Busse Boss street vs Blackjack 125

deltablade

deltablade

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I am looking at these knives, and wonder if you could comment of which I should pick. for general use and woods work.
 
IMHO - neither. You might be OK with Boss street, though I think there are better options. Blackjack 125 is an excellent hunting knife, but not really good for wood work and probably is not good for "general use" (and abuse).
 
What are you "better options"? would really appreciate that input. sometimes I get locked in with blinders and regret it later
effer said:
IMHO - neither. You might be OK with Boss street, though I think there are better options. Blackjack 125 is an excellent hunting knife, but not really good for wood work and probably is not good for "general use" (and abuse).
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well i dont know what you are planning to do with you knife, but as knife makers go busse is top notch, i rank it right up there with handmade customs that sell for alot more.

I dont know how much you know about busse knives but they have a cult following for their toughness and personal involvement of the owner in the online community I myself own multiple busse knives and have never had anything but outstanding experiences with them, which is more than i can say for almost any other knife company.

the only other knife in that size range that i would reccomend would be the esee-3 same warranty as busse easier top sharpen high carbon steel.

nothing wrong with blackjack, but theres everything right with busse.
 
deltablade said:
What are you "better options"? would really appreciate that input. sometimes I get locked in with blinders and regret it later
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First off all let me point out that in most cases the "best" and "better" simply come down to personal preferences.
I don't really know how you use your knives and what exactly "general use" is for you. Do you baton 3" hard wood on a regular basis? Do you do a lot of wood cutting, carving? Do you expect one knife to do it all or you also take some other tools with you (axe, saw)?
For me Boss Street is a tough survival knife. Coatings adds a bit of drag. Edge is quite thick, so cutting isn't the best without major re-profiling. My biggest issue is that it costs about $250 plus $50 for a sheath. Well, because it is INFI :) IMHO this steel really shines on bigger blades and there are better alternatives for smaller blades, especially considering the price. Price aside, Busse CABS (I never handled one) is a Boss Street variant that I think would be a good general performer and better for wood work, because it is thinner, with thinner edge, no choil, no coating... But it costs even more, and again I just don't think 4" is enough for INFI to show it's superiority.

Blackjack 125 in my mind is a hunting knife. I never handled one, but I have BRKT Manitou which I think is quite similar. I don't think that it is a good choice for wood work (bushcraft), because handle is not optimized for long wood carving sessions and cutting edge is far away from the grip. Choil is not very useful for wood work. I think it is primarily made for skinning and cutting flash and it really shines in those tasks.

If money is not an issue, try Busse CABS, since you've been already eyeballing Boss Street. If you want to save some and do mostly wood cutting, take a look at some scandies: Enzo trapper, Spyderco buchcraft, scandies from custom makers, number of classic style pukkos etc. Also check out bunch of convex offerings from BRKT and also custom makers. If you want "survival" type blade and don't mind choils, there is Swamprat with their SR-101 (which IMHO beats INFI overall in this size). Of course there also ESEE, Becker and others. I consider Fallkniven F1 (or S1 if you want to go bigger) one of the better "universal" knives. It is not "The Best", and depending on personal preferences might not be ideal, but still is very good universal knife. Edge is convexed, not really thin, but not thick either. Blade is satin finished, so no coating drag. Stainless, so maintenance is easy.

In the end nobody should choose a knife for you. If you can, try several knives and find one that suits you better.
 
the regular boss street wont do well slicing. i have one, and i had to reprofile it. the cabs would be a better choice. the regular boss street is indestructible, and i like it, but unless i was breaking open cars looking for drugs everyday, i would be carrying something other than the boss street.
 
thanks guys, really helpful. I do want to cut more than bust thru car doors, lol, and have plenty of hunting knives, am looking for something more for trail chores. your suggestions have steered me well
 
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