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| Extrema Ratio MK2.1 (Desert Warfare version) along with barbed wire and Australian gum tree leaves (Eucalyptus sp.) |
The Extrema Ratio MK2.1 is a modern and beefed up version of the famous Ka Bar USMC military knife.
I'll be discussing primarily about the Geocamo (Review preview) version of this blade, ie the Desert warfare version.
The interesting Desert Warfare pattern is achieved simply by LASER engraving and the reaction of the laser beam with the N690 steel produces this gold colouration.
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| Desert warfare pattern produced by LASER engraving process reaction with N690 alloy to produce a gold colouration. |
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| Hefty stainless steel guard |
Extrema Ratio are of course using N69ZERO (Bohler N690) martensitic cobalt stainless tool steel (replaces the carbon steel), glass reinforced nylon forms the enhanced grip (replaces the leather washer grip) and high corrosion resistance stainless alloys of 300 series (non-magnetic) form the guard and pommel of the Extrema Ratio MK2.1, replaces the non stainless thin guard.
You can also see this model and the all black Mil Spec coated version here:
Of course the MK2.1 is made in Italy and the workmanship is excellent like all of their other knives I have reviewed.
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| Made in Italy. Serial numbered blades are guaranteed for life against defects in manufacturing. |
It's a very cool knife and the reason is simple, because it is exactly that, a modernised version of the original K Bar USMC knife (which still IS a very cool knife), but the MK2.1 is very much enhanced.
HOW??
An all weather fibre reinforced nylon grip. Despite lacking all of the "class" of the original leather grip, the synthetic grip truly allows this knife to be an all weather performer both wet and dry.
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| All-weather glass reinforced Nylon grip, super strong, super grippy even with wet hands. The guard also has two tie in points. Due to the design of the handle and the guard being almost flush with the grip, one could if needed, tie a pole to this blade and it would be aided in securing by the depression in the grip. |
The one piece grip/handle is very smartly designed. The edges are all nicely rounded but Fibre reinforced nylon would be slippery when wet if the entire grip was simply rounded. Now they have regular spaced grooved running perpendicularly to the axis of the blade. To further enhance traction, the handle has rounded depressions which enable one to either place fingers in them or to simply prevent what Extrema Ratio call the "Screw driver effect", that is to prevent the knife rotating in one's hands during any twisting motion. The MK 2.1 is deceptively weighty- but not too heavy at 393 grams (Knife only)- my model weighed 389 grams ie 13.9Oz. It feels solidly built.
The flat butt end is totally sensible- I know this is a moderne version of the KBar but, having a butt end flat makes a lot of sense. One can place the palm of their hand onto it and not get injured applying pressure (I know there is a joke in what I've just written- just realised it then LOL) Ok seriously now,
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| A proper pommel- which is flat and useful, can cause no injury to user, only rounded corners. The pommel also serves as the point to unscrew in order to strip down the Extrema Ratio MK2.1. Note the two holes for a lanyard. This part not only serves as a lanyard tie in point but also as a "washer" to prevent wear upon the glass reinforced Nylon (FRN) handle. This handle is a one piece moulded item. FRN is the right choice here as Forprene or Kraton would be too soft with this type of butt cap which could be used for light hammering. |
The MK2.1 came out some years back but why have I left it so long to review this blade. Well one thing I found was that the current reviews simply are either inaccurate or do not do this design justice at all and this annoyed me.
After all The Extrema Ratio MK2.1 is modelled upon one of the worlds most famous and enduring knife designs, it might be a bit hard to improve upon it. Not so. Ergonomically the MK2.1 is just as ergonomic as the original MK 2.
Being able to disassemble the MK2.1 without tool also lends itself to (all things being equal) a longer longevity due to preventative maintenance (eg thorough cleaning after submersion in salt, fresh or simply "dirty water". The handle can not rot or grow mould on it either. Reinforced nylon is extremely strong; anyone remember skateboard trucks were and still are made from this stuff along with roller blade parts, not to mention aerospace products too!
The pommel can be used as a small hammer and glass breaker.
The near full width tang is more than chunky enough to cop a beating. Let no one tell you otherwise regarding this, as they are talking without experience full stop!
I've listened to some garbage about that the tang would not be sufficient for batoning this knife? What? The tang could be a bit of wire, it's the blade which has to go through the wood, not the tang LOL. Better revise their physics lessons from school days!
The Extrema Ratio MK2.1 can handle the pace of a big camp knife and also effectual at cutting and piercing due to the narrow blade profile. Make no mistake this is still very much a military knife but is it suitable for civilian duties in the wilds?
There is absolutely no reason to suspect otherwise. Just like the original MK2 many of us own one and use it for camping.
The Multi-Purpose knife
A general multi-purpose knife means exactly that. Which is, a knife that is easy to handle and maintain in the field, a knife that can be used to accomplish many daily tasks that might require the use of a larger knife. "Multi-use" can of course mean many things to many people.
Multi-purpose also means it should be good for not just the land but the sky. The scabbard has been designed to be "Jump safe" in that there are few things that protrude (except the buckle which is rounded) from the scabbard to get caught on things when the large padded flap is closed over this knife.
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| The knife is secured by both a "safety insert" made from tough polymer which holds the blade in place and the double press stud closure. |
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| Safety Insert found on many Extrema Ratio models, especially the models intended for military use. |
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| As expected the scabbard is fully Molle compatible. It also comes with fully adjustable leg straps for the soldier on the move. |
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| The outer flap prevent accidental injury or materials getting caught on the knife itself. "Jump safe" ** |
This scabbard is a recapitulation of several of Extrema Ratio designs, with para trooping in mind. This is after all a military knife. Well stitched with heavy thread.
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| The stitching is of course very well sewn |
A survival knife????
Some might say, hey this Extrema Ratio MK2.1 could be a good survival knife! Well that really depends upon what you are trying to survive against, if it is the ravages of nature, then yes for sure I can state this as I've been there done that, deserted island thing for real, no TV crews etc, no boats to sleep aboard during the night or if you get sick of being on the island tough luck. This knife would work just fine. Not to big to carry all the time and sturdily constructed.
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| Extrema Ratio Tough AS! MK2.1 |
It wouldn't be a good survival knife to protect yourself with against a charging bull elephant, a cool head and possibly your high powered rifle- for sure.........maybe, but a knife, even a machete, forget it except for the movies!
Now I want to address this business of "Survival knives" again. Whilst a big beefy knife can be looked upon as a "survival knife" the whole point is in any survival situation that might require the use of a blade, any blade, ie from Swiss army knife to machete in size; no one in their right mind would treat this edged tool (whatever it is) like it's some kind of hammer or pry bar. Unless you want to destroy possibly your most precious tool you have with you (with exception of your brain). People that have truly been in survival situations where a edged tool has been required will tell you this. They were NOT bashing away at the spine with rocks like what is commonly seen in stupid YouTube knife reviews- there, I said it and I'm not taking it back. This kind of "testing"BTW is total BS and not only that, serves to possibly "work harden" the material and or induce metal fatigue from this kind of ridiculous pounding. People who have never (and that's good- you're lucky) been anywhere near a survival situation will tell you otherwise and unfortunately there is now a whole "culture" if you like spouting absolute BS about what constitutes a "survival knife" and how one goes about testing it. Just good click bait really. And to sum this up with a slight quotation from a recent TED talk, "No one has to click on these click bait type videos to encourage others and also set Google's crazy algorithms working overtime to "suggest" what the next video we might like to watch. No male wants to hear otherwise, as it goes against our ego's but that's fact sorry.
ANYWAY I digress........
Let's take this cool version of the MK2, the Extrema Ratio MK2.1 out into the field as my only fixed blade and see how I find it as a "Multi-purpose" knife. Several hours in the hand, I'm not regretting it. Stick around!
** Use common sense, I'm not a para trooper.
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