Swamp Rat 911 or Scrap Yard 911

[sasquatch1]

im looking for a nice 9" blade and i see that the yard and the swamp have nice blades in that area. whats making me wonder which one to get is that i have heard mixed reviews for swamp rats new handle design. and i wonder how it would hold up during chopping/swinging and batoning. while on the other hand i haven't heard anything bad about res-c handles in that area. has anyone handled both or used both or something similar? any help would be much appreciated! thanks guys!

[SpyderPhreak]

I think that the general consensus is that if you will be doing a lot of chopping, res-c is the way to go! The rubber material will help to soak up a lot of vibrations/shock which will pass right to your hand with a through-tang design like the Rodent-9 has.

Otherwise, both are excellent choices!

[sasquatch1]

I think that the general consensus is that if you will be doing a lot of chopping, res-c is the way to go! The rubber material will help to soak up a lot of vibrations/shock which will pass right to your hand with a through-tang design like the Rodent-9 has.

Otherwise, both are excellent choices!

alright thanks!

[Kirk_Ferentz]

The rodent 9's handle is definitely unconventional, but it seems that most all of the peopel who gave it a fair chance seemed to actually like the handle shape. The micarta handles of the swamp rat are probably more durable and bomb proof (though res-c is no slouch), but like the poster above said, the 911's res-c will do a much better job of shock absorption. I waited for the 911. I like micarta in my smaller non-chopper knives though ...

Apart from the handles, it looks like the two knives have a slightly different blade grind, so you might want to consider that.

[sasquatch1]

yeah I've never handled res-c before so im questioning its durability as well. and the rats a convex saber and the yards' is a saber grind. is there a huge difference between those rtwo grind? or is it just a saber convex is a saber grind with a convex edge?

[AngryDaddyBird]

Good question! I am wondering the same thing about the grinds. I ordered a Rodent 9 but am thinking to get a 911 order in and see which I Like better.

[sasquatch1]

Good question! I am wondering the same thing about the grinds. I ordered a Rodent 9 but am thinking to get a 911 order in and see which I Like better.

if you do that, then if you could post a review on them or at least how they feel in hand would be great help to many i bet, because i know im not the first to have wondered this

[Riverwarrior]

I can't speak highly enough concerning the Res-C handles. I've used them in rainy weather and, so far, I've never had any issues with "slippage" while chopping. I've also chopped without wearing gloves, and so far, I've never had any blister issues. As Spyder mentioned above, the Res-C absorbs the shock/vibrations, which allows a more enjoyable and pain free experience while chopping or doing other chores.

I've actually started buying a few Res-C handled smaller Busse-Kin blades just because I really like how the Res-C feels and performs.

[sasquatch1]

I can't speak highly enough concerning the Res-C handles. I've used them in rainy weather and, so far, I've never had any issues with "slippage" while chopping. I've also chopped without wearing gloves, and so far, I've never had any blister issues. As Spyder mentioned above, the Res-C absorbs the shock/vibrations, which allows a more enjoyable and pain free experience while chopping or doing other chores.

I've actually started buying a few Res-C handled smaller Busse-Kin blades just because I really like how the Res-C feels and performs.

how about their durability?

[SpyderPhreak]

Not a problem whatsoever so long as you don't beat directly on the Res-C. Besides, there's always the Bussekin warranty should there be any issue.

[AngryDaddyBird]

Yes they have a lifetime warranty on the handle too. Thats a +.
I am putting an order in for a 911 but I think the wait is little over a month after you order it. Not positive though. I'll do a quick review of the grinds for sure.

[sasquatch1]

oh ok good! it'll be an interesting comparison! and wow since when did the wait become so long. when i ordered my RMD it was very fast shipping

[begreen61]

Just Buy Both sooner or later your own both its the Busse way

[elof_alv]

As said earlier, res-c is really good for chopping, absorbs shock and is grippy, done some beating on my 711...
As to waiting times, I believe RMDs at certain times were on the shelf, so they'd ship quicker. 911 are coming out right before Blade so there's all that fancy stuff being ground for the show, and on the back of rather popular TGLBs, MBC, SARGE7s...

[iamtoast]

are both or either differentially heat treated?

[AngryDaddyBird]

Good question.

[Beckerhead83]

Doubtful. I was actually thinking about that the other day. What happened to Diff heat treat from Swamp and Scrapyard? Wonder if they will ever Diff HT again.

[Gravelface]

Doubtful. I was actually thinking about that the other day. What happened to Diff heat treat from Swamp and Scrapyard? Wonder if they will ever Diff HT again.

I'm sure they did differenitally treated the blades for optimal use, but have you ever heard of a through treated blade failing where the diff treat would not have? The Battle Rat (Praise be thy name) was offered in both Through and Diff and I have yet to hear about a failure or performance issue.

Don't let the heat treat sway you one way or the other, Swamp Rat or Scrapyard, both are truely exceptional.

That being said, I do prefer Diff for the temper line.....it looks cool

[Beckerhead83]

For sure either way they are going to get the job done, its just a peace of mind thing I guess.

[Thrill]

Can't go wrong with either, but I'm getting the Yard's 911.