Mike C.
Atlanta, GA

Jan 12, 2012

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Materials, Finish

Cons: Sheath/Scabbard

Boker AF12 Knife

The 6" plain blade AF-12 Boker Applegate-Fairbairn remains a exceptionally well-designed fighting implement. Style is classic. Soligen 440C is fine - some prefer others but it's fine as long as you keep it sharp. This is not a hunting or skinning knife but essential in the situation where silence is to be maintained. I have found it cuts three ways - long, wide and deep. The weighted handle can be adjusted if you require a lighter touch. A great addition to my collection.

Rick S
MA.

Jun 29, 2012

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Materials, Blade Sharpness

Cons: Sheath/Scabbard

HECK OF A KNIFE

FEELS AND LOOKS GREAT NICE BALANCE

Buckskin
Jim Chunk, PA. USA

Jun 30, 2011

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Sheath/Scabbard, Materials, Finish, Blade Sharpness

Cons: None

Excellent Fighting Knife

Having read a lot of articles on Col. Rex Applegate and Fairbairn, I feel it's a good choice, especially the weighted handle. Its like it doesn't want to leave your hand. The Ultimate knife should be sized for the owners hand, etc.

Zoran M
Belgrade, Serbia

Dec 23, 2011

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Finish

Cons: Sheath/Scabbard, Blade Sharpness

Perfect!!

Superior quality. Fast shipping. Keep up the good work, KnifeCenter

Trickshotmcgee
Picadilly

Dec 13, 2019

Pros: Weight, Materials

Cons: Overall Quality, Blade Material

Great for competitive edge when doing a 1v1

Very nice weight and spin to the blade. COD would be proud of my skill!

Alex K.
Hussar Iryston

Oct 03, 2011

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Materials, Finish

Cons: None

Perfection

PERFECTION! Words can hardly describe the feelings from this knife. Own A-F II for several years now, but it still makes me admire!

Dan
Everywhere

Apr 25, 2012

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Sheath/Scabbard, Materials, Finish

Cons: Sheath/Scabbard

Great Knife/Garbage Sheath

The knife is sharp enough for its primary purpose. The signatures in the blade bother me a little, but, hey, credit should be given where credit is due. The balance is great. The sheath, however, is absolute garbage! The rivet (Sp?) on the tip will dmage your blade and drawing this knife from its garbage sheath would be very difficult in a stressful situation. Tek Loks (Sp?) are not all that they're boasted to be- I think they're useless. I've had this knife for two years...in a droor. Why, you might ask. Because the sheath is garbage. I just now ordered a custom sheath for it. This knife would serve well for its purpose. This is not a hunting knife. This is not a bushcraft knife. This is not a box cutter of a food prep knife. This is made to drive into the vital organs or arteries of an enemy combatant when a firearm is not appropriate or available. The sheath damages the tip of the blade (the most important part of the knife) and would prevent you from using the knife in the scenario it is designed for. I have never disliked a sheath for a knife so much. When my custom sheath arrives, I will make a point of destroying the factory sheath. I would rather have Boker send a cardboard sleeve for this knife than that piece of worthless junk.

J
Africa

Sep 21, 2015

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Materials, Finish, Blade Sharpness

Cons: None

excellent knife

This is a very nicely made knife with excellent design and balance. I see none of the flaws in manufacture or sharpening that other reviews mention. It came quite well sharpened, so only really needed some additional honing. The point is very sharp, but not fragile. The biggest question is the tek lok sheath. It is not as bad as some of the reviews would make you think. The rivets do not come in contact with the blade and there is not a rivet (just a drainage hole) at the point. Would a nice leather sheath that comes up halfway up the handle be better? Definitely. But the style and utility of the tek lok sheath is at least consistent with the delrin handles and stainless steel blades, and the clip will allow you to clip it onto webbing without having to thread it through (like you do with a loop on a leather sheath) and perhaps most importantly, the sheath holds the knife securely and allows you to draw it. I plan to get a nice leather sheath made for it, but will keep the tek lok sheath in case it is needed.

Tokyo Bound
Tokyo Japan

Oct 25, 2011

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Materials, Finish, Blade Sharpness

Cons: Sheath/Scabbard

Needed home protection in Japan

I needed 1 blade I could take to Japan (not carry), but have for home defense. I took no other than this blade. Strong, well balanced, and comfortable in the hand.

Ryan W
Maryland

May 19, 2020

Pros: Weight, Overall Quality, Finish

Cons: Sheath/Scabbard

SF Member's Dream

As a US PSYOPS member of 15 years, I have had quite a few close encounters with agitated natives in quite a few countries. In the past 10 years I have carried this knife almost everywhere on deployment, and I've had to brandish it more times than I can count. And I've used it twice. The first time I used it was when a police officer in India wouldn't stop trying to touch my M9, so gave him a good slash on his arm, that our medic patched up later of course. The second time was just a standard H2H encounter. This knife is a good combat blade which is nice and light but well-balanced. The blade can be made razor sharp. Included sheath is pretty bad but this is a design that came out in 1941, so it's not that hard to find somebody who makes a better one. Overall, this is a good weapon and tool, way better than a Ka-Bar or distributed bayonet.

Rc
Ottawa, Ontario, Canda

Aug 10, 2011

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality

Cons: Blade Material, Blade Sharpness

Great Knife... Hard to Sharpen

I have the version with the cordura sheath. It's not bad but the newer versions seem to have a better sheathing system. Sharpening it is a nightmare, however. The angle of the edge is awful. It will definitely need re-profiling if you ever want to shave arm-hair with it. Plus, it's a hard steel to cut even with a rough diamond stone. Over-all, it can be an extremely efficient dagger with a bit of TLC. The only 2 major complaints I would have about this knife is the ridiculous signatures on the blade. Boker should really consider taking a more sterile approach. Price is also an issue. These puppies are pricey for what the are. It would be nice if this knife was available in a carbon steel instead of 440 stainless, as well. However, I do like this knife a great deal and that's simply because holding one is like holding perfection. The thing feels fantastic in the hand.

Bigguapo
Chicago, IL

Aug 29, 2011

Pros: Weight, Overall Quality, Blade Material

Cons: Blade Sharpness

Kydex sheath

First, to answer a previous question about the sheath. I just got the kydex sheath version, and the sheath is, well, kydex. It's not a great option given the guard, which creates a significant blockage when trying to remove the dagger. The guard is much wider than the handle, which makes the whole thing hard to extract. I will try to cut the kydex down just a bit, but if rapid deployment is a necessity I would not choose the stock kydex sheath. As for the dagger itself, it poses a great danger, because it is so well-balanced and comfortable you will forget you have it in your hand. The knife is a work of art, of form and balance. Yet I concur 100% with the reviewer noting this blade will be a beast to sharpen. It's gonna take some time and elbow grease. But the blade's purpose is to penetrate, not to slice; 440 is an excellent steel for that and I have no doubt that it will do its job exceptionally once tuned-up.

Siddvicious
Boston, MA

Apr 01, 2011

Pros: Overall Quality, Materials, Finish, Blade Sharpness

Cons: Sheath/Scabbard

Great Knife, Shiesse Sheaths

My standard AF is near perfect - docked one star because the double edge grind/bevel was slightly off center axis, and the handle is a bit too thick to attain full leverage/power in an underhand forward stabbing grip. The real problem with the AF is Boker's mentally challenged people behind their various unacceptable stock sheaths. I've tried to talk to them, but they are Teutonically obstinate about the issue. Buy the knife - chuck whichever sheath, but good luck finding a decent non-custom replacement that's less likely to get you killed in a combat situation.

Alexv
AlexV

Jul 17, 2011

Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Materials, Finish, Blade Sharpness

Cons: Sheath/Scabbard

Question for Siddvicious/Sheath

Siddvicious, Did your knife come with the Kydex Sheath? If so, what don't you like about it? I have an original A-F serialized first production run after Blackjack was forced to stop making them. It came with a Cordura sheath with leather and velcro hilt strap. It is a passable sheath, but I was thinking about trying to get one of the Kydex ones. Any input would be helpful. Thanks.