Large fixed blade - Kabar alternatives?

[Boberama]

I'm new to the whole knife thing and have already come up with an extensive wishlist (damn you people ) and I realized that I'm missing a large, fixed blade knife along the lines of a Ka-Bar.

I looked on their website and saw that the prices for these knives are very low - under $100.

Many small folders cost more than a 7" Ka-BAr, and I've never heard of the steel - 1095 Cro-somethingorother.

How are these "new" Ka-Bars and what alternatives are there in the same price range?

 

[Tsujigiri]

The steel is a slight improvement over regular 1095, with chromium added for corrosion resistance and vanadium added for wear resistant carbides. Other 7 inch knives in the same price range would be the Becker BK7 and some of Ontario's offerings.

 

[GingivitisKahn]

You are thinking of 1095 CroVan and the steel is excellent. If you are looking at a large knife along the lines of a Kabar, have a look at Kabar. The 1217 is a classic for a reason. If you want something similar but a bit more centered on camping / bushcrafting / etc., have a look at the Kabar Beckers. The BK7 is very similar though many (including me) prefer the BK2 or BK9.

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Beckerhead #42

 

[gundude73]

+1 to the BK2. great knife.

 

[cramsey3006]

There are alternatives to Kabar?

 

[marcinek]

Define "alternative to a KaBar" if you would. What, to you, does a KaBar do? And what would an "alternative" to it do?

If you do that, I think members can help you more!

 

[kfgk14]

Ontario Knife Company has a selection (RAT 7, RBS-7, Ranger RD6 or 7, Night Stalker 6 or 7) to choose from. The ESEE-6 is an incredibly high-quality, durable blade in my experience (batoning it on frozen oak, maybe? at 5 below zero?) if you can buck up the extra twenty or so bucks to get it. You can even get it with a sharpened clip point (=double edge, can't really baton it then, but if this is a fighting knife then that's fine, remember double edged blades may not be legal where you are, check your state laws, don't blame me if you end up in manacles for it).