Bark River Knives. Has there been any improvement in QC?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 ธ.ค. 2024
- After swearing off Bark River Knives, I stumbled upon this Gunny LT with a Magnacut blade and Lager G-10 handles. There was just something about the handle of this knife that really attracted me. I also wanted to have an example of Magnacut by Bark River to see if it is truly Magnacut, behaves like Magnacut, and has a good heat treat. The Gunny is my favorite pattern. Not sure why , but it really is a great size and if done properly, the handle is very comfortable for long periods of work. Watch and see if this was a good purchase, or if I have yet another reason to boycott Bark River.
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I have 10 Bark River knives and EVERY single one of them is spot on perfect. Bark River will ALWAYS have my support.
Based on the comments from lots of other folks, you are definitely in the minority. I'm happy for you. I also am a realist and know that perfection is in the eye of the beholder.
@@knifetimestory *Hello again 🙂Being a perfectionist is a terrible disease. Unfortunately, there is no cure for it. I deal with minor BRK errors by refining the grinding and polishing at the end. Generally, I find errors in all knives.*
@@user-ww4od4jl1fit’s Called care in your work which they don’t have, considering their go to response when it comes to faults and issues which is blaming and guilt tripping customers 😂
Bought one about ten years ago. Kalahari hunter in A2 with antique stag scales. Zero convex. Wouldn't hold an edge long enough to field dress one deer. The Great Lakes Leather sheath didn't last one weekend on my hip before the stitching started to tear on the belt loop. Now it's a $300 paper weight. Meanwhile my $35 Buck 110 Light is light saber sharp, holds decent, sharpens easy and the synthetic sheath is holding up fine after five years with tons of carry time.
Man, that's a bummer about the Kalahari! At least your Buck 110 is still rocking it! Sometimes the budget options surprise you, huh?
I bought this knife and I absolutely love it, probably one of my favorite knives. I put a zero convex on mine and it stays sharp for a long time.
It's awesome to hear that you love your knife! A zero convex edge is a great choice for keeping it sharp. Happy cutting!
Congratulations on getting a perfect Bark River. I have 15, and only 5 are near perfect in fit and finish. I just saw two yesterday that someone had just ordered, and both of them were very good fit and finish. Maybe they have fixed their quality control problems since I stopped buying them 2 years ago.
My magna-cut knives from Bark River perform about like 3V, but are less stainless. Mine were some of the early magna-cut knives from Bark River, so maybe they've fixed that too.
Good luck with your knives.
I really appreciate your congrats and insights! It’s always interesting to hear from fellow enthusiasts. Wishing you the best with your collection too!
I live your videos. Thanks again for all of your hard work.
Thank you so much! I’m glad you enjoy the videos. Your support means a lot to me!
Man, I thought I was the only one. You pretty much described my feelings and experience with BRK. My first one, purchased through Knives Ship Free, arrived dull. As in, not sharp at all. Even though I could've sharpened it, I sent it back just out of the principle of the matter. Years later I gave BRK another chance. Did all my purchasing through eBay. I went through a few of them, some decent, some with problems. I gave them all away. And then I saw the Canadian leaf-shaped blade UP Gunny. Found one on eBay with green canvas Micarta scales and had to have it. Left the lame leather sheath in the box and had a Yellow Hawk Custom Kydex sheath made for it. Pretty much the only BRK I will care to own despite it having some imperfections. Oh well. Happy National Knife Day!
I had a UP Gunny, but it was called the UP EDC. I found the handle to blade geometry to be a little awkward. Mine was in A2 and after I got an edge on it, it worked great. But, I just could not get comfortable with the small handle.
Glad you have one you like!!
I read tons of reviews and noticed more poor reviews in recent years. This year, I made some overtime at work, so I decided to try Bark River. I bought a Fox River EXT-1 in magnacut, a Bravo 1.5 Lt in Cru-Wear, and a Bravo 1.5 in 3V. I’m satisfied with the quality of workmanship of all of them. One has a small grind mark on the blade near the scales, but it’s more of a beauty mark:). I really didn’t need two Bravos, but I bought the two different sizes to see which one I liked better. I kept both:).
Nice haul! Those Bark Rivers are sweet! And who can resist a little beauty mark? You made the right call getting both Bravos-variety is the spice of life, right?
Mr.Tom....i applaud your candor and brutal honesty. Another fine video. I've had decent luck with Barkies. Regarding timestamp: 03:20-03:30....I like the knives, nuff said. Have a super weekend Sir.
Thank you so much for your support! I’m thrilled to hear you liked the video and found value in the Barkies. Wishing you a fantastic weekend as well!
I don't have to worry about getting a bad QC Bark River because I could never afford one. I use a Old Hickory Burcher knife and a BPS knife.
Good video Tom. I enjoy your take on Bark River. I own a stack of them. Doubles and triples on the Bushcrafter and Bravo, and Aurora models. I had one knife my little Aurora Mini that wasn’t sharpened appropriately, which I remedied with a slack belt. I just can’t find fault in them. I have only 3V and CruWear models. So I’m 15 out of 15 with no visible blemishes. Gunny is a great knife, little small in the handle for me, but if I use it for a minute my hand accommodates it. I throw my sheaths away, or stick Moras in them. Patriot leather and Tops Bushcrafter sheaths, or Knife connection sheaths are my go to solutions. My take on Bark River? If I could only have one knife, it would be a Bushcrafter in 3V. I’d part with all of them before I let it go. Not a fan boy at all, I just use a lot of knives and everything from aesthetics, ergonomics, performance and edge retention is there for me. So that’s my take on BR. Like Forest said and that’s all I’ve got to say bout that. Thank you for making another great video.
Thanks for the love, man! Sounds like you’ve got a killer stash of Bark River knives. Can’t go wrong with the Bushcrafter; it’s a real gem!
@@SWORD1-cm4vb Agree 💯%❗️ Your experience with Bark River has been just like mine. We also agree on the “if I only had one Bark River” selection.
Yep. The Bushcrafter is king. Actually my first purchase 6 years ago when I started my knife addiction. Could have stopped right there and saved 50,000. But I fell down the rabbit hole. I’d recommend it as a first and last purchase to any guy that wants best woods tool available. If my hand was smaller the Gunnie Scandi would be just as good. Buschcrafter is my belt knife. I keep a Bravo II or a Bravo III in my pack for batoning and destruction along with a collapsable saw . Handles everything I come across.
A BRK with good fit and finish, unbelievable
Unbelievable, right? It's like finding a unicorn in a sea of donkeys!
I've had a few and only 1 of the I believe 10 have lasted. It's a Barkriver Northstar A2 steel I believe. I've had it going on 10 years. It's become my dedicated deer hunting knife. Something about this knife just fits my hand perfectly and it slices amazingly. It is a discontinued model but it's one I won't get rid of. Even the sheath for it is good. All the others are long gone by now like you said most have had issues there was only 1 that was "perfect".
A knife that lasts a decade? That’s like finding the holy grail of hunting gear! I think it’s time to give that Northstar a little trophy shelf of its own!
@@knifetimestorythe key to keeping it for a long time is being the only one that uses it and keeping it close to your body while hunting 😆. I've lost a few Benchmade knives hunting I learned to put the knife on then the outer layer lol. And I definitely will be giving that knife a special spot once I retire it. But I haven't found anything I like enough to replace it with lol.
Good advice!
👍 I learn so much from your videos.
In this case I learned that we have both purchased ~20 knives from Bark River.
A difference is that I have never received a bad knife and have found Mike Stewart remarkably easy to converse with.
In fact, I remember telling you I thought Mr. Stewart might be watching your videos when I received one of their knives with a much improved leather sheath.
One of the very well made knives I received was a Gunny. I can see why it would be a great knife for a deployed Marine, but it was simply too bulky for my purposes.
One might argue that 20 knives is too many and why would you have so many from one maker. Well, I now only own 2 Bark River knives. I have a rule that if I buy an additional knife or firearm or a car or a boat or a house one I already own must go.
If I buy an additional Bark River knife it only makes sense one of the other Bark River knives must go.
Sometimes I have so many Bark River knives the culled knife has just got to be a Bark River.
In any event I am sorry we have had such different experiences with Mr. Stewart. What does he say when you call to discuss these problems?
No offense to anybody but I am not that familiar with DBK. Every-time I try to watch one of their videos I could not get past the goofy childish intros. 🤷🏻♂️
100% agree with you. I have quite a few Bark Rivers and they are all great knives. Incredible choice of designs, handle materials and all hand made. Their convex grinds are brilliant. The knives are rugged and tough to cope with just about anything a sensible person would use them for. I won't be selling any of mine. Nice to see some positivity about companies trying to make great knives for us. Good on you mate?
@@Dandenongkelly Thank you for the support. I like their knives and enjoy speaking with Mike Stewart. I am a particular fan of when he ran Marbles Knives.
Thank you for sharing your experience! It's interesting to hear how different our interactions with Mike Stewart have been. It sounds like you have a solid system for managing your knife collection!
@@knifetimestory This conversation heated up my desire to own another Bark River knife; so, I just purchased another one. I’ll report on the quality when I receive it.
Please do!!
*Being a perfectionist is a terrible disease. Unfortunately, there is no cure for it.I asked at the pharmacy a few times. I deal with minor BRK errors by refining the grinding and polishing at the end. Generally, I find errors in all knives.😉*
Perfectionism: the only disease where the cure is just a bit more grinding! Who knew our hobbies could turn into such complex medical cases?
@@knifetimestory *"just a bit more grinding" 🙂 Do you know the rule for fixing a crooked Christmas tree? First, you cut off the uneven branch on the bottom right. Then you see that the left one is uneven. You repeat until you have the last branch on the top. A knife (which was only slightly crooked at the begining) may end up in a similar way: ground to death ;-)*
I like that!
@@knifetimestory 😉
Out of 9, i got 8 nearly perfect just one with an uneven grind but all work perfectly for me.
I like bark river. What I don't like is other bark river customers. I will not be like everyone else and complain about them.
What are you trying to say?
Owned 5 BRKs. Very diffrent finnish of them all. Some sides grind higher than the other side. Sheats vary in quality.
My point exactly. Sorry you have to share my experience. Fan Boys just don't get it. But, then again, to be a Fan Boy, you must have suffered some sort of brain damage at some point in your life. I think they are automatically provided with Handicap parking tags when they get a license.
Jus purchased my first bark river bravo 1 in A2 one side is ground a bit higher but nothing worth sending it back the handle and ergos on mine are absolutely perfect can't complain there I think Im going to wait for a Aurora in 3v and possibly a cub in 3v and that will probably be the only barkies in my collection honestly I love Lt wright knives they are better fit and finish in my opinion great vid thanks for sharing
Hey Tom. Great Video. I recently started my BRK journey about a month ago. I currently have 3. Bravo 1 LT in Cru-Wear. Kephart 4 in 3V and my most recent Gunny LT in Magnacut.
With that being said my Bravo and Kephart are perfect. Having purchased on the used market. However my Gunny LT pins on the scales are not level or in line with one another. Have you seen this before? And do you know if BRK can fix this permitting they have the scales kicking around? And in you’re opinion, if you had to chose one knife between the Bravo 1LT or the Gunny LT which one would you chose and why? Thanks for any advice you can lend regarding this matter
Ah, the classic case of the wonky pins! It’s like they’re trying to dance but forget the rhythm! I’ve seen this before, and BRK should be able to help out if they have the parts. As for picking favorites, I’d say the Bravo 1 LT is like the trusty sidekick, while the Gunny LT is the cool but slightly classier hero!
Never bought a bark river although looked several times. Something about them just annoyed me. Maybe because they seem to want to make 47 variations of the same knife. I only need a few fancier fixed blades and I’ve been very satisfied with my 3 l.t. Wright knives. Well made, fairly priced, good attention to detail. Nice vid.
Ah, the classic dilemma of "do I really need another knife that looks almost the same?" It's like Bark River decided to make a new flavor of ice cream for every day of the year! Glad you found your perfect match with L.T. Wright!
@@knifetimestory yeah combined with I didn’t like the guy who owns the company at least based on his videos. Lately I ve been focusing on good quality cheaper folders. Recently bought a Kizer amicus which I highly recommend.
I've had 3 Kizers. Notice that reads "had". Just can't warm up to them. Sure...fit and finish is great, but I just have not had one that gave me that warm and fuzzy!!!
@@knifetimestory I’m generally not crazy about the Chinese knives. I like the amicus because it has both the button lock and the flipper. A true one handed for both opening and closing. It’s also good size for edc for me anyway. By the way, one of the things I like about your channel is your willing to actually express an opinion. Very helpful.
Thank you for your kind words and praise. I appreciate that. My opinion is simply that. Mine. I've never cared if it did not jive or meld with anyone else's opinion. That...and the fact I have no sponsors or brand deals, I can say whatever I want with impunity. That is a good feeling. I'm glad there are folks like you out there who enjoy that sort of thing. Thank you!!
Great video, honest and to the point. I own 3 BRK and all of them came with something wrong. The last one I got is also a Gunny LT. Where can I get a sheath like yours?
Thank you for your kind words.
As for the sheath, I have a box of them from previous knives I no longer own or had Kydex made for, the the exact provenance is not known. You can type Bark River Gunny sheath in eBay and see some that are made for that size/style of knife that I'm sure will work great. I'd do that if I did not have the box.
Honesty, I enjoy that in a review. Thank you.
Thank you for your kind words! I’m glad you value honesty as much as I do. It really makes the effort worthwhile!
I’m on the hunt for a sheath like that just bounced off of your trash can and heater register cover for a Bravo 1.25 if you have one you can throw it my way. 🙄
I do not have any. They are all in the landfill. Sorry about that.
Clicked on the Canadian dealer for this knife, a single one side photo of this knife. The second photo for this $300 knife was the stupid flat sheath Bark River was too cheap to mold.
Frustrating isn't it!!
I am like you, I have not gotten one that was perfect and most are pretty roughly made. That said most of them are fixable with a little effort if you are interested. If not, you can just return them.
Their designs are quite unique, so might keep going back. Convex grind is hard to beat, at least from US makers.
I think i have 9 of them. I found a flaw in one grip that had a slight gap in about 1/8 of an inch in the base. They have worked great for me. I am not a fan of the sheaths. I usually swap them out for kydex. I'm not a fan of leather.
It can really be a crap shoot with them as far as quality. I'm with you on the leather sheath part. There is a space in the landfill dedicated just to their sheaths. If they get the heat treat right, yes...their knives work great. I'm still happy with this Gunny LT and the Ultralite Bushcrafter I also have but have not featured on a video.
That is the way. Ebay or similar. In past times before I heard too much about Stewart, I bought a few. And since I'm a cheap bastard, I did not buy new from a dealer but secondhand via Ebay. And only offers with good pictures. All my specimens are very good in fit and finish.
Ah, the thrill of the hunt! Who needs a dealer when you can be a savvy eBay pirate? Just watch out for those sketchy listings-no one wants to end up with a rubber chicken instead of a fine specimen!
What has been your experience with Bark River? All positive? All negative or a mixed bag? This is honestly the first one that is practically perfect in every way...except for that sheath. Do you think BRK could use a little guidance when it comes to pairing a good knife with a proper sheath?
I've only had 2 knives from them but both have been perfect. One was a Bravo Necker II about 12 years ago, and the other is a MagnaCut EXT-1 which has been great so far. Wouldn't mind a Bravo 1 in 3V or Cru-Wear at some point.
I have about 10 Bark Rivers and I’ve been very satisfied with the ones I have. That being said, I haven’t bought any in over 5 years. I have all I need. And I’ve seen too many crappy ones on their Facebook forum to consider any now. Recently, someone preordered a knife to honour a friend. It came with a fuller that was awful. You could see the tooling marks inside the fuller. The OP said the knife was $600. For that price, the knife should have been perfect. I’ve seen much better fullers on Buck 119s. Of course, in the comments, there were defenders. It’s HanDmAde! Yes, a lot of work by BR is by hand. But there are a lot of knives made by hand. And they look perfect. The comments on the post were quickly shut down on the post by an admin.
Totally get you! It’s wild how some knives can look so rough around the edges for that kind of cash. I’d expect perfection too! What’s your favorite Bark River model?
@@knifetimestory Gunny. I like the size and how it fits in my hand.
Excellent choice. My favorite as well!!
I agree with your comment. A knife shouldn't have bad fit and finish just because it's handmade.
how do i wet mold a sheath?
Pretty easy. I wet the sheath with tap water pouring over just the part the handle will be inside of. After it is pliable, I insert the sheath, use my thumbs to press the leather, and follow the shape of the handle on the front and back of the sheath, then when I'm happy with the look and shape, I remove the knife and push the front of the sheath towards the back of the sheath to make the cavity I had just created, just a bit narrower. That way when everything dries, the leather will still be in the shape of the sheath, but also have a little "spring" to it, and squeeze the knife a little to help with retention.
If you leave the knife in while it dries, you run the risk of rusting, or swelling the handle and the sheath will not be tight.
Hope that helps. Keep me posted.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Enjoy your week.🇺🇲🌲🔥🔪
I really appreciate your comment! Wishing you a wonderful week too!
I got lucky on all my Bark rivers. I have reservations on buying more though because all the bad reviews. Yes, my knives are save queens because clinical OCD is tricky. LOL. I really love Battle horse knives today. The spines have a really strong burr on both sides. You can even cut yourself if you are not careful.
It's great to hear you had a good experience with Bark Rivers! It's always wise to do your research before making a purchase, especially when reviews can vary so much. Battle Horse knives definitely have a reputation for quality, just be cautious with those spines!
So ure basically saying that the quality over all is more like meh when it comes to finishing and u got a good one like a mistake. 🤔
With my overall experience with Bark River knives, yes I think the fact that this knife is darn near perfect, is a fluke an accident, and an anomaly.
If you buy one, sight unseen, good luck to you!
they were good 2010-2018ish lol from what was explained to me from older guys involved was that the owner fucked up the reputation of the company being an asshole to a lot of people on knife forums and 2010 forward on he was trying to rebuild his image as a decent socially acceptable person LOL I honestly dont care about that because I just want my knives to be what I ordered
Makes sense to me. He was a very arrogant, lofty a-hole when I met him at the SHOT show in 1995 back when Blackjack knives was still a thing. He did say something very funny about Randall Knife owners that I still chuckle at when I think about. But other than that, it was as if he was doing me a favor by being there, when it was me who was doing him a favor in talking to him and potentially stocking my store with is product. Needless to say, I got the vibe that he would be a complete PITA to deal with and I opted to carry Benchmade and Spydero instead.
@@knifetimestory
Spyderco is solid.
Awesome share
Thank you so much! Your support means a lot to me!
I just ordered one from them last night….nervous.
You and me both! If it is not what you want, send it back and tell them why. I do hope though, you get one that is perfect and that you love it.
LOL. I hope Bark River watch this clip and improve their QC.
One can only hope!
I have one that has 0 imperfections.
Zero? Wow. That is like a unicorn. Sounds like a keeper.
Well, I own only one Barkie, just to say I do. It's an Aurora and it seems to be pretty good, except for the dog-crap sheath. I'd never buy another, just on principle alone. But I do understand seeing a knife that you like, buying it and using it, even IF it's a BR knife.
That is a sweet blade. I like the logger handles, but the sheath has me stumped... That's my lumber one complaint about BR: I get board seeing such crappy sheaths on expensive knives, and that one is one of the worst I 'saw'... Saying that, what's a 'feller' gonna do? 🤷🏼♂️
😔
(PS, my Irish friend, I think those scales, being translucent, might have looked even better without liners, but I'm an idiot, so...)
Hello, my Canadian brother. I've never owned the Aurora, but have noticed it gets a lot of love.
Yes, I would have preferred the scales without liners. Maybe one like that will surface someday and I'll snag it. But, at least the liners are not white, green, or orange. Red would have been okay...black too I guess, but the natural is the least glaring so I went with it. It is also a fatter handle than any of the other gunnies I've owned. It would fit your mitts for sure.
If you're not going to cut with it I guess it matters
Not sure what you mean?
@@knifetimestory
Most people who own these knives don’t _actually_ use them. Anyone can tell who does and who doesn’t when some guy giving a so-called knife review says “it’s my favorite knife I use all the time” and yet it doesn’t have a scratch on it. 😂
Anyone doing a review and simultaneously showing a brand new or near new knife shouldn’t be doing a review, let alone being watched and taken seriously.
*You are a storyteller. Do you have any other hobbies?*
Whittling and working out in the woods making hiking paths.
@@knifetimestory *I envy you. Last time I saw a real forest was 3 years ago. But I have many BRK knives, also Bravo 1 LT Magnacut. 2 x Gunny 3V etc.*
Thank you for sharing your knife collection with me! It sounds impressive! I hope you get a chance to reconnect with nature soon-it's a great escape...and cheaper than a weekly trip to the psychologist.
@@knifetimestory Ha ha ha 🙂I've never been to a psychologist before! I have 13 BRK knives so far. Also 2 LT Wright, 2 ESEE, 2 White River, 4 LionKnives, 4 Marttiini, 1 Casstrom, 3 Fallkniven, 2 Joker, Boker, etc. I also hope to go to the forest someday. Which is a problem in a multi-million city where there are only forests on the outskirts. But this might be a good idea.
Wow, that's quite the collection of knives! It sounds like you're ready for any outdoor adventure. I hope you get a chance to explore those forests soon!
*If someone has a severe case of perfectionism, they should get themselves a well-equipped workshop and make their own knife, then sit back and admire their work ;-)*
I agree.