Kabar WAS the good old trusty US issue knife. that never meant it was the best, even in the days of WW2 and the Korean conflict. If was a good quality knife in its day that had the lowest bid. But now they are HAS BEEN, coasting on their old reputation
There have been significant changes in design engineering and metallurgy that make Kabar a poor choice, especially at the price.
They are simply coasting on nostalgia and reputation from 50-70 years ago. It's also why CUTCO bought them, every sales pitch includes that "they make Kabar". (They don't they're just owned by the same company).
Most US issue since the 1980's or so are benchmade, Ontario, gerber, qualatec
The ESEE 4. It's a perfect utility size for camping, not too heavy to carry with you all of the time but not too small to do serious tasks. If it has a fault, it's that the plastic sheath rattles a little bit. It would benefit from a better kydex sheath, or, if you'r me, you're already planning on making a leather scout sheath for it.