Busse BWM Questions

[<Flux>]

I bought my first Busse last night off the exchange. It's a CG Bushwhacker Mistress.

I have read the specs of the blade, but can't figure out one thing. It says that the blade is convexed, but is the edge convex?

From anyone that owns/uses this knife, what are your thoughts on it? From looking through BladeForums, it seems that a lot of these have been sold on the exchange for face value, sometimes even less. This makes me a bit nervous that the performance to price ratio is off.

I would love to buy an FBM, and probably will someday, but I don't have the funds currently to afford one at exchange prices (have made a tremendous amount of purchases lately.) I figured that the BWM is comparable, only with less heft (blade thickness) and therefore less chopping power.

I haven't been able to find many reviews of the blade.

I know that the BWM is not going to have the same chopping power as any of the FBMs, but it still seems like an excellent field knife. I'd appreciate it greatly if you all can share your thoughts on the blade. Tell me what you love about it, or tell me what you hate about it.

 

[Evil Monkey]

Hey... I, too, just purchased a BWM and I freakin' LOVE it!! I'm sending it off to Nate (Norcal) to get a true convex edge put on the blade, because you're correct, the edge is not convexed. My brother has the NMFBM and that thing is truly a beast... I love that knife, too, but the BWM is just faster in hand, and chops VERY nicely. You don't feel the decapitating weight behind your swings that the bigger NMFBM has, but I'm willing to sacrifice that for the agility I feel with the shorter blade and thinner profile. I can't wait to take this thing camping/hiking.

I really like the handle on this blade too (actually more than the NMFBM) because you get a little more support down by the pinky. I'm actually considering getting a second BWM I love this blade so much.

 

[<Flux>]

Awesome! That's what I like to hear! It was a bit scary when I saw that the BWMs had depreciated in value on the exchange. Can you tell me more about the service Norcal offers? I'd definitely be interested in getting a convex edge put on my BWM when I get it.

 

[=MAX=]

First off congrats on the BWM score. The BWM is an awesome blade. I regret selling mine daily. It's light, chops well, battons awesome, its THIN, the handles are very comfortable.
Here are some pics of one I owned. Enjoy your new knife.

 

[oldrich]

Hi.
The whole grind on the CG BWM is convex, but the edge is regular (V-shaped). There also exists a CF (Competition Finish) version, which has convex grind and convex edge as well at the same thickness. That's the one I have and love! I believe it's a great chopper, though, as you say, probably not as powerful as FBM. But I'd say it's mainly because of the blade weight difference. That could change if there would be a different handle / blade weight ratio and balance... I think it would perform better at chopping if the handle would be somehow skeletonized or tapered, but that would significantly rise the price.
Nontheless, it's a great knife and the performance of INFI is great for this price. Especially for such a big chunk! :thumbup:
Hope this helps a bit,
Olda

(photo taken about a year ago, it looks much more used now, esp. the handle turned darker)

 

[Evil Monkey]

Awesome! That's what I like to hear! It was a bit scary when I saw that the BWMs had depreciated in value on the exchange. Can you tell me more about the service Norcal offers? I'd definitely be interested in getting a convex edge put on my BWM when I get it.

Yeah... His name is Nate and he's on here as Norcalblacktail. Shoot him an email, and I'm sure he'll give you some more info. He has a blog where you can see some of the work he's done... Really great looking stuff. I wouldn't worry too much about the depreciation factor... If the knife works for you, who cares what the rest of the world will pay for it (One man's junk is another man's jewel). Like I said... I for one, love the BWM. And what's crazy is I was hesitant to get it for a long time, because it WASN'T as stout as the NMFBM... Nothing against that knife (because believe me, I want one), but they are two completely different feeling blades.

 

[PeterPHWS]

I stripped mine and fully convexed it and then sharpened the clip .... the knife is so fast it just cried out to me to be a full on Bowie ....

It can still chop well though ... it's profile being thinner means it bites deeper more easily ...

It works great as a camp knife ...

You can tackle some pretty big tasks with this knife .... I was able to chop this tree down and section it .... and the fire lasted all through the night with the knife able to keep the fire fed with logs ... so the thinner stock is no disadvantage at all and properly sharpened it is a really capable performer ... and the handy thing is that it carries easily too ... :thumbup:

 

[Longknife3]

Congratulation on the new knife
BWM is the one for me too!:thumbup: I like both the 3/16" and the .22" thick blade styles. I always prefer to have a knife that can do many things as a field and/or camp knife rather than a dedicated heavy chopper. It carries comfortably all day long in a variety of sheath configurations and won't drag your pants down either:thumbup:

Get out there and use it, then let us know how you like it

 

[Evil Monkey]

...It carries comfortably all day long in a variety of sheath configurations and won't drag your pants down either:thumbup:

Get out there and use it, then let us know how you like it

Yeah... I picked up a Mashed Cat kydex sheath for it with a drop loop... Perfect set-up all around.

 

[<Flux>]

Wow! Awesome replies everyone! Thank you so much for the feedback and action shots. I am really looking forward to getting this! I had considered getting one of the competition finish blades off the exchange, bur didn't realize the edge wasn't convexed on the CG.

I am very impressed with the work you did on your BWM, PeterPWH. If I had the right equipment I strip, convex and sharpen the clip point like you did. Your blade looks awesome!!

 

[PeterPHWS]

Thanks for the kind words Eseestatic ... stripping the blade is done with simple paint stripper and a plastic scraper to remove the paint when it bubbles up after the stripper has done it's work .... but you need'nt strip the blade to get the knife working well ... the clip point and the edge work could all be done without doing this ... I simply prefer on some knives to create my own satin finish because in the long run I can maintain this better than a painted finish which gets worn away with use ...

Some prefer though a worn painted finish as the knife looks like a well used "user" ... it depends on your taste ...

The work done on the edge and the creation of the clip point is all done with a cheap belt sander and then buying some good belts for working on steel ... to develop skills you can start with using cheap machetes and then move on ... there are a number of posts about using a belt sander and the techniques to develop ... so search around and see if this interests you ...

At the end of the day all you really need is the ability to sharpen a knife well ... but having some skills on a belt sander makes these sort of tasks quick in terms of the time required to do jobs like this ...