why do the heavy duty bk knives come with such slippery handles?

[proton]

why do the heavy duty bk knives have such slippery handles? i am talking about the bk2 and such. is it not a dangerous combo to make a heavy wielding knife with a marginal frictionless handle?

I mean at what point do you sacrifice public safety for greed and profit?

 

[Esav Benyamin]

Pretty harsh, assuming "greed"and "profit" are the motives for the handle design. The handles are comfortable and secure -- for me. I don't have small hands. Ergonomics is a personal choice.

 

[winterveil]

The scales are surprisingly grippy upon use, despite the seemingly slick texture. I've never had any of my large Beckers slip out of my grasp either with bare hands or gloves.

 

[Gassy]

Wasn't it you that said a real knifer can handle any blade in the combo thread?

The Becker blades are renowned for their handles which many other manufacturers try and mimic. Sorry but this post makes no sense, to me at least anyway.

 

[proton]

the bk2 is a one pound knife notorious for whacking away at wood. imagine a kid somehow getting a hold of a bk2 and handling the knife and one pound of razor is heading towards your face. all because of a marginally friction based handle. the bk2 is one of the heaviest common knives on the market. it is obvious that public safety was not a priority.

don't get me wrong. i think the knife is awesome and in my hands the people around me are safe. but not everybody is ready to handle such a beast of a knife. public safety was sacrificed in place of greed and profit.

 

[DJC72]

I changed my scales on Bk9 but the stock handles are fine with me. No hotspots at all. Just add some tennis tape, problem solved.

 

[winterveil]

the bk2 is a one pound knife notorious for whacking away at wood. imagine a kid somehow getting a hold of a bk2 and handling the knife and one pound of razor is heading towards your face. all because of a marginally friction based handle. the bk2 is one of the heaviest common knives on the market. it is obvious that public safety was not a priority.

don't get me wrong. i think the knife is awesome and in my hands the people around me are safe. but not everybody is ready to handle such a beast of a knife. public safety was sacrificed in place of greed and profit.

Maybe don't let a kid get ahold of a knife that large?

 

[JWheel]

the bk2 is a one pound knife notorious for whacking away at wood. imagine a kid somehow getting a hold of a bk2 and handling the knife and one pound of razor is heading towards your face. all because of a marginally friction based handle.

I'm not 100% convinced that this scenario is "all because of" the handle. So this kid is strong enough to wield a 1 lb. blade but not strong enough to hold a friction grip, sneaky enough to get your BK2 despite your efforts to keep it out of reach, and then the first thing he does is fling this blade at your face?

I think at least part of the problem might be this weakly strong psycho kid.

 

[Aikiguy]

I have not changed the handles on my beckers. I did stipple the handles on my 16, but that was more for looks than anything. The Becker handles are far from frictionless; the contouring on the knife not only provides comfort, but helps "lock" in the handles to the users hand. If it was a straight handled knife with the same scale material, you'd might have a point. I know a lot of people reviewing the knife tend to complain about the slickness of the handles upon initial review, but I'd bet a majority of the complaints come before extended use… if it still bothers a person, some grip tape or inner tube over the handle is an inexpensive option for some piece of mind.

If your handling any knife, and it's heading towards your face, I'd humbly submit you're doing it wrong, regardless of handle material… saying that greed and profit was the driving force behind the handle design is doing a disservice to the designer, who's been successfully designing knives for decades, and who's handle design is widely regarded as some of the most comfortable on the market. If they were done just to make money, I'd doubt they would have lasted this long…

 

[JWheel]

But if it's an issue for you, just get the micarta handles. If the company was greedy like you say, they'd put micarta on all their blades and force you to buy that version at a higher price. The stock handles seem to me to be a more budget-friendly alternative that apparently work for a lot of people.

 

[Aikiguy]

I have not changed the handles on my beckers. I did stipple the handles on my 16, but that was more for looks than anything. The Becker handles are far from frictionless; the contouring on the knife not only provides comfort, but helps "lock" in the handles to the users hand. If it was a straight handled knife with the same scale material, you'd might have a point. I know a lot of people reviewing the knife tend to complain about the slickness of the handles upon initial review, but I'd bet a majority of the complaints come before extended use… if it still bothers a person, some grip tape or inner tube over the handle is an inexpensive option for some piece of mind.

If your handling any knife, and it's heading towards your face, I'd humbly submit you're doing it wrong, regardless of handle material… saying that greed and profit was the driving force behind the handle design is doing a disservice to the designer, who's been successfully designing knives for decades, and who's handle design is widely regarded as some of the most comfortable on the market. If they were done just to make money, I'd doubt they would have lasted this long…

 

[tobiism]

why do the heavy duty bk knives have such slippery handles? i am talking about the bk2 and such. is it not a dangerous combo to make a heavy wielding knife with a marginal frictionless handle?

I mean at what point do you sacrifice public safety for greed and profit?

Wow.
I cant imagine that you've actually gone out and used any of these knives.
I've never felt like I was going to lose my grip.
To accuse Ethan Becker of being greedy and profiteering is a pretty crappy thing to do.

 

[Guyon]

I mean at what point do you sacrifice public safety for greed and profit?

public safety was sacrificed in place of greed and profit.

Simply uninformed and dead wrong. Becker scales are time tested, having been put on Ethan's knives since the Cincinnati days. Part of their genius is the design that contours to a wide range of hands and makes for a secure grip.

I am a fan of micarta on the knives, especially the Ka-Bar micarta, but I have been going back to the stock scales on a number of my Beckers. They just plain work. Greed has nothing to do with the equation, though the scales admittedly offer end users a more attractive price point.

Putting a BK2 in the hands of a child would be a bonehead move at best. There are probably a thousand other knives that would be better suited to smaller, weaker hands.

 

[Chameleonbear]

I just figure it's Darwinism at its finest. If you let your kid grab a BK-2 and throw it at your face, you deserve whatever happens.

 

[Cody4x4]

If you've actually used these knives to any extent you'll see that gripping these knives is not any issue, if you want a little more texture, pick up the micarta scales. As for managing to lose control of the knife and sending it flying, run a lanyard if you're that concerned

 

[beachmaster]

Sacrifice public safety for greed and profit... Is this secretly Hillary Clinton using Bladeforums!?

You need an understanding of knives, and of these specific handles to draw such a conclusion. Like usual, knowledge and first hand experience will answer your questions.

A large knife with grippy handles creates hot spots. I was a sucker for Tops' rocky mountain tread on their dart, until I used the knife. Kinda how all of my tops experiences went.

So a smooth surface does not create so many hot spots, but as you pointed out, this could make the knife difficult to handle.

That is where the shape of the handle comes in. The shape of the handle makes your grip secure, while the material and shape work together to combat hot spots, and increase the amount of time that you can use the knife comfortably and safely.

When it comes to "greed and profit", you wont find it in the becker knives. They are still made in the USA, they are still extremely affordable, comparatively.

Public safety is a touchy topic for me... it is usually the emotional tool, based entirely outside of the realm of logic or statistics, and it is used to take our freedoms away.

 

[beachmaster]

Im staying off of this thread before I get into trouble.

 

[proton]

Sacrifice public safety for greed and profit... Is this secretly Hillary Clinton using Bladeforums!?

You need an understanding of knives, and of these specific handles to draw such a conclusion. Like usual, knowledge and first hand experience will answer your questions.

A large knife with grippy handles creates hot spots. I was a sucker for Tops' rocky mountain tread on their dart, until I used the knife. Kinda how all of my tops experiences went.

So a smooth surface does not create so many hot spots, but as you pointed out, this could make the knife difficult to handle.

That is where the shape of the handle comes in. The shape of the handle makes your grip secure, while the material and shape work together to combat hot spots, and increase the amount of time that you can use the knife comfortably and safely.

When it comes to "greed and profit", you wont find it in the becker knives. They are still made in the USA, they are still extremely affordable, comparatively.

Public safety is a touchy topic for me... it is usually the emotional tool, based entirely outside of the realm of logic or statistics, and it is used to take our freedoms away.

hotspots? how bad can these "hotspots" be? there are no running engines or anything that would melt metal.

 

[beachmaster]

Ok, I guess that I am not done with this thread.

First off, go USE your knives for a while. You will understand. Hotspots are on your HANDS. Blisters, painfull areas...

These are things that you don't get with a Becker for a reason.

I am done for real this time. USE YOUR KNIVES, and get educated on the topic before you start rambling about something that you are entirely ignorant of.

 

[proton]

Ok, I guess that I am not done with this thread.

First off, go USE your knives for a while. You will understand. Hotspots are on your HANDS. Blisters, painfull areas...

These are things that you don't get with a Becker for a reason.

I am done for real this time. USE YOUR KNIVES, and get educated on the topic before you start rambling about something that you are entirely ignorant of.

i lift weights almost every day. my hands are calloused. i laugh at these "hotspots."

this just justifies my original post. not everybody can handle a bk2.