B10 quick review

[Last Visible Canary]

Got a basic 10 in the mail yesterday

Top to bottom: cs ttkz, b10, proto boss jack, scrap yard scrapivore

It's a really nice knife. Several people have said that they feel glad to have passed it up and kept the basic 11, or are keeping the basic 11 over it. I'm the opposite, I'm happy with having sold the b11 and gotten this. It's thinner, lighter, not quite as long, but with an equal amount of edge. I don't have any major problems with it at all, across the board. With the basic 11 I could also say "If only it didn't have a choil". While the basic 11 is a better chopper than this, it's a better chopper with a few small compromises, depending on what you want out of your knife. It's got a thicker edge, it's got a choil, it doesn't have as much belly, it's heavier, it's got a (slightly) thinner harder feeling handle. The b10 is lighter, has the same amount of edge, has a slightly softer slightly thicker handle, it has no snag points when chopping hard at vines or over expending your reach on branches, it's got a thinner edge, and it feels closer to being a heavy machete than a dedicated shopper.

one of the other major differences is the spine. The basic 11 has a simple machinists style edge break of around .010", meaning someone took a file to the corner so it wouldn't be a razor sharp 90 degree edge that could cut you if you grabbed it. The result is a less-comfortable chocked up grip for skinning/other tasks, but it does have another advantage.

totally flat compared to something like the TTKZ's nuclear meltdown treatment:

.010" machinists edge break:

less comfortable with the sharp edges, but tolerable, especially with gloves of any sort:

The basic 10 also doesn't have the straight edge at the tip:

why would you ever want a sharp edge? heres an aluminum/ferro rod block with 3 edged tools. A small saw provided with the block, a carbide striker from usaknifemaker, and the b10.

the saw creates fine powder and throws it everywhere, hard to make a pile, it also eats up the block making it jagged

The carbide striker is by far the best, creating nice curly q's in a controlled pile

this is what you get when you leave an unbroken edge on a high hardness steel or carbide, an edge that can be used to scrape or cut as though it were a knife,

The basic 10 didn't fair as well, but definitely better than the saw. It created crescents in a controlled pile. Even with a .010" edge break, it's still sharp enough to scrape and strike with.

The edge is a heavy rounded convex. I haven't checked what the actual edge angle is, but I know I'll be creating a heavy relief bevel to get it down to where I want it. Not as wide as the b11, but still it's thicker than I want.

A chart showing the thinner overall grind compared to the basic 11, and much thinner compared to the csTTKZ. The measurements are taken at the center of the main cutting edge, where you are most likely to chop wood at:

The taper on the spine is very long, starting at 3.5" back from the tip. At 3.5" it's .220" thick, and the taper starts noticably at 2" back where it's at .205". To give you an idea of why this is significant, busse tends to thicken up their tips a lot. Like.... a lot. The tip on the basic 10 is actually thinner than the main grind of the basic 11.

Measurements for the tip (not included in the chart since I didn't take it for the others):\
1/16" - 0.042"
1/8" - 0.058"
1/4" - 0.080"
3/8" - 0.095"
1/2" - 0.112
5/8" - 0.123"
3/4" - 0.138"
7/8" - 0.148"
1" - 0.157"

I'm really happy to see Busse Combat using a plastic safety netting on their knives for shipment. It's not wire or anything, it's just thin plastic, but it's cut resistant on a static knife (i.e. your not trying to cut through it, the knife is just resting it it) so that if it bashes the edge of the box it's unlikely to cut through it. It's a really cool idea.

Overall I'm very happy with the basic 10. It's what I wanted out of the basic 9 and 11 but couldn't get, and thus did not feel bad about selling both of them. The basic 11 is a better chopper, but I don't feel that it's a better all around knife. The basic 10 feels streamlined, slightly less tall (even though it's only by 1/16" or so), with no wasted space anywhere. It feels like a light machete instead of a dedicated chopper. It just feels good, and has a nice balance between thinness at the edge and extremely high durability. Over the last 8 or 9 years I've slowly progressed to where I actually don't want to own choiled knives, even in the chopper catagory. I have no need to lose the edge space, and now I have options form busse combat.

 

[Last Visible Canary]

and a gratuitous group shot, because the axe is awesome.

 

[cut it out]

nice, I just got mine today! it is really nice. I all ready think I like it more than my Battle rat! nice pics

 

[reddawn]

thanks lvc,,i agree the b10 is a winner!! its perfect for me.

 

[Super X]

LVC,
Thanks for the review. I just got mine today. It feels light and very fast. It does not feel like it will be a burden to carry around in the wood's. I can envision many uses for it already.

 

[drbarnes]

Great review LVC, im regretting not getting a choiless b10

 

[Brummie]

Thanks for the review. I've not tested it out yet, but I think my choil-less B10 is pretty close to being the perfect large field knife. Monster choppers are fun to play around with in the backyard, but for actually carrying in the wilderness, I think you're far better served by a large knife in combination with a folding saw. The saw is for cutting across the grain, and the knife is for splitting and light chopping / hacking tasks, such as limbing. The B10 should be great for that role, and yet weighs less that my 6" Skinny ASH! For me, the choil-less was definitely the way to go. No wasted edge length and I can still choke up with it if needed.

 

[Maddogg774]

I love mine! It is sweet!

 

[larry44]

Thanks LVC for your review! My reply to it is "What he said!"

My B10 choil-less came in today and I'm really happy with it. It's my first choil-less and my first "chopper." I was lucky to acquire a black Lost Mountain sheath for this and it's a perfect fit.

Now...waiting for the LBTG!

 

[David Brown]

Come over lets chop stuff buddy, the boy gets back weds.

Excellent review by the way.

 

[l2lku2]

My impressions of the B10 so far are similar to yours.

My preference is also for no choil on any knife, large or small. I also prefer no ricasso or a very small ricasso. (Good examples are the Skookum Bush Tool & Kosters with a plunge line or the Mora Clipper with no plunge line & the Aurora for a non-Scandi grind). There are of course good Busse examples also.

I like my hand right next to the cutting edge (on the handle, not a choil) so a large ricasso gets in the way even on a choiless knife. I often use the chest-lever grip and with a choiless, no ricasso it is easy. In that grip, the choil or ricasso gets in the way and snags. And in my experience, in the chest lever grip it is not always possible to choke up on the choil or ricasso.

So I agree with your observations on the B10 and the B11. But unlike you I cannot choose the one over the other. I would like a combination of the two.

The B11 is a better chopper. I also prefer the rounded spine on the B11 - I often put my thumb on the spine and I never use a knife as a firesteel striker.

I put a bicycle tube over the B11 handle because the ridges on the side and the textured area (thumb grip?) are annoying. So I much prefer the B10 handle. The choiless option on the B10 is a big win over the B11. I don't have a strong preference either way re the slight drop-point tip of the B10 vs the straight spine of the B11.

So I would not be able to choose just one over the other. I will chop with the B11 and use the B10 for everything else. My ideal large knife would be a choiless, small ricasso B11 with the B10 style handle.

When I look at a knife and I see the cutting edge starting an inch away from the handle I cannot help but ask myself: "Why?"

I know many people have a strong preference for choils, the polls show more than not, so I am glad that Busse are now offering that choice on many of the models. In my dream world Bussekin will in future offer some of the older favorite models with choiless options. Think choiless RMD, Chopweiler, SAR 6 & 8, (NM)SFNO. I can only dream...

 

[Last Visible Canary]

So I agree with your observations on the B10 and the B11. But unlike you I cannot choose the one over the other. I would like a combination of the two.

The B11 is a better chopper. I also prefer the rounded spine on the B11 - I often put my thumb on the spine and I never use a knife as a firesteel striker.

I put a bicycle tube over the B11 handle because the ridges on the side and the textured area (thumb grip?) are annoying. So I much prefer the B10 handle. The choiless option on the B10 is a big win over the B11. I don't have a strong preference either way re the slight drop-point tip of the B10 vs the straight spine of the B11.

I didn't mean to imply that I preferred the flat spine over the rounded, I meant simply that it has it's uses. If I had to choose between the two I'd probably end up going with the rounded spine because it seems like it would wear down slower, cause less problems when handling it without gloves, and would add a slight weight reduction. I don't intend to ever use any knife as a file steel striker in actual use, unless it's the serrated knife on my leatherman which is my 'I don't care about you' beater. I just meant to show that it could be done if you had nothing else but this knife on you.

The straight edge at the tip on the basic 11 is just a little weird to me. I don't necessarily have a preference as I don't use the tip much, I just always have smaller blades with flatter tips for anything I'd ever need it for. I don't however have a broad radiused edge like on the basic 10 on me otherwise.

In generally if I have to choose a perfect design/functional knife with a choil over a slightly flawed choiless knife, I will 95% of the time go with the slightly flawed model, if only out of principle. Also, as jerry showed in his post about throwing his arm out on a rope snag - heavy choppers with choils do actually present a potential danger when your over reaching with a hard swing.

The basic 10, in the set that I have, resides in a weird place compared to if I just had the basic 11 and 10 to choose from. Right above the basic 11 in the set that I had when making the choice was the TTKZ, and above that some very large axes. For anything I would normally do that needed heavier chopping than the basic 10 can provide, the TTKZ or an axe is a more efficient choice. I made losing the basic 11 a lot easier option. The basic 10 + the gransfors bruks american felling axe in the photo is an amazing pair, that for me isn't made better by replacing the b10 with the b11.

 

[l2lku2]

For anything I would normally do that needed heavier chopping than the basic 10 can provide, the TTKZ or an axe is a more efficient choice. I made losing the basic 11 a lot easier option. The basic 10 + the gransfors bruks american felling axe in the photo is an amazing pair, that for me isn't made better by replacing the b10 with the b11.

I agree with you and I will go even a little further, without wanting to make this thread controversial, axe vs. knife always is, or to change the topic. If I wanted to get down to essentials, a small axe would displace my large knives. Even my smallest GB axe (not the small Gerber - the handle is too short) will displace my best chopper knife on performance / weight. With the possible exception of the Benchmade 171, the smallest axe will also displace the best chopper on pure performance (I need to test that more though). Go one size up in axe then the 171 is also gone on chopping performance. And the small axe will also displace any knife for extended chopping. The shock transfer and handle ergonomics of my knives cannot compete with an axe.

Truth be told, large knives are just an indulgence for me. They have their uses, but for backpacking for instance, my optimum performance / weight combo is the folding saw, small axe and small knife. I still take large knives just for fun and learning. But that is another thread. As large knives go, the B11 & B10 are at the top of my list for performance / weight.

For perspective. some pics of axe vs knife sizes. The small GB that I am referring to is the Gransfors Bruks Mini Hatchet. I can carry it in my pants pocket, it is that small and light.

 

[Last Visible Canary]

If I had the money, I would have a collection strikingly similar to yours. I have a hard time finding a purpose for the CS TTKZ that isn't filled by either the axe or the b10, so for my very small pocket book it is my one lasting indulgence. The biggest benefit I have for the b10 over an axe is fatigue in limbing twiggy branches, and other smallish chopping tasks that aren't suited for a heavy axe, require a broader edge then a hatchet, and are awkward to perform with a medium axe.

I feel lucky to be able to have both, as they are both excellent in their selective fields.

 

[l2lku2]

The biggest benefit I have for the b10 over an axe is fatigue in limbing twiggy branches..

Exactly. That is primarily what I use it for. I just rest the blade against the branch, angle it away from me and hack away. Also for chopping thin branches or things that require only a few strikes - easier and safer with a big knife. With an axe you have to be careful, aim and concentrate much more. So around the house, anything that takes only a few minutes is done with a large knife. If it takes a long time, a saw or axe. I also let the kids chop with large knives but I don't let them use axes without very, very strict supervision.

And sometimes I enjoy batoning rather than splitting with an axe - just for fun.

 

[squishware]

It seems like you are comparing sub 10 inch blades to axes and hatchets, for me choppers begin at 10 inches.

 

[l2lku2]

It seems like you are comparing sub 10 inch blades to axes and hatchets, for me choppers begin at 10 inches.

I am, but not exclusively. I include all my choppers, from the largest to the smallest in the comparison. I agree with you that longer is typically better but in my experience, it is not always true. For example, the best chopper I have, easily, is the Benchmade 171. It feels like chopping with a small axe. It is about a 9" blade. Also, the Browning Crowell / Barker and the ASH Whacker 9.5 are very, very efficient choppers. But the Trailmaster, also a 9" blade, is not. So my limited experience tells me that many factors other than just length affect chopping performance. As my collection stands now, my cut-off is in the 9" range. But I suspect that there may be 8" blades that could compete with what I have. I don't know where that limit ends.

Anyway, I apologize if I am contributing to steering this off the topic of the B10, it was not my intention.

So, how about the B10?

 

[topfuel6]

Several people have said that they feel glad to have passed it up and kept the basic 11, or are keeping the basic 11 over it. I'm the opposite, I'm happy with having sold the b11 and gotten this. It's thinner, lighter, not quite as long, but with an equal amount of edge. I don't have any major problems with it at all, across the board. With the basic 11 I could also say "If only it didn't have a choil". While the basic 11 is a better chopper than this, it's a better chopper with a few small compromises, depending on what you want out of your knife. It's got a thicker edge, it's got a choil, it doesn't have as much belly, it's heavier, it's got a (slightly) thinner harder feeling handle.

On the other side of the fence. The B11 is fine by me. I like the choil, I like the thickness, I like the weight, I like the lesser belly, I like the handle!

 

[Last Visible Canary]

I sharpened the edge to 23 degree's on my nice newly christmas received edge pro pro model:

It was really nice to see that the stock edge had a significant relief bevel on it, so much so that I'm not going to put a secondary bevel on it. To give you an idea on how different that is from other knives like the smaller BOSS Jack, the first bevel ends in the same thickness, .030", between the b10 and bj proto:

This is how I measure the initial edge thickness, though the tip of the calipers would be a bit closer to the edge since I was just holding it there for the photo:

It's nice that the b10 has such a comparably thin edge to other models, but it's always worth remembering that when that thinness continues to the tip, you do have to take special precauctions with it. Don't try to pry up glued wood off of hard surfaces like corian o_o. Thats why man invented chisels. This is what happens to the tip of a thinned/sharpened TTKZ during such activities:

Don't think of this as "omg a busse broke", the tip was thin and I was prying it against a hard stone like surface. It's also 1mm of tip, which isn't that bad. More to the point though, I should have known better and if I'd paid attention, the steel gave me warning by bending before breaking:

 

[knife hunter]

I agree with you and I will go even a little further, without wanting to make this thread controversial, axe vs. knife always is, or to change the topic. If I wanted to get down to essentials, a small axe would displace my large knives. Even my smallest GB axe (not the small Gerber - the handle is too short) will displace my best chopper knife on performance / weight. With the possible exception of the Benchmade 171, the smallest axe will also displace the best chopper on pure performance (I need to test that more though). Go one size up in axe then the 171 is also gone on chopping performance. And the small axe will also displace any knife for extended chopping. The shock transfer and handle ergonomics of my knives cannot compete with an axe.

Truth be told, large knives are just an indulgence for me. They have their uses, but for backpacking for instance, my optimum performance / weight combo is the folding saw, small axe and small knife. I still take large knives just for fun and learning. But that is another thread. As large knives go, the B11 & B10 are at the top of my list for performance / weight.

For perspective. some pics of axe vs knife sizes. The small GB that I am referring to is the Gransfors Bruks Mini Hatchet. I can carry it in my pants pocket, it is that small and light.

Great thread as usuall LVC,

L2kul2, brother I have had different experience with the GB hatchets. I have used the GB axes and as well as they re made the mini and wildlife hatchets are no match IMHO to most any INFI chopper and not nearly as versatile. Now, if when you said smallest of the axes you meant their real axe line then maybe, but if you meant the smallest in your picture then you need to do a little more testing brother:thumbup:

I would take a Pauls hatchet over the mini any day. And I would also rather tote my B10, with no choil thanks to LVC, than any axe as well. Just my opinion and yMMV

I have a mini GB here laying around here that I blew off the bottom inch or so off the blade merely trying to cut a few small limbs out of a cedar tree to hang a deer stand in. Now, maybe I got a lemon? I dont know. I loved it on deer until I used it on that cedar. I havent bothered to send it in for a replacement yet but I will. THe wildlife hatchet has a lot more bite to it and would be the smallest GB I would tote. THe hunters axe which is like the small forest with exception of few details and it has the flail pole handle which is awesome. The hunters axe is where the GBs start to out shine in extended periods of chopping but, on side note I will still not let my kids use the axe and I will let them baton with my NMFBM.

Its just a lot safer IMHO