Chopper for Australian conditions

THough I can see its a serious bit of kit, I don't think the big Busse would really suit my style of doing things. I much prefer to carry a combo of a folder, small or medium sized knife and a dedicated chopper, whereas the FBM and similar sized knives seem to be trying to take on both roles at once.

The other thing is that the price of Busse knives really is exhorbitant, in relation to what else I could get for the price. An FBM sold on this site in January for US $415, about $500 Australian. For that I could get:

A medium size Granfors Bruks axe - $140
A valiant golok - $80
A Tramontina Bolo - $20
A Fallkniven S1 - $185
A Vic OHT - $60
A Frosts Mora - $15

When you look at those numbers, 500 quid for a jack of all trades type knife just doesn't add up (at least to me it doesn't).
 
Illustration using wine: Jan 14, 2008

Want the public to like your product better? Raise the price.

That seems to be the lesson from a new study in which people were asked to taste wines marked with different prices

Researchers scanned the brains of the testers and found that the part of the brain that records pleasure lit up more for the more pricey vintages.

And that was true even when _ unknown to the testers _ they were sipping a wine that they had liked less when it had a lower price tag.

They asked 20 people to sample wine while undergoing functional MRI's of their brain activity. The subjects were told they were tasting five different Cabernet Sauvignons sold at different prices.

A $90 wine was provided marked with its real price and again marked $10, while another was presented at its real price of $5 and also marked $45.

The testers' brains showed more pleasure at the higher price than the lower one, even for the same wine, Rangel reports in this week's online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

- Perish the thought, huh
 
jh205 said:
THough I can see its a serious bit of kit, I don't think the big Busse would really suit my style of doing things. I much prefer to carry a combo of a folder, small or medium sized knife and a dedicated chopper, whereas the FBM and similar sized knives seem to be trying to take on both roles at once.

The other thing is that the price of Busse knives really is exhorbitant, in relation to what else I could get for the price. An FBM sold on this site in January for US $415, about $500 Australian. For that I could get:

A medium size Granfors Bruks axe - $140
A valiant golok - $80
A Tramontina Bolo - $20
A Fallkniven S1 - $185
A Vic OHT - $60
A Frosts Mora - $15

When you look at those numbers, 500 quid for a jack of all trades type knife just doesn't add up (at least to me it doesn't).
Click to expand...

Very true mate...but the FBM will last a lifetime whereas most of those in your list won't. The Falkniven and Bruks are good gear though. I am making a custom leather rig for my FBM which will piggyback the FBM with a smaller microtech currahee fixed blade so most takes have are catered for. I will probably put other attachments on it also to hold other gear like a folder, sharpening stone, etc. Btw, if you can get a decent FBM for $500 AUD it is a good deal as these will go up in price down the track.
 
I remember seeing some cut down machetes that a survival instructor ws making specifically for desert conditions. The tip came to a point like a spade for digging up roots etc. And they cut it down to about a 12" blade. I always wanted one of those.
 
If I were you, I'd take a really serious look at khukuris. For those of us in the U.S., Himalayan Imports is a good bet--though I don't know whether the expense of shipping would make you want to look elsewhere if you're in Australia. If you lurk on the Himalayan Imports forum at the time (lately early afternoon, western U.S. time) when they post their almost-daily specials, you can pick up a very decent khukuri for USD $65-70, including shipping within the U.S. (Again, you'd have to write to H. I.'s owner, Yangdu, to negotiate shipping Down Under.) I imagine that there are other dealers who might be competitive with H.I. on the combination of item cost and shipping.

Personally, I really like H.I.'s khukuris. I live in Arizona, in the southwestern U.S. Like you, we have desert here--multiple kinds, from low-altitude, 50-degrees-centigrade sand-dune desert to high-altitude, freezes-every-winter desert; also coniferous forests; at a couple of points there are mountains high enough to have permafrost at the summits. So: lots of variation--though not a heck of a lot of rain. So, I can't exactly speak for what you'll need in a jungle (and I write this to confess my inexperience in that area)--but I still think you should consider a khukuri.

Biggest reason is that it'll chop VERY well, but its shape lets it do that with a comparatively-small overall length. A khukuri with a 25- or 30-cm (10- or 12-inch) blade will do most of what you'd want out of a longer straight blade. Personally, I'd actually tend to go with the 10-inch-blade (15 inch overall length; H.I. uses overall measurements, so a 15-inch khukuri will have about a 10-inch blade) model, like the British Army Service model; it's lighter and less unwieldy than a 17-incher. H.I.'s knives are quite strong, and, because they're hand-made, they have a lot more character than you'll see in a factory-made knife. Each comes with a small knife called a "karda", which fits into the scabbard, and can be used for the finer cutting tasks. While I'd probably supplement with a small, sharp knife like a Mora for the innumerable little cutting tasks, I'd imagine that a khukuri could answer most of your needs.
 
I'm not in Australia but if i was going there i'd be tempted to get a Martindale Golok.
They look pretty sturdy and have a good rep.
 
tknife said:
I remember seeing some cut down machetes that a survival instructor ws making specifically for desert conditions. The tip came to a point like a spade for digging up roots etc. And they cut it down to about a 12" blade. I always wanted one of those.
Click to expand...

THat I dont get

I keep seeing where people talking about digging with their knives ...

when I tried it a long while ago ( like 18 years ago ) , it buggard up the edge

I really prefer cutting a digging stick for digging with , saves the knife edge a LOT .. in my experience anyway .

For me the hassle of cutting a stick , is easier than the hassle of resharpening a blade I buggared up by digging with it
 
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