Ka-Bar ZK-Pestilence Chopper Knife Review: Murders Plants And Zombies

Honestly, I was expecting a blade marketed for use in zombie killing — seriously, that’s what the ZK stands for — to be just a flimsy toy built more for show than for actual work. Boy, was I wrong.

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It’s got solid heft, for only weighing about half a kilo. The blade is front-weighted, heavier at the tip than at the handle, which helps it accelerate on the downswing. Not that you really need it on account of the knife’s ludicrous sharpness. Seriously, with just a flick of the wrist, I can dismantle a 11-inch diameter jade plant. Using a full swing, I cleared 14m of blackberry patch in a quarter of the time it normally takes me with shears and a weed-whacker.

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The Pestilence is definitely a one-trick pony — excellent at clearing brush and overgrowth but not really anything else. The 10.25-inch blade is too long to let you use it as a hunting knife (and too heavy for backpacking) but not quite long enough to use it as a true machete. Nor does it have the necessary weight to split logs so it really limits you to soft, non-woody plants.

Verdict

An excellent tool when faced with the challenges of clearing overgrown hedgerows and decapitating the walking dead alike.