- Joined
- Aug 10, 2013
- Messages
- 104
I am new to this forum, but have been reading it for some time. I wanted my first post on here to bring some value to the forum, so I decided to do a review/comparison between the Becker Bk17 and the Mora Companion (not the HD model). The newer Mora Companion HD/Robust model would have been a more even comparison, but unfortunately I do not have one. Both manufactures are known for their quality at a price point, especially the Mora line with a majority of their knives coming in at under $20. Both of these knives were purchased for the same purpose: a general bushwacking/survival blade to be worn on a belt during hikes and while camping. My requirements for this role are a knife that will process wood for fire building, cut rope, clean game, make traps and general knife tasks. It must be able to accomplish these tasks independently. I have not cleaned game with either knife, but there are numerous accounts and videos of both knives performing that task well. For this review, I focused on fire building/wood processing.
First impressions: Much of first impressions are very subjective and depend on the person, these are just my opinions.
BK17: This is perhaps the most comfortable knife I have ever handled. Truth be told, I had no interest in buying a "tweener", but I handled this knife in the store and instantly knew I had to buy it. I have medium hands (for reference, any knife or firearm that's advertised as a "slim grip" typically fits me) and this knife felt like it was designed for me. Like all Beckers, it feels very solid in the hand with nice weight and balance. I like the sheath a lot, but then again I don't have very discriminating tastes when it comes to sheaths. The Cordura material is very solid, secures the knife well with 2 snaps, has Molle webbing and a pocket in the front for fire starters, sharpening stone, oil, etc. This is a much better sheath than the crappy plastic one that came with my BK2 and dulls the blade. The fit and finish on the knife were excellent, but sadly (like my BK2), the blade was pretty dull out of the box. The coating is a texture powder coating that holds ups much better than the smooth coating that came on my BK2. The knife wears well on the belt, but you definitely know its there. Nothing compared to the BK2 though (which I don't wear on my belt often). As a bonus, an extra set of tan scales were included.
Mora: As soon as I picked up the knife and sheath I was absolutely amazed at how light they were! The plastic sheath retains the knife well but if you turn it upside down and shake hard enough it does fall out. There is a small drain hole in the bottom of the sheath for water. The handle is made of a very comfortable and grippy rubber material and feels great in the hand. The blade was razor sharp right out of the box. The most attractive feature of this knife to me was the weight. When you wear it, you completely forget its there. It doesn't have the heft of the Becker, and as a result feels like a less capable tool in the hand. It definitely feels more like a knife, while the Becker feels like a solid wilderness tool.
There's no question that the quality of the Becker is far superior to the Mora, it is evident as soon as you hold them, but I wanted to know if the added performance was worth the increased price. I could buy 6 Mora's for the price of the Becker. So to the woods we went to test their survival capability (or at least their wood processing capability).
The Contestants (BK2 was just along for fun):
Test 1: Cross Grain Batoning/Chopping
As I expected, the BK17 easily won this one. The added weight and thickness of the blade allowed it to be easily batoned several inches into the wood. In the pic, the batoned area is at about 10o'clock, notice the deep chunk of wood that was taken out. The 17 also chopped a little, it didn't do very well on this branch but it chops through smaller things pretty easily.
The Mora did not bite into the wood at all, regardless of how hard I was striking it.
Test 2: Vertical Batoning (with the grain)
Regardless of your personal views on this, I feel that you must be able to baton with a survival blade/woods blade. Having a thicker, heavier, full tang blade I figured the 17 would easily win this as well; but I was surprised to find out that the Mora was able to hang right there with it. It was slightly easier with the Becker, and I'm sure the Becker could withstand to be beat on like that for longer than the Mora, but for a survival situation where you will only be batoning for a few days (depending on the situation of course), the Mora could more than handle the job.
The logs were about 3-4" in diameter.
The prize:
The aftermath: One of the BK17 fasteners flew out
I was disappointed that one of the bolts holding the BK17 scales flew out, probably while chopping. A couple drops of lock-tite would have surely prevented this from happening, but I plan on replacing the parts with stainless steel pieces so I didn't use any. But, I hadn't messed with the scales or hardware at all, they came from the factory that way, and only made it through 20 minutes worth of work. The lesson, use lock-tite, carry an allen key and some spare hardware. The Mora did not show any signs of wear, the blade and handle were still tightly fitted with no wobbling. Neither blades showed any sign of damage.
Conclusion: Overall, the BK17 performed marginally better. It was much better at horizontal batoning/chopping, and every so slightly better vertical batoning. Both knives perform traditional knife tasks equally well, the Mora is easier to sharpen but also rusts much more quickly. Overall the Becker is a nicer piece of gear, performs better, and feels great in (my) hands. For me, it's probably the perfect belt knife because I enjoy using heavier, quality tools. When I take into account my personal satisfaction and enjoyment I get out of using the BK17, yes it is worth the price difference. Based solely on performance, no I don't think it's worth the extra price. Had this competition been between the Becker and a Mora HD, I think the performance would have been pretty equal. So if you are on a tight budget, you won't be under-knifed if you choose a Mora for your backpacking and bushwacking needs. If you like the solid feel on Beckers, you will love the 17!
First impressions: Much of first impressions are very subjective and depend on the person, these are just my opinions.
BK17: This is perhaps the most comfortable knife I have ever handled. Truth be told, I had no interest in buying a "tweener", but I handled this knife in the store and instantly knew I had to buy it. I have medium hands (for reference, any knife or firearm that's advertised as a "slim grip" typically fits me) and this knife felt like it was designed for me. Like all Beckers, it feels very solid in the hand with nice weight and balance. I like the sheath a lot, but then again I don't have very discriminating tastes when it comes to sheaths. The Cordura material is very solid, secures the knife well with 2 snaps, has Molle webbing and a pocket in the front for fire starters, sharpening stone, oil, etc. This is a much better sheath than the crappy plastic one that came with my BK2 and dulls the blade. The fit and finish on the knife were excellent, but sadly (like my BK2), the blade was pretty dull out of the box. The coating is a texture powder coating that holds ups much better than the smooth coating that came on my BK2. The knife wears well on the belt, but you definitely know its there. Nothing compared to the BK2 though (which I don't wear on my belt often). As a bonus, an extra set of tan scales were included.
Mora: As soon as I picked up the knife and sheath I was absolutely amazed at how light they were! The plastic sheath retains the knife well but if you turn it upside down and shake hard enough it does fall out. There is a small drain hole in the bottom of the sheath for water. The handle is made of a very comfortable and grippy rubber material and feels great in the hand. The blade was razor sharp right out of the box. The most attractive feature of this knife to me was the weight. When you wear it, you completely forget its there. It doesn't have the heft of the Becker, and as a result feels like a less capable tool in the hand. It definitely feels more like a knife, while the Becker feels like a solid wilderness tool.
There's no question that the quality of the Becker is far superior to the Mora, it is evident as soon as you hold them, but I wanted to know if the added performance was worth the increased price. I could buy 6 Mora's for the price of the Becker. So to the woods we went to test their survival capability (or at least their wood processing capability).
The Contestants (BK2 was just along for fun):
Test 1: Cross Grain Batoning/Chopping
As I expected, the BK17 easily won this one. The added weight and thickness of the blade allowed it to be easily batoned several inches into the wood. In the pic, the batoned area is at about 10o'clock, notice the deep chunk of wood that was taken out. The 17 also chopped a little, it didn't do very well on this branch but it chops through smaller things pretty easily.
The Mora did not bite into the wood at all, regardless of how hard I was striking it.
Test 2: Vertical Batoning (with the grain)
Regardless of your personal views on this, I feel that you must be able to baton with a survival blade/woods blade. Having a thicker, heavier, full tang blade I figured the 17 would easily win this as well; but I was surprised to find out that the Mora was able to hang right there with it. It was slightly easier with the Becker, and I'm sure the Becker could withstand to be beat on like that for longer than the Mora, but for a survival situation where you will only be batoning for a few days (depending on the situation of course), the Mora could more than handle the job.
The logs were about 3-4" in diameter.
The prize:
The aftermath: One of the BK17 fasteners flew out
I was disappointed that one of the bolts holding the BK17 scales flew out, probably while chopping. A couple drops of lock-tite would have surely prevented this from happening, but I plan on replacing the parts with stainless steel pieces so I didn't use any. But, I hadn't messed with the scales or hardware at all, they came from the factory that way, and only made it through 20 minutes worth of work. The lesson, use lock-tite, carry an allen key and some spare hardware. The Mora did not show any signs of wear, the blade and handle were still tightly fitted with no wobbling. Neither blades showed any sign of damage.
Conclusion: Overall, the BK17 performed marginally better. It was much better at horizontal batoning/chopping, and every so slightly better vertical batoning. Both knives perform traditional knife tasks equally well, the Mora is easier to sharpen but also rusts much more quickly. Overall the Becker is a nicer piece of gear, performs better, and feels great in (my) hands. For me, it's probably the perfect belt knife because I enjoy using heavier, quality tools. When I take into account my personal satisfaction and enjoyment I get out of using the BK17, yes it is worth the price difference. Based solely on performance, no I don't think it's worth the extra price. Had this competition been between the Becker and a Mora HD, I think the performance would have been pretty equal. So if you are on a tight budget, you won't be under-knifed if you choose a Mora for your backpacking and bushwacking needs. If you like the solid feel on Beckers, you will love the 17!
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