Newest additions will be in red until the next update.
Knife designations
AD - Active Duty
AB - Aftershock Bolo
NARK Nuclear Air Rescue Knife
AS - Assault Shaker
BA - Badger Attack
B3 (BB3) Basic 3 (Busse Basic 3)
B4 (BB4) Basic 4 (Busse Basic 4) (European release only) (AKA Euro 4)
B5 (BB5) Basic 5 (Busse Basic 5)
B6 (BB6) Basic 6 (Busse Basic 6) (European release only - AKA Euro 6 - like a basic version of the caretaker)
B7 (BB7) Basic 7 (Busse Basic 7)
B9 (BB9) - Basic 9 (Busse Basic 9)
BM - Battle Mistress
CR Combat Recruit
CT Care Taker (European release only - a clip point e handled knife, roughly the size of a NO)
C4 (BC4) Combat 4 (Busse Basic Combat 4 - European release only, essentially a 4" satin jack blade, with the smaller 3rd gen style choil)
FILET KNIVES - some of the older micarta handled knives Jerry made, came in 4,5, and 6" lengths
FO - Force One
GM - Groove Master
GW Game Warden (prototype e-handled knife few known to exist )
KB Killer Bee.(AKA 4 pure bred fighter that is factory wrapped in yellow and black or all black)
LE - Limited Edition
MS - Mean Street (old model)
MRS - Meaner Street (new model)
MR. MOJO
NO - Natural Outlaw
PD - Public Defender
PH Pauls Hatchet
PR - Police Recruit
4 PBF 4 Pure Bred Fighter (AKA Killer Bee)
6 PBF 6 Pure Bred Fighter
8 PBF 8 Pure Bred Fighter
SJ - Satin Jack
SHARK Early fighting knife with shark-like lines
SH - Stealth Hawk
SH - Steel Heart
SH1 Steal Heart, earliest version, 6 blade, birds beak pommel
SH2 Steal Heart - a longer version (7.5) with either the birds beak or the later rounded pommel
SK - Skeleton Key
TB - Tank Buster
UF - Urgent Fury
Variant/one off knife designations
3 FINGER - an older busse design, similar to the Mean Street, but smaller.
82ND AIRBORNE - earlier busse, oval handle, saber ground, false upper swedge, a kind of bottle opener style choil
AA Argonne Assault Originals were made early years of Busse History. Re-released in 2002 as the 10th Anniversary = 7.5 blade, 20th Anniversary = 9.5 blade. "Magnum" = 10.5 Argonne Assault blade, and the California-legal version with the knuckle guards removed.
APPRENTICE KNIFE made by people working under the Busse apprentice program, most/all were sans front talon hole, and most often had cord wrapped handles instead of micarta.
AXE Early years item. Few known to exist. (estimated to be 3 or so)
BA Bad Apple
B&T Bird and trout knife 1 of 3 made for 3 brothers. Late 1982, D2 steel, real pre-embargo ivory handles
BLUE GRASS BOWIE A GFD bowie made from an e-handled knife
DAGGER - a 1983-1986 blade that was made from Jerry's brothers design
DH Defiance Hill stag handled d2 blade bowie, made early in Jerrys knife making career
DWMS Desert Warfare Mean Street smooth coat, reddish-brown micarta. .220 normally. Some in 9/32.
FIB Flinted Indian blade, heavily gun blued 0-1 blades made in Jerrys very early years
FT - Flying Tiger, looks like a modified Flying Mojo, with the recurve ground out of the back end of the blade, the flying serrations closer together, and a lot of handle variance.
HT - Holy Terror - a serrated d-guard attachment meant for the original straight handled Steel Hearts. Also offered with a separate handle so it could be used independent of a knife.
LIL' UGLY - Earlier small blade version which pre-dated Mean Street
LMS Lean Mean Street thinner version of the Mean Street reported 117 made (110 black micarta, 7 tan)
LMRS - Leaner Meaner Street - a thinner variation of the Meaner Street
Mr. MOFO a saber ground version of the Mr. MOJO
Mr. MEFO - exact same knife as the Mr. MOFO, only with the letters "MEFO" instead of "MOFO" laser-etched onto it. A rare etching mistake.
HOOD KNIFE a straight handled battle mistress variant designed by Ron Hood
IA Internal Affair (a clip point BM-e variant)
KL - Knight Light
MIGHTY BOHEMOTH A very large recurved e-handled custom.
MOAB Mother Of All Bowies
MUTANT MOJO A GFD ground Mr. MOJO
NICK Nuclear INFI Culinary Knife Also offered in XXX NICK version
NUKE HEARTS Steel Heart variants that featured a sharpened top edge (hollow ground)
OD - Off Duty a 3/8 variation of the Active Duty
PA - Pink Apple variation of a variation, using pink died bone handles
PD Birch Knob Polar Drop, early smooth micarta smooth bolt busse. A nuclear payload knife, it was buried in 1989 for later retrieval
PS - Pepper Shaker (swedged & hollow ground Assault Shaker variant)
RUGER BOWIE a style of bowie from the early days (pre-production) of Jerry Busses knife making career
TRICKSTER MOJO Mr. MOJO variant
VWF Vasco Wear Fighter. A Ruger bowie made in Vasco wear steel.
Military overrun knife designations
ARK - Air Rescue Knife
AT1 Arctic Team 1, a clip point BM-e with white coating, and forward seat belt cutter style serrations.
B.A.R.F - Busse Assault Ring Fighter - fighter-style offered with forward finger ring for retention/positional maintenance. Offered in 3 sizes, as well as 3 ringless "California" legal versions.
BS - Buffalo Soldier
DSF Desert Storm Fighter
EU17 - eu17 extraction unit 17. These knives were offered in regular, magnum and mini sizes. They were made from e-series blades, specifically the BM, SH, and either NO or BA (yet to be released to the public)
LU Lil Ugly
SOUL1 a blade of secure origins that had very strict regulations on public purchase.
TALIWHACKER only Busse knife to use SR101, a modified 52110 steel used in Swamp Rat products
TANKER A a longer version of the Combat 4, came with serrated or PE (plain edge) options. (At least one of which had raptor pattern scales).
TM Terror Monkey rumored to have been made for an Israeli special unit specializing in rappelling, these knives had a special coating and 2 handle variations, one eu-17 style, and another that thinned out the index finger area, and the curve going towards the butt. They were made from ZT (Zero Tolerance) blade blanks, in BM, SH, and NO versions. They were offered with either new-style serrations or plain edge.
Handle designations (and features)
3RD GEN (generation) - used on the satin jack and others. (BA3, GM, PD, PH, etc.) Rope cut scales.
BB - birds beak handle designation, specifically the pommel. CANVAS MICARTA a layered material made of canvas and phenolic resin roughest and strongest of the 3 micarta types used by Busse
E - ergo handle designation
EDC - every day carry
F - fusion (meant to be a handle designation, but often misused to designate the new line of knives)
FACTORY WRAPPED used on the Pure Bred Fighter series and some Busse Swords, it was a Japanese-style wrap, often in the Busse colors of black and yellow, but also offered in black/black.
FLYING seat belt cutter style serrations on the top and bottom of the knife near the tip. Also has been used to describe handle modifications (which vary)
LINEN MICARTA - a layered material made of linen and phenolic resin
MAGNUM - a thicker then normal handle variation used on the new line. Also used to describe a larger or longer version of other knives, such as the magnum eu17, Argonne Assault
QUILTED PATTERN - a set of raised diamonds, used on the e-series of handle scales.
RAPTOR PATTERN - a wavy set of grooves most notably used on the Active Duty handles (and later the Meaner and Leaner Meaner Street)
PAPER MICARTA - a layered material made of paper and phenolic resin.
ROPE PATTERN - used on 3rd gen. handles (SJ, BA3, etc)
SF - Special Forces (handle designation) found on the SFNO, F1, and other offerings from 2004 on.
SH straight handled
SH sub-hilt
SLOTTED - a type of handle fastener essentially a flat head screwdriver bolt, used between smooth and tubed scales periods
SMOOTH - a type of fastener that had a smooth head, used on the earlier knives, before production years started
SMOOTH MICARTA designates a lack of machining on the micarta slabs, meaning they are smooth rather then rope pattern or raptor patterned.
TAC (T) - tactical handle designation, found on the NARK and others offered 2004 on
TUBE - the current handle fastener - a tube of metal flared under extremely high pressure. Superior shear resistance, as well as maintaining holes through the handle for lashing or cordwrapping.
