Cincinnati

Becker Knives Part One

Cincinnati 

1984-1991

The exact dates of the Cincinnati days are hard to know and mostly speculation. The Cincinnati blades were manufactured by a few different machine shops in Cincinnati. Ethan had them made to his specs and heat treat requirements. The original handles Ethan had made were made from Dupont Zytel. Only the really early blades had handles with this plastic and they are slightly different shaped (see them on the black phosphate Machax below). Ethan later was contracting Blackjack to make the Becker handles. The handles Blackjack made for him were Estalok from BF Goodrich. This is also the start of the relationship that would end up with blackjack manufacturing Becker knives. 

The Machax was made in three different finishes during the Cincinnati era. The top is hard chrome plated with a more copper cast outcome. The middle Machax is in a black phosphate, or “parkerized,” finish which is baked onto the blade. The bottom Machax is also chrome plated and came out a lot more polished then the previous. The Machax came about because Ethan Becker combined two of his favorite blades: a WWII case bolo and a kukri. There are also a few wood handle versions floating around. 

Photo thanks to WorthPoint. 

Below is a Cincinnati Campanion with a hard chrome finish. It was also made with a black phosphate finish. The Campanion is inspired by the British MOD4. 

UPDATE 1/8/21 

I have fond one old ad saying they made the Campanion in both 3/16" and 1/4" that was unverified until recently. A incredibly generous friend, let's call him Honey Bun, gave me a box of stuff from Ethans old shop. In that box I found a Cincinnati Campanion blank in 3/16. So keep an eye out. I would bet there is less than a hand full or dozen floating around out there. 

UPDATED 4/15/18

The Divtul and Tactul from the Cincinnati days are extremely rare and had many variations. Until very recently the only photos I’ve been able to find of true Cincinnati Divtul’s and Tactul’s come from old ads. Luckily for all of us more obsessed Becker fans Ethan Becker himself has shared some original photos. The difference between the two is that the some Tactuls had no serrations and was made from 4140. It had the same black phosphate finish as the Machax. The Divtul was made from a 420 series of stainless steel and therefore had no need for the phosphate finish. The Divtul has been seen in multiple sizes, it supposedly came in three different sizes, two of which can be seen below. This tool was a collaboration between John Benner and Ethan. Benner basically wanted a sharpened pry bar to use as a breaching tool. John was on the Cincinnati SWAT team at the time and now is the boss at TDI which also has a line of knives with Kabar. 

The Warrior Machax from original ad: “The Warrior Machax is a lighter, quicker version of the Machax. The blade has a sharpened false edge for enhanced performance and penetration.” The warrior Machax came in both the black phosphate and the hard chrome finish. Only around 40 made. The Black phosphate version has a much smaller false edge or "clip" when compared to the Chrome models. I don't know why this is but its also depicted this was in the old ad photos as well (click here for the old ad photos). Not sure how many out of the 40ish warriors were made in the black phosphate finish, but from what I've seen the chrome model is the most common by far.