1/4", 9/32", 5/16" thicknesses??

EdwardB

EdwardB

Joined
Nov 26, 1998
Messages
357
I've got a question that has been presented on several occasions, but doesn't quite measure up (sorry for the pun).

I just went and checked my Steel Heart II's, both smooth coated, straight handled knives. One in A2 and one in INFI. I measured the spine and blade thickness and came up with 9/32". The BAE also measured out at 9/32", when I checked it.

Are the 1/4" blades truly 1/4" or is there a little variance? A caliper at work measured them at .298" at the butt end then slightly tapering to .275" and thinner down to the point. Not a true 5/16", but more than 1/4".

I'm not trying to be picky, but am curious. Are the 5/16" blades truly 5/16" or is there a variance there, too?

Just a question.

Thanx for the replies,
Ed
 
Funny you should mention that Ed. I think that some of the plate sizes differed and that is why there are variations in thickness. I have a Natural Outlaw that is over 1/4" ! Thicker than my MOJO (under)and SH (spot on).

One of the other guys that know more on the busse history will be able to give you a better idea, and me for that matter!;)
 
IIRC, INFI comes from the factory in 5/16" stock (at least it did...I'm not sure how these new 3/16" stock knives are being handled). So, the stock had to be ground down to the desired thickness. Correct me if I'm wrong on this. Or, perhaps all that was done on the 1/4" knives was a bit of surface grinding to clean up the steel, and that's why the stock thickness varies a bit (according to how much cleaning up is needed?). Gundy, your theory (about why stock thickness varies) might be correct, it seems viable.

Many of the staight-handled knives had stock slightly above the advertised, as you have noticed. I would say that the 5/16" models are 5/16" thick or slightly thinner than that, just because 5/16" stock is what's started with from the factory. I've heard that the E models (this is from one set of knives a customer had and posted I believe) have varying thickness differences also, but predictably. Apparently, the BA-E was the thickest, then the NO, then the SH, then the BM as the thinnest. Of course, the variation was small, perhaps 0.040" difference between the thinnest and thickest knives, IIRC.

Now, the Mojo is another story. I've heard it has a distal taper, but I've also heard it is of 0.230" stock. Hopefully someone with a Mojo and calipers can comment on this. Either way, Gundy, that explains why your Mojo came up thinner than the rest.
 
Ed,
This is for you.
Andrew,
Go ahead and ask Jerry about different stock thickness.
It seems much more consistant in the E-handle knives.
Different batches of INFI are each mostly the same "nominal"
thickness, but there is variation.
Jerry picks out what he wants for each knife run and sets some aside
For special projects;)
 
Sometimes the knives are very uniform A-2 or INFI
The knife on the bottom is an A-2 Combat Recruit.
The two in the middle are INFI Police Recuits.
The one one the top is an A2 Police Recruit.
 
Andre,

Thanx for the pix.

Oh, and I didn't forget about you. Taken care of soon!;) :D :cool:

Thanx mon!
 
Here is a spine shot of the Steel Hearts with a 9/32" the third one up from the bottom. The next two are both 5/16". When I called Jerry about the 9/32 he pulled a piece of flat stock from that era and confirmed that apparently some of his "blanks" materials were actually 9/32"
attachment.php
 
Raindrop
Can we see a better pic of the one second from the top:D Is that stag slabs:D
 
Raden,

Sorry no stag on any of mine ( yet ) ;)

That is a just a regular production Steel Heart E with some different coloration on the micarta.
 
To add to the general knowledge base on this subject, my Busses measure as follows:

Battle Mistress-E: .659 centimeters thick, which is about 9/32 of an inch

Steel Heart-E: .685 centimeters thick, which is also about 9/32 of an inch

Paul's Hatchet (combat grade): .61 centimeters thick, which is just a hair over 1/4 of an inch

Satin Jack Variant: .475 centimeters, which is spot on 3/8ths of an inch

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While we're exploring this topic, I might as well give the thicknesses immediately behind the edges:

Battle Mistress-E: .143 centimeters thick

Steel Heart-E: .15 centimeters thick

Paul's Hatchet: .219 centimeters thick

Satin Jack Variant: .138 centimeters thick

---------------------------------------------------

The results of the measurements immediately behind the edges surprised me, because of how they compare to information I had inferred from other posts I'd read.

For example, Buzzbait’s review of the Satin Jack (in conjunction with his disappointment with the Natural Outlaw) had lead me to conclude that the 3/16" thick Satin Jacks had higher cutting performance than the 1/4" thick big choppers (Natural outlaw, Steel Heart, Battle Mistress) because the slimmer stock allowed for the blade to be thinner, and with a more acute angle, behind the edge. This is just one example of posts I'd read that seemed to indicate a consensus that the 3/16" Satin Jack has higher cutting efficiency than the 1/4" choppers because it is slenderer.

The reality appears to be otherwise. My Satin Jack has essentially the same behind-the-edge thickness, and essentially the same profile angle as my Battle Mistress, the ultimate difference in blade thickness being merely due to my Satin Jack only being 1.25 inches wide from edge to spine, while my Battle Mistress extends back from the edge at the same angle for another 7/16" before it reaches the spine.

I don't have a Satin Jack LE, but I must assume that Buzzbait's Satin Jack LE would actually be THICKER behind the edge, and/or have a MORE obtuse profile angle, than the 1/4" choppers. I say this because my Satin Jack variant, which has the same thickness behind the edge and the same angle as the big choppers, is flat ground all the way to the spine, while the Satin Jack LE has a high saber grind (I think that's what it's called) meeting the flat grind.

I am lead to wonder whether Buzzbait's disappointment with the cutting efficiency of the Natural Outlaw may have actually had more to do with simply getting one that hadn't been sharpened very well. (His concerns with handle size and overall weight being entirely separate matters.) In retrospect, that seems likely, because he mentions that his Natural Outlaw couldn't shave nor cut paper well, while my Steel Heart and Battle Mistress certainly could surpass that level of sharpness.

(By the way, I want to make clear that I am not disagreeeing that a knife with a slenderer and more acute geometry is going to cut more efficiently than a fatter and more obtuse one. I'm just noting that the Satin Jack, and possibly other 3/16ths Busse and Swamp Rat knives, may be equally thick (or more) behind the edge, and may have equally or more obtuse cross-section angles, than the large choppers.)

I'd be interested to see behind-the-edge measurements taken by others, to see whether they bear out my findings, or whether my results are merely anomalous.
 
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