Knives, axes, blades… anything with an edge I am intrigued by.
One company in particular is very impressive with their blend of craftsmanship, quality, and beauty. This is Base Camp X.
“BCX is a lifestyle brand that has its roots in Canada yet reaches people on a global scale. Our products are designed to last for generations. At BCX, we challenge ourselves to create pieces that will inspire people with impeccable functionality and craftsmanship.” – Base Camp X
In my family, we have a few of these amazing hand crafted pieces.
Other custom hand crafted BCX axes are owned by Star Wars director/writer George Lucas, Foo Fighters Dave Grohl, actor/producer Ashton Kutcher, comedian Jimmy Fallon, director/photographer Sinuhe Xavier, photographer Ace Kvale, director Zach Snyder, comic Johnny Gardhouse, author Sally Hogshead, various Suicide Girls models (Frolic, Venom, Radeo), and freeskiing legend Seth Morrison.
The BCX Pioneer is a very versitle, capable axe. It has a 3.5lb drop forged high carbon steel head, which is hand tempered and ground. The handle is a 30″ hand painted, hand turned, Tennessee Hickory, with a hand cut and stitched leather sheath.
This is my personal Pioneer. It was a gift from my brother Riley, his girlfriend Lynnaea, and Base Camp X’s Tribe leader Graeme Cameron. It is one of a very limited run of BCX axes that have a separate “x” brand on the opposing side, along with the custom colour, adding to its already very uniqueness.
It is gorgeous.
Christmas Day, the day it was given to me.
My cousin from Quesnel, Brandon, this is his BCX Bush Knife. This knife is about as rugged as it gets for fixed blades. The blade is 5.5″ long 1/4″ thick, hand forged 5160 high carbon steel. Full tang Rosewood scale handle for a total length of 10.5″. The weight in hand is very comfortable, 275g. All of this fits snuggly into the hand stitched oiled leather sheath.
Riley’s own BCX Belt Knife. Riley has recently joined the Base Camp X team, what BCX calls their Tribe. My brother is a professional Freeskier, and outdoorsman. His website HERE and instagram @rileyleboe
The Belt Knife has an alluring leaf blade design, a distinctive recurved shape which is very good for slicing. Made from hand forged 5160 high carbon steel, the blade length is 4″ with full tang Rosewood scaled handle. The hand cut and stitched oiled leather sheath has a very good feel with the knife tucked away inside. Full length of the knife is 9″.
My little brother, Jess, has a blade of his own. A very unique design not often seen in the Western World. It is called a Kukri, a 2500 year old design it is a Nepalese knife with a curved blade like a machete.
The Nepalese Army and Royal Gurkha Rifles. The RGR is a rifle regiment of the British Army of Nepal recruited soldiers, their motto is “Better to die than live a coward”. Because of the Royal Gurkha Rifles, english speakers refer to the Kukri as “Gurkha blade” or “Gurkha knife”. The National Museum of Kathmandu houses one of the oldest existing Kukri belonging to Drabya Shah, circa 1559.
Jess’ Kukri is the BCX Khukri, is hand forged reclaimed high carbon steel blade 1/4″ thick and 10″ long, weighing a whopping 900 grams. The full tang Rosewood handle is triple bolstered, the overall length of the Kukri is obnoxiously awesome. The double fuller grooves on the blade make the tool lighter, stronger, and gives it a beautiful look. The Buffalo skin scabbard is hand made using a hand carved wooden form to set and stitch the leather.
I have had the pleasure to throw around Rory Bushfield’s custom hand made Tomahawk. The BCX Hawk is very well balanced, with a hickory handle and extremely sharp high carbon steel head.
Rory Bushfield (a fellow Squamish resident) is a professional skier and television personality always going on adventures with his dog Dexter, he constantly on the move and posting unreal photos on his instagram account @bushywayne.
The current lineup that is for sale on BCX website HERE, you have to be quick as these units sell out very quickly.
The lineup includes: Belt Knife, Bush Knife, Cut-throat razor, a light 1.75lb headed axe Pathfinder, a 5lb headed axe monster Titanis, Pioneer axe, double bit Cruiser axe, double bit Airborne throwing axe, three styles of Kukri blades, throwing knives, and soft goods.
Base Camp X owner Graeme Cameron is constantly thinking up new designs and tools. One that I am very excited about is the BCX Wendigo.
The Wendigo is a blend of a hatchet with the shape of a knife, Graeme hates hatchets… It is basically a huge knife that can perform the same tasks a hatchet would
Here are some shots from Base Camp X instagram feed of some of their products…
