Favorite outdoor knife

F

flatlander

Joined
Jun 22, 1999
Messages
1,367
Have watched the other thread get a little lengthy;) How about this, favorite knife for whatever SPECIFIC situation you want to post on? Please describe what knife, the situation and why YOU like it. Let's try to keep this one on knives. If you compare it to another brand it must be based ONLY on YOUR experience not hearsay. Wanna try it?
Bob
 
I suppose I'll go first.
Opening over 100 bags of quick set concrete by stabbing the bag halfway down- my SHBA It was fun
What's on my LBV right now? BM-E. Why? I didn't want to continue using my SHBM after finding out it was one of the first 100. The SHBM replaced an original model TOPS Anaconda9 as it was able to hold a better edge longer, was more comfortable and did the specific tasks, such as clearing fields of fire, cutting out roots in a fighting position and gathering materials for overhead cover and camoflauge more efficiently than my AN9. In MY opinion, I'll take my SHBM or BM-E as my general survival knife until something better comes along. Have tried Gerber Bowie, new style AN9, SHSH, Basic9/7 and I'll stick with what I got.
BTW, I'm not a newbie at that kind of stuff. Former Marine RTO, Active duty SERE instuctor(2d class the late LTC. Rowe gave for instuctors) and have just got my letter from the Indiana National Guard for completing 20 years of total service of which the majority has been as a Grunt with the last 5 being OPFOR using my blades ALOT.
Next?
Bob
 
Shaping a tent stake/spear with a Steel Heart. IMHO, it is just about perfect for the job. Its balance, weight, choil, and size are all great for the job.
 
BA3, due to it's reduced size and width, has proven noticeably superior to the NO for cutting Viagra tablets in half.
 
In my fire gear rides a Basic 3. Not big enough to scare civilians, strong enough to do ANYTHING I need done (sold my other one to a buddy at work). I'd carry my SH-E if I could, but would cause me grief with the brass. I will take the SH-E to a class next week on firefighter survival and seem what havoc I can cause.

For EDC I carry a CRK Sebenza. It beats Busse in one area hands down-it will fold in half to fit in my pocket ;)

Jerry, build it and we will buy...:yawn: ;)
 
So far my Swamp Rat camp tramp,cleans game better then my Busses and whittles better also,plus it has that very nice penatrator tip which helps clean game.For a 7 inch blade this sucker chops very well.
 
Okay, I’ll bite.

While I absolutely love my Satin Jack, the grind is a bit thick for most of my outdoor needs. I tend to carry a Marbles or BlackJack knife on me much of the time, just because the thin yet durable convex edge is so darned good for whittling and other small wood working tasks. Thin also gets my nod for hunting and fishing stuff.

The Satin Jack is getting closer though, as I’ve been thinning the grind bit by bit. With a little luck, I’ll someday have the Satin Jack to the point where it’s thin enough for the majority of my work, but still strong enough to take a beating. I’d really like to see Busse come out with a thinner version of the Satin Jack. While the production version of the knife is very good, I generally find it to be too overbuilt for the tasks that a person would do with a knife of this size and weight. I have Marbles knives with thinner edges that I’ve batoned and chopped wood knots with, and never chipped the edge, much less rolled the edge. INFI should be at least as good as the Marbles at the same edge thickness, so I can’t see the reason for the overly thick grind. Maybe Busse should come out with an “outdoorsman grade” of knife, for those of us who don’t need the customary combat grade strength.

The absolute test of a good steel is how it performs with a thin edge, and I want to put INFI to the test!!!!

Oh yah. I always carry a SAK, no matter if I’m carrying a Marbles or a Busse. Call it my comfort knife. I’ve carried SAKS for years, and have grown to trust them.
 
Buzzbait :

[vs Marbles]

... I can't see the reason for the overly thick grind.
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They are not designed for pure wood craft use. They can be so modified however. The edge on my SHBM is more acute than any Marbles, or was for that matter at one time was more so than any other NIB knife I have seen. Busse will do edge customizations on the blades for owner preferences, as has been noted before.

In regards to some outdoor blades, I have a fair amount, some of them are :

1) Valient Golok for light machete work on soft vegetation as well as medium wood work

2) Martindale Bolo, same thing, just a cheaper version of the Golok [lots of other Martindale blades as well, this one just gets the most use]

3) SHBM, when you want more precision and give up reach. Can match the chopping ability of the Golok [different technique], and has equal fine cutting ability as the edges are similar in profile. Has greater edge durability and edge retention, as well as superior corrosion resistance. Prefer the grip on the Golok though.

4) MEUK-52100, modified to a primary convex grind, slight secondary edge bevel (0.005-0.010" at back). From light precision cutting up to heavy batoning to fell and split knotty wood, cuts through poultry bones no problem.

5) Mel Sog utility, D2 ~62 RC, light utility, 3/32" stock with full grind, no secondary edge bevel (well to be very nitpicky, the edge bleeds into a very light convex grind during the last 1/4" or so, just a couple of degrees over the main bevel). Highest performing cutter I have ever seen. Would not want to look at a knot let alone a bone with this knife.

6) Hults 5lbs felling axe, heavily modified [hollow grind], for actually felling the winters wood

7) Folding swede saw, nice for under cuts on heavy and thick trees, plus bucking for camp fires.

8) Various japanese saws, always have one in the car. Will handle anything up to ~5" without difficulty. Blazes through 2" class wood.

Lots of others, these have just been getting frequent use lately.

-Cliff
 
Cliff - I think that's a bit "apples and oranges". I can understand putting a thick grind on your Battle Mistress. It's a whopper of a blade, and is meant for heavy chopping. The Satin Jack is an entirely different animal, having a much smaller blade and lighter weight. The overall design of the Satin Jack looks as if it's meant for lighter duty work, but the grind doesn't lend itself to these light duty tasks.

Call me old fashioned, but I always see edge geometry as changing with the size of the knife. Smaller knives should have different intended uses, which almost always requires a thinner grind.
 
Originally posted by Buzzbait
Call me old fashioned, but I always see edge geometry as changing with the size of the knife. Smaller knives should have different intended uses, which almost always requires a thinner grind.
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I wholeheartedly agree. I would like to see something thin in the 3 - 4 inch range, the size of a CS Master Hunter, which is incredibly thick for it's size. I re-ground the primary bevel on my Master Hunter very thin, and it really cuts well now. I'd like to see an INFI equivalent.

For chopping, I love the BM-E. This baby has it all! Strength, weight, leverage, you name it.

For all around carry, the Steel Heart. A nice intermediate size that is well suited for most camp chores. I am playing with the idea of changing my SH to a full convex grind, like you always talk about, Buzzbait. I am in the process of testing it on a CS Trailmaster first, then when I get the technique down pat, I'll do it on the SH. Figured I'd practice on a factory second before the SH.

I took your advice on the mousepads and wet/dry sandpaper, and it really didn't take that long at all. I was surprised at how easy it was. One interesting note with this is that I carry a small CS Trailguide, and with the amount of belly and recurve in this little blade, you almost need a ceramic stick to sharpen it rather than a bench stone. So I used the mouse pad/sandpaper, and it was very easy to sharpen this way, as well as having a nice round bevel. I like this little blade (a little under 3 inches) for EDC, and it holds a good edge, better than my stainless folders.

A nice little folder in INFI for EDC has crossed my mind a few times.
 
Even the smaller knives get really heavy use. The main market for these knives are not light use whittlers. They are frequently sold to cops, military and the like. If the edges were as fine as you would want for pure wood craft those more tactical user would not react to them well, so standard ultra fine edges are probably not practical NIB. Call Busse and ask for some stories of extreme use of the smaller blades. I don't even see what the complaint is, all you have to do is ask for it and you will get it. Ask another production company to do the same thing with one of their knives and see what happens. I doubt there are many that even match this offer from Busse.

However, in general, f Busse wanted to compete directly with such optimised wood craft blades, well quite frankly that is entering into very dangerous grounds . Busse is a maker with a solid understanding of not only materials properties, but more importantly how they effect blade usage. What properties give what advantage and in to what degree. What are the demands on this knife and what does that mean in regards to which steel should be used. As you reduce the task requirements for a blade, the advantages of INFI are reduced. If you made the above Mel Sorg blade in INFI would it out cut the D2 one. It would be scads more durable, but the D2 one has no problems on ropes, cardboard, food etc. .

INFI is a solid choice for a hard use blade because it combines high toughness, hardness, strength, wear resistance, and corrosion resistance. If you want a blade for light use a lot of these properties don't matter at all and thus other steels can compete with INFI readily, and in fact outperform it in various attributes. Busse isn't that full of his own hype that he would run to challenge a 65 RC custom in 10V in a light use slicing contest.

As well simply consider the market. There is very stiff competition in the light use blade market, which in fact eliminates one of the stronger selling points of the Busse Combat blade - the warranty. For a really heavy use blade this is fairly important, but for whittlers - is it even a concern. I have a BA3 on loan from Luke Freeouf which has been heavily modified to almost a full convex grind, spine to edge. Now it cuts much better than it did NIB. However comparing it to the above MEUK, is there any advantage for pure wood working.

The modified-BA3 has better edge retention on abrasive materials, but wood isn't abrasive, nor is food prep. The BA3 has better corrosion resistance, but the MEUK only has a slight patina as I don't use it around water that much. The BA3 is also a *lot* stronger and stiffer, but you would need to be doing really heavy prying to need this. Overall the modified BA3 is more functional because of its wider scope of work, but when you restrict its use to low stress tasks the MEUK can compete easily - and well quite frankly such knives are much cheaper.

-Cliff
 
Originally posted by Cliff Stamp
I don't even see what the complaint is, all you have to do is ask for it and you will get it.
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That's the problem. People are ordering Busse knives, the BA3 and GrooveMaster in particular, and asking for a thin edge. The edges have not been thin. As a matter of fact, the thickness behind the edges have been thicker than the older A2 Busse knives. This doesn’t sound like a very good trend to me.

As for my Satin Jack, this is exactly why my first post said, "Maybe Busse should come out with an “outdoorsman grade” of knife, for those of us who don’t need the customary combat grade strength." I’d happily pay for a Satin Jack with a thin grind, and so would many others. We outdoorsman want the Busse quality and great INFI steel, but the standard grinds of the small knives are not so good when you actually have to cut stuff in an outdoor environment.
 
I assumed you were talking about the standard edges. Can we have some names of people who either sent back their knives for edge alterations, or requested lighter used edges and were still unsatisfied? How much of a difference was made from the standard, and how much more would you liked to have been seen? Was this complaint ever made to Busse [modifications were not effective] - if so what was the responce?

-Cliff
 
Buzz,

I think you bring up some good valid points.

Cliff, you're beginning to sound a bit like an apologist where there's no need to be. Buzz very well knows (and respects) the capabilities of Infi and the blades made thereof. It's precisely those same robust qualities which would make it attractive in a thinner spined, sharper edged blade.
 
Blues :

It's precisely those same robust qualities which would make it attractive in a thinner spined, sharper edged blade.
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The idea that a steel is the best for all blades is simply hype - nothing more. Just as geometry changes so should steel. Different blades require different attributes and these are found in different steels, and often from different makers. I know custom makers that I would not want bowies from, but would not pass on one of their light utility knives.

To be quite frank, the performance requirements for a light use whittling knife are far different than a heavy combat knife. Just like there are better steels for fillet knives than for wood craft knives, and better steels for kitchen knives. Can you make INFI blades for all of them. Sure. Will they work well - yes. However where does the relative performance stand.

As I said in the above, giving a specific example, I don't think Busse would stand out very strongly there. Maybe Busse feels otherwise, and maybe he is right. If the demand is there I have no doubt he would try to fill it. Why not start a poll, or make some kind of sign up list to guage interest as done frequently on the HI forum.

-Cliff
 
The idea that a steel is the best for all blades is simply hype - nothing more. Just as geometry changes so should steel. Different blades require different attributes and these are found in different steels, and often from different makers.
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Cliff,

I hope you'll cross post your last reply to the other thread that became so contentious. Perhaps it will open up some eyes.
 
Cliff - Jerry quickly replied about the thick grinds, and offered to make amends. You can't compalin about Busse customer service, that's for sure. The instance just shows the direction of the company in inverse to its growing customer base. There are a growing number of Busse customers, who are not LEO or military. These people, who use their knives to cut normal things, are increasingly unhappy with the performance of Busse knives. They have no idea that a Busse is ground so much thicker than your average knife. I certainly didn't.


I personally think that Buuse could break into a very good area with knives that cut normal things well. INFI is a very good steel, and would not be inappropriate for smaller thinnly ground knives. Neither would intergal construction and micarta handles. Can you name another manufacturer that makes a thinnly ground integral knife with micarta handles, and a carbon steel convex edge? I can't.
 
this sounds exactly like the points Jeff Randall made in the other post that seemed to cause a ruckus among the Busse crowd. It's good to see Cliff and Jeff actually agreeing on something.
 
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