Bit of guidance for a Busse novice

I would second the SOB. A little smaller than what you were looking for, but big enough to handle any kind of dressing or skinning jobs. Great all around camp knife too, short of batoning or chopping. Much better control for dressing game than a 6" blade IMHO. I prefer smaller blades for that though.
 
Is giving examples of knives I've used in my past allowed or is that in bad taste on a hosted forum?
 
jsnell said:
I would second the SOB. A little smaller than what you were looking for, but big enough to handle any kind of dressing or skinning jobs. Great all around camp knife too, short of batoning or chopping. Much better control for dressing game than a 6" blade IMHO. I prefer smaller blades for that though.
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Ya I don't own one but ever since I held a SOB I loved it.. in your situation for an all round camping/hunting blade..SOB LE or ASH1 LE.. would be sweet...God I love good, solid, beautiful, perfectly executed pieces of cutlery. The kind of possession you pass to your son ,daughter, or grandchild.. every time we get the recommend a knife request I realize how many Busse's are just awesome..
 
hexenjager said:
Is it kosher to mention other maker's models as an example of blades I've used in the past and liked or not liked to give a better idea of my taste?
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Sure, go ahead, it will help us help you. There are many hunters here who can advise. So, tell us about what you hunt, where, and what you like and don't like in hunting knife.

I am a novice about hunting ( 2 seasons, two deer taken ), but a 6" blade strikes me as a tad large.
 
I think what I like about the SOB so much is its like a little Ash1..the handle is like a little Ash handle ...its just a sweet little all purpose camp knife..
Also, I only bought coated blades for the longest time.. I wasn't sure about satin and I was sceptical as to if it would just become a high maintenance rust magnet. What you read is INFI isn't stainless but it resists staining.. after giving it a shot..I now swear by satin INFI.. its just smooth as butter to use..an it wares beautifully..
 
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If you're willing to go with something a little more "traditional" for a hunting knife, the Custom Shop Deep Dish Hollow Ground Boss Street would be one to keep an eye out for as well...


It's the bottom one, but any of the three would work.;):thumbup:
 
I mostly hunt whitetails and the occasional antelope in the Dakotas, nearly all spot and stalk. But, my friends and I are talking about trying our hand at elk further west in the mountains. For that I'd like a belt knife that's very capable in an emergency and a little extra blade length doesn't hurt for that.

6" is a bit larger than most people want to use for field dressing, but I started out at around 13 woth dad's old western. I'm not sure what the model is (every time I decide to find which model online I get distracted by some other western I hadn't seen before), but think m3 trench knife but much more of a single edge drop point design and narrower blade around 6.5-7". Probably explains why I'm comfortable using a longer blade for the job, it's how I was taught.

My go-to for the past several years has been an old cold steel master hunter that I picked up (ab)used and polished the rust off of and sharpened all the chips out of the blade. Like the knife, just lacks the blade length I grew used to using.

I've tried a few others over the years. I did like design of the sog nw ranger, but I wouldn't trust it's construction in an emergency. Fallkniven f1 is great but it's even shorter than the cold steel and I don't find the grip as hand filling.

I guess in a hunting knife I like a relatively neutral handle shape (if that makes sense) because I spend almost as much time with the edge faced towards the web of my hand as faced outwards and a full height grind for "sliciness".

Hope this gives you a bit of insight into my reasoning and preferences on a knife of this type. Thank you to everyone for all the help so far.
 
Also, I'd have whatever caping knife I was using at the time in my pack if one of us managed to get something worth mounting. It hasn't happened often, but it does happen occasionally.
 
A Swamp Rat Desert Jack would suit you quite well. It does have one of the smallest handles of any Bussekin, but that's also what makes it more versatile IMO. Unfortunately they're not terribly easy to find though.



2nd from the bottom here (RatManDu's on top and bottom):
 
With your preferences and considering what's easily attainable I think the Trash-1 is as close as anything else. The only downside for me and thing that doesn't work for what you said is the large square choil. It's very well balanced with the Res-C handle. The Jackmandu is probably the next closest, but again with a large choil.
 
A BOSS Jack might fit your needs. Not the Proto versions, they were too thick, IMHO. The LE came in choil and no choil IIRC.




A RatManDu might work, it's just a little shorter (5.5"?), but the edge might need some thinning.
 
I have seen some folks like GH-55 seems like a well suited design for the purpose
 
As a hunter, my preference is a 2 blade system. I like/prefer a smaller blade for all game, something like an MBC or Culti. Then the door is wide open for a bigger utility knife for other chores,,,

My .02 cents,,, ;)
 
Yes the ASH-1 is fine as a hunting knife, I have field dressed whitetail deer with it-it would not be my first choice (The SOB would be) But the ASH-1 is an all around great knife-Cheers!!!
 
Once again, thanks to everyone for their input. Looks like I have a lot of blades to research. Hopefully my google-fu is up to the task. Always open to more suggestions and shared experience going forward as well.
 
The Axe Hammer is a great knife and would be perfect for what you want.

And you can order it right now. No wait, no looking on for sale forums.

Plus it comes with a cool sheath that has been decorated by LASERS :)
 
David Brown said:
The Axe Hammer is a great knife and would be perfect for what you want.

And you can order it right now. No wait, no looking on for sale forums.

Plus it comes with a cool sheath that has been decorated by LASERS :)
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Rumor has it that the fellow that made those sheaths is pretty darned good at his job, along with being a thoroughly decent guy. I'm kinda new, but it's been pretty obvious there's an overwhelming consensus about that.
 
SAR 4 or 6 or SARGE 7 are all good for my 2XL paws, along with Sarsquatch, SFNO/NMSFNO, Camp Tramp, Basic 8 & Chophouse for the neutral style grip you described yet still having a good belly to the edge. :)

I would not rule out smaller blades like the BATAC, Basic 4, Dog Skinner, SOB, HRLM or HG55 for smaller tasks either. ;)

One of my favorites, much improved with mirror convex edge and without black coating. :)
35lahy0.jpg
 
TheMtnMan said:
This thread needs more Pics, of all different models side by side.....
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I have some of those listed here, what do you wanna see ?

Here's a quick pic of some together

o9lVyUG.jpg
 
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