design to itself and stands strongly to its design range of usage, so can be can still be successfully stretched outside this range for lighter and heavier use
 
I've often said that I liked a certain blade more than another one, but I've come to realize that I use my knives in waves. Sometimes I use a specific blade pretty much daily, and then it's just there somewhere around the house, only to be picked up again a couple of weeks later.
Whenever I pick up my 5, I do this with great joy. The blade just feels so damn good. I'm waiting of an overnighter or a camping trip so I can use it exclusively for a single day or more. Whenever I pick up my 9, I'm amazed at how well it's balanced and I just go out in the yard and chop some stuff down. Sometimes because some stuff actually needs a good choppin', more often because I just feel like it. The 4 I recently got might go the same direction as the 9. It does give a satisfying snap while chopping of undergrowth, I like it. The 16 and 15 get used a lot as well. The 15 is probably my dedicated kitchen knife, mostly a meat knife too and it does that with bravoure. The 16 is more of a do-it-all kinda blade in the yard, and is often taken with me in a backpack on a dayhike because it's more people friendly than say a 9 or 4.
The 14, 24, 11 and the Remora as well get carried as an edc almost daily, though not all of them together of course. I switch 'em up regularly.
The remora is a pretty good dress knife because it's small and thin, but it is still a very useful size if you need something to cut. Around the house, during walks, or out fossil hunting it's always the 14/24/11 I carry with me on my belt. As of recently, I love carrying the 11 with micarta, it lays very comfortable in my hand. In a couple of weeks from now it might as well be the 14 or the 24 again.

What I'm trying to say here is that I just love all of my Becker knives, and that there are periods during which I prefer a few of them, but that period is soon followed where I prefer another setup. It comes in waves, and during each wave I have my preferences, but I love and use 'em all.
 
Right now? BK9. But I'm aching for a BK5 and we'll just have to see if this remains my favorite....
 
neeman said:
The trouble of trying to get one knife for all things, is it does not do all things... But the 16 is a complete design to itself and stands strongly to its design range of usage, so can still be successfully stretched outside this range for lighter and heavier use
Click to expand...

You're absolutely right about that. But... the OP asked us to pick just one Becker... so there ya go :)

Now if we expand that to selecting two Beckers... I'd choose a 9 and a 16. Then I'd have all the bases covered, from cleaning my nails and preparing and eating my lunch to bushcrafty stuff to dressing game or fish to chopping wood for shelter/fire to fighting off marauding grizzly bears and zombies. I would then have two tools that are both very good at what they're meant to do. :thumbup:

Honestly, I also like a small pocket-knife... because c'mon now, everybody needs a small pocketknife. So in a "perfect world"... I'm a three-knife guy. ;)

Having said all that, I like my 5 an awful lot, too. As Ethan has said, "I would not feel 'under-knifed' if that was the only blade I had", to perform all sorts of tasks. It's not the very bestest at either the fine work or the heavy work... but it does work pretty well for almost anything except serious chopping... and it's an absolute goldang rockstar when it comes to slashing and slicing and fighting anything from a smoked ham to ticked-off bad guy who's trying to ruin your whole day. Light, fast, keen, just enough reach for serious tip-speed... yeah, that'll work.

If there's such a thing as a good "compromise" medium-size knife, the BK-5 is definitely in the running for my top 5 favorite designs. (for instance, I'd choose a 5 long before I'd choose a BK-7 or the "classic" 1217 fighting knife, if I could only have one blade in the 7-8" range... )
 
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The trend here is obvious. it is really hard to pick one favorite Becker.
I pick my 16 as my favorite, with that being said, I always have my Wetterlings Small Hunters Axe with my when I am out in the field. around the house as well the16 gets the most attention. With the new member to the family the 15 it may take the place of the 16, but for now it is just been on kitchen duty. ;)
 
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