Recommendation? BK16 as a general purpose Bushcraft knife

LoneWolf X

LoneWolf X

Joined
Dec 6, 2007
Messages
169
Hey everyone! I've been absent for quite awhile but finally trying to get back on my Beckerhead requirements, :)

I recently was asked by someone what knife would I recommend as a good Bushcrafting knife to give to a family member who'd "messed-up" the one he'd had. Now if that's not a tough question to answer, I dont know what would be! I'm like; "Well, what did he have?" Answer: "I don't know."
"Ok... what kinds of other knives does he have?" Answer: "I don't know."
"Right, then...umm, what kind of bushcraft activites does he like to do? Carving, feathersticking, batoning, food prepping...?" Answer: "I don't know. He likes to go camping."
"Oookaay...do you think he's into large knives or small size knives? Does he prefer Stainless blades or Carbon? Ya know it'd help answering the question to know if he practices batoning and uses his knife in a wide variety of tasks or just simply wants a good knife more suited to specific uses."
Answer: "I dont really know."
NOT the kind of information that helps me actually give a recommendation! I mean; THIS is one of the most opinionated and debated topics in any knife forum and there are entire Youtube channels devoted to the topic!
I'm like: "Bro! There's no simple, straightforward answer to that question because it depends on each individual and his/her personal tastes, practices and priorities. The 'knife' can be anything from a Busse Battle Mistress to an Opinel No. 2!"
I've seen this question posed on this very forum too many times to count and the "fans" of various makes, ie.; Esee, Ontario, Fallkniven, Morakniv, Schrade, Condor, TOPS, Helle, Benchmade, and of course, Ka-bar/Becker - all offer voices for thier choices.
So. With very little to go on, except, "Well, cant really afford to spend TOO much ya know..." and not knowing what 'school of thought' the fellow is in concerning Bushcraft style knives, nor how he'll be using it I decided immediately that ANY Ka-bar BK&T knife would be the RIGHT answer! But to give a specfic model recommenndation is harder still... so, I'm thinking that of all the BK&T line readily available and also a good ALL-AROUND GP camp knife that isnt TOO big, isnt TOO small, isnt TOO expensive and can handle fine detail work and even some light batoning needs is the BK16 "Tweener".
Did I make a good call?
 
Good call. Handles a little bit of everything and has a nice, comfy handle. Maybe the BK62 if there's a traditional flair to the guy. Both are great in different ways but the BK62 is going to cost more.
 
I have an assortment of axes, hatchets, hawks, and the knives I use to carry were varoius Swiss Army knives and Moras for fixed blades. If I wasn't going to pack at least a tomahawk, I have handmade survival axe blades, and I would pack one of those for heavier work if needed. Now that I have been knives like the BK16, I don't feel naked without one of those axe blades or a hawk because the 16 can handle so much. It would be difficult for me to switch back.

111mm Victorinox, Mora, & BK16 for comparison.
 
MolokaiRider said:
The USN MK1 and a BK16 in my humble opinion are hall of fame knives.
Click to expand...

True that. ^^

You advised wisely in regards to the BK-16. While i am far from a bushcraft expert I have heard with my own ears none other than our very own Ethan Becker say that "if there's shoes under [his] feet ... there's a BK-16 on [his] person." This alone speaks volumes. This comment was pre-BK62, but telling nonetheless.

Because I am admittedly not much of bushcrafter, but do enjoy hunting, camping and tromping around in the woods, I can say that the BK16 is a very useful knife - having a size, weight and shape that makes it hard to ignore.
 
Thanks to all for the encouragement and validation! A very grateful "Thank You" to the man himself for gracing this humble post with his personal attention!
There is absolutely NO doubts in my mind the BK16 was the perfect choice. As an update; the fellow in question is a new member of our family- a very wonderful young man who married my niece last month. It was his father-in-law (my younger brother) who approached me with the question. Actually he wanted to know if I had a knife in my collection that would be a "good bush craft knife" that I didn't want anymore that he could buy from me to give to his new son-in-law as a Christmas present.
Unfortunately I couldn't think of any in my personal collection that I wanted to part with nor did I feel at peace with gifting a used "hand-me-down, and since my brother's financial situation isn't presently as strong as my own I insisted he permit me to purchase a brand new model for him. My brother knows its futile to contend with me in such instances and gratefully accepted the offer.
Myself, I've been "thrilled" to have this opportunity to increase my Nephew-in-law's knife knowledge and outdoor activities. This kind of thing really blesses me and I was SO excited to get the BK16 for him I just had to throw in a set of micarta handle scales as well; I mean, I have 'em on all my Beckers and love 'em!
So, tonight we had an early Christmas dinner and gift giving family gathering (since certain in the family had other engagements scheduled for Christmas day proper) and the knife was presented to our new son/nephew-in-law and he was VERY pleased and excited with the BK16! Absolutely captivated with it.
I had the opportunity to talk with him after and learn more from him about his experience and history with knife use and camping. Turned out he loves camping and goes as often as possible but knows little about knives and particular bush craft skills. The previous "broken" knife he had was, "something made by Coleman with about a 3 or 4 inch blade." I shared some particulars about the BK16 and how he should care for it as a Carbon steel knife, showed him the other Kb BK&T knives I have and boasted of the BK&T's virtues and the genius of their inventor Ethan Becker then I pointed him to this very forum and encouraged him to frequent this place to mine is vast knowledge base and experience the true comradery and fellowship to be enjoyed with the good folks 'round here. He and my niece have a camping trip planned for next week and he can't wait to try out the 16!
 
Awesome suggestion LoneWolf X LoneWolf X . You nailed it.

It's the best all around bushcrafting/camping knife I've ever owned. It's not a good chopping knife, but no knife this size ever could be. I like to pair mine with a small saw and at that point there is no task that can't be done. You can saw rounds up to about 4", and then baton with the BK16 to split them, and then use it to make feather sticks and piles of shavings for the fire. If you really want to add a hatchet to the mix it's always welcome, but I don't find it necessary at that point. The knife and saw can do it all on their own.

The BK16 takes a lovely edge and slices like a demon whether on wood, or in the kitchen. It has the most ergonomically sound handle i've EVER felt, and can be used for hours at a time without fatigue. I know people say "you can't not have a 9." I feel differently. I can get along just fine without a 9. For me "you can't not have a 16." It is undoubtedly my most used woods knife. It probably sees more use that all my other bushcrafting knives combined.

I will say, the only people who tend not to like the tweener handles are those who have hands that could palm a beachball. For everyone with hands somewhere between the 10th and 90th percentiles, the handle tends to fit just fight. Certainly the case with me.

IMG_5402.jpg
 
Yeah, you did good on the BK-16 suggestion. If it weren't for the BK-15, I would probably have been using it for my woods excursions. Now, I have the BK-62 that is going to fill that role for a while at least until I get comfortable with it. Hard to push the BK-15 into secondary status. But I use the BK-15 as one of my standards. Mora's... naah. Have a couple, but I'd take the BK-15 any day of the week over any Mora I have.

I don't own a "9" by the way. I just know I would never or seldom use it like the BK-7. I'm mostly past just getting a knife because "everyone likes it".
 
Just chiming in to also say YES you made the right choice! I'm not a huge fan of buying knives for folks without their input because personal preference is so important, but the BK16 is definitely a perfect choice if you do want to gift someone a knife. I've gifted several BK16s and each person has been very happy!
 
You made a great call on the BK16!
It’s such a great all-arounder, it’s really hard to go wrong!

High carbon steel-check.
USA quality made-check.
Great design and ergos-check.
Good value and great warranty-check.

I’d recommend the BK16 to anyone looking for a quality camp knife as well.
 
UPDATE:
My nephew-in-law messaged me yesterday after returning from an overnight camp-out with a word on his Becker Christmas gift...

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He wasted no time putting it to good use!
What was that motto for Ethan's creations I saw somewhere?..., oh yeah; Becker Knives "Work for a living".
And I would add: "Work VERY WELL!"
 
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