Method
How we choose.
Most gear sites rank by affiliate rate and call it a review. We start from a published standard and work backwards. Here's the whole method.
Start with the clause, not the product
NBWSR publishes a Kit Specification — the equipment standard students are assessed against. It is written in clauses, each with an ID like L1-CUT-01, and each clause states a capability rather than a product: a fixed blade of 90–110 mm with a full tang and a spine square enough to throw sparks.
The specification is brand-neutral, free, and lives on the council's main site. It was written to be met by gear people already own. This site exists for the follow-up question — alright, but which one? — and it answers by working from the clause down, never from a product up.
What gets listed
A product is listed when a reviewer can write, in plain language, how it satisfies a specific clause. That rationale is published on the product page. If nobody can write it, the product does not go up — and this is enforced in software, not by policy: the system will not publish a product with an empty rationale.
We list 14 items across 3 retailers today. That number grows slowly on purpose. A catalog that lists everything has chosen nothing.
What we won't do
- Rank by commission. The code that orders retailer links has no access to commercial terms. There is no field on a retailer record that could raise its position, and adding one is rejected by the schema.
- Sell placement. No sponsored slots, no paid inclusion, no partner tiers. It is not a product we offer.
- Sign exclusivity. With anyone. Competition between retailers is the point.
- Publish prices. They go stale, and a stale comparison across several retailers is misleading no matter how it happened.
- Make gear a certification requirement. Ever. The moment a purchase helps you certify, the standard is for sale.
Where the money goes
Commission on this site funds the council's standards work — writing and maintaining the specification, and the field sessions those standards are tested in. It is a small line, and it is disclosed in full on the how we're paid page, including which retailers pay us nothing.
Argue with us
Every rationale is published precisely so it can be challenged. If a clause is wrong, or a product does not meet the clause we say it does, that is a defect worth fixing in the standard — write to info@nationalbushcraft.ca.