Bark River Bravo Necker

Knife Collectors Org. Review:

The Bark River Bravo Necker is the first dedicated “neck knife” that is produced by Bark River. Although they have other knives that are similar in size, none are as lightweight as the Bravo Necker. It is produced in 6 different blade coatings (which are electrostatically applied, giving the buyer a nice range of colours to choose from. One thing that makes the Bark River Bravo Necker stand out among other neck knives in its range is that it offers a wide variety of blade coatings, and also a wide range of handle colours to choose from. Such ability to customize a neck knife is rarely offered by knife manufacturers. The optional handle scales that a2e attached to the Bravo Necker allow for more comfortable and extended use, especially for those with medium to large hands.

However, there have been a few cases where the Bravo Necker was put to some hard use (outdoors for batoning and whittling) and the knife did not hold up that well. Some users reported that the edge rolled and had minor chips after a short period of use. In reply, Mike Stewart of Bark River Knives said that the Bravo Necker was not meant to be a bushcraft knifee2C but rather a utility knife. He said that “the neckers are indeed light – they [are] not made for general use” and they have “thin edges”. In contrast, the other comparable neck knives (ESEE/Rat Izula & Becker Necker) handle light batoning tasks without trouble, with many owners often putting their Izulas or Becker Neckers to hard use while hiking or camping. Despite this, there is a video by one of Bark River’s staff on YouTube showing him doing some hard core batoning, so the quality of the steel remains questionable.

Overall, it is a shame that the Bravo Necker was built to be just a utility knife for self-defence or simple tasks. Most people would have wanted to use this knife together with a larger fixed blade when camping. There is a larger version of the Bravo Necker being produced currently (Bravo Necker 2). Most people however are happy with their Bravo Necker, and it is only fair that such a small knife cannot be expected to be able to handle batoning and such.

Pros:

  • Nice looking and well-designed neck knife
  • Convex edge (not often seen on neck knives)
  • Light weight
  • Wide range of blade colours to choose from
  • Can be fixed with handles (wide range of colours again) for more comfortable use
  • Supplied kydex sheath is good enough for use

Cons:

  • Steel quality questionable (see above)
  • Not meant for hard use (as implied by Bark River)
  • Expensive, especially with options (arguably cheaper and better options out there)

Editor’s Rating: 7/10

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Specifications:

Blade Length: 2.5″ x .13″
Length Closed: -NA-
Overall length: 6.25″
Blade Steel: 12C27 Stainless Steel
Blade hardness: Rc. 58
Blade Finish: Electrostatic powder coat, except blade surface (Black, Green, Orange, Red, Tan, Yellow)
Weight: 1.5 oz. (knife only)
Edge: Plain, Convex
Lock Type: -NA-
Carry System: Kydex Sheath with firesteel
Handle Material: (Customer’s choice, interchangeable)
Knife Type: Fixed Blade
Country of origin: USA
Part #: -NA-

Rarity Details:

Production Status: In Production
Last Known MSRP: Premium Member Content (see FAQs)
Current Estimated Price: Premium Member Content
Production dates: Premium Member Content
Production numbers: -unknown-
Limited run?: No
Other things of interest: –
Rarity Index: 4/10 (10 being the most rare)

Rarity index scale (1 to 10, 10 being the most rare):

1 – Very common; easily available on ebay, google product search and almost every knife selling website. Spammed with at least 10+ listings on ebay.
3 – Has been around for at least 2 years and are selling reasonably well, with retailers favouring other newer models over this knife.
5 – Knives that are on the borderline of being discontinued or have been discontinued for less than 6 months
6 – Products from 6 onwards are either discontinued or limited edition.
7 – Discontinued knives that pop up once every few months on the “For Sale” part of forums or on ebay. Still can be found at a few online shops though.
8 – Knives that need lots of researching to find. Not available anymore in online knife shops and pop up (if you’re lucky) >4 months for one at a time.
9 – Knives holding this rarity are the shadowy kind. You can’t find any information on them at all (not even from online knife shops that have not taken down that knife’s product page). If you see one for sale grab at all cost.
10 – The rarest of all knives. If you hadn’t been here you wouldn’t even have known that it existed. Should you have one of these you better lock it up in a triple-combination safe and treat it like a family heirloom…

 

Product Description:

The Bravo Necker is more than a neck knife — it’s a system. And as well as Bark River did making this necker, it isn’t finished until you make it your own.

The Bravo Necker is crafted of tough, fine-grained 12C27 stainless steel and, as you’d expect from Bark River, convex-ground. The knife is electrostatically powder-coated before it is ground. The blade itself is polished bare and satin-finished, increasing its cutting efficiency by 50% over similar knives’ coated blades.

The standard Bravo Necker package includes a black Kydex sheath which captures the knife securely with a positive “click,” making it ideal for inverted neck carry.

As it is, the basic Bark River Bravo Necker is a complete and capable knife (and a great value). It’s also a solid platform which you can customize to suit your idea of what a neck knife should be.

If you prefer a more traditional handle over the standard skeletonized tang, the Bravo Necker offers the option of adding one or more handle sets to your personal neck-knife system. These interchangeable handles — a Bark River first — are precision-machined, front and back, to mate with the tang and are held in place with screw sets. An integral storage compartment between the slabs can hold small survival necessities like tinder, fish hooks, etc.

Speaking of necessities, the Bravo Necker system also includes “misch metal” firesteels. Misch metal is a rare-earth alloy which, when scraped quickly, produces fireballs of molten metal that last longer than the fleeting sparks produced by ordinary firesteels. These optional firesteels fit snugly into a channel designed into the Bravo Necker’s standard Kydex sheath, as well as the firesteel loop provided on the optional leather sheath.

That’s right — for those who prefer leather to plastic, the Bravo Necker system also includes an optional KSF leather sheath. This innovative design holds the Bravo Necker firmly — whether worn as a neck rig or on the belt — and yet delivers the knife into your hand with just a flick of your thumb.

With all of these choices — powder-coat colors, handle sets, sheaths and firesteels — your Bark River Bravo Necker can be whatever you want it to be. So now that the secret’s out, it’s time to put together a Bravo Necker system that works for you!