"Hard Use" Knives

M

MikeH

Joined
Oct 18, 2001
Messages
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While perusing yet another thread debating whether anyone really needed a "hard use" knife, I had an epiphany. It is not so much a matter of people seeking out hard use knives because they have a specific task in mind. It is a matter of the fact that owning a hard use knife expands your concept of the things you can do with a knife. That is, if you have a Busse you will routinely take on things with the knife that it would never even occur to you to do if you did not have the Busse or a similar knife. This is why some people can't grasp why we would even want such a knife.

Example: I would never go through the following thought process: "I should take my ZTNO deer hunting today with me because I might run across a deer stand with a
dangerous, rotten seat and have a need to pry the wooden steps off the tree so no one else will climb it like I did." Also, when I ran across the tree stand it would never even occur to me to try to pry off the steps if I only had a lesser knife. However, the mere fact that I had the Busse with me made the thought "I should pry off those steps" just as natural as breathing. Merely having the capability expands the oppotunities to make use of it.

Just as an education, travel, learning new skills, etc. broaden your horizions, so does having a Busse at hand.
 
Your epiphany will be a light bulb to many:)


Love it:cool:
 
Well said. This is a good post for the general forum (maybe where you found that other thread :p). I find most of the users there favor the traditional, right-tool-for-the-job approach, and feel that that shows respect for their knives. That's fine, but... if only things always went as planned!
 
Busses are multi tools!:eek:

I sure am glad I was introduced to Busse Knives, they sure change what you expect from a knife.
 
People own many kinds of knives for a variety of reasons, everything from 'got it from grandpa' to collecting, to hard use. While it does inspire confidence to have a capable knife such as a Busse, I too am of the 'use the right tool for the job' mindset. $400+ knives tend to make terrible hammers and generally aren't my choice for heavy prying. A free rock tends to hammer much better. Lots of things pry better than a knife. That saves your knife for down the road when you may actual have to, ya know, cut with it. Not to say that desperate times may call for desparate measures, but if not an emergency, why not try and use the best tool? Not that you have to baby your Busse (obviously), but if you don't need to chop through the cinderblock, why bother (we know it can be done).

That being said, prepping for 'what if's' and worst case scenarios isn't a bad practice. Getting the best gear you can afford is generally a good practice, just so long as you don't overspend on status than actual performance...put another way, you don't have to buy the most expensive item to get the best performance or value.

YMMV, my $.02 worth.
BOSS
 
I really never had the idea of using a knife in a "hard use" situation until a few years ago and the idea has been festering in me ever since. It came up the other day at work .I needed to cut down a small tree(About the size of my "good size" forearm) and I had some tools with me , I could have walked over to our work trailer and got a cord and a sawzall but I thought what if I didn`t have tools with me??? So I took out my work folder with a "tri" something lock , it is supposed to be strong so I set the knife at a decent angle and started to beat the blade into the tree with a pretty smooth rock I found and it went in well and cut the tree .I had scratched and dented the back of the blade ,but the knife locked and worked fine .So now I know if I needed to do something like that in an emergency I have knowledge of how the knife would hold up ,not a good guess but practical understanding of the limits of the knife.
 
Mike, there are not many feelings as comforting as the peace of mind you described. I take a Busse with me any time I am going places where I am not 110% certain I will have access to "the right tool for the job". I make that choice specifically because I know they are capable of so much more than just cutting and the in the places I prefer to be, I can make do without almost any tool, except a knife. ;)
 
Now I know where the steps to my treestand went. LOL

Well said sir. Thanks for sharing the epiphany.

Garth
 
uyotg said:
... if only things always went as planned!
Click to expand...
Because things do not always go as planned, that is why I want a Busse - to use for the unexpected task that would break either the blade or handle of most other knives. Especially in an emergency situation, I would find it comforting to know I do not have to worry about breaking my knife. For me, the peace of mind is worth the extra cost.

Gene
 
MikeH , that was a very good way of explaining something that many of us "feel" but maybe never thought of in practical terms .

I had come on here to post a thread and then started reading this . It's great and sort of has to do with what I was going to post about . So I will refer to this thread in my post .

Hope some of you will post your opinions on that thread also .


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HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS !
 
Well said Mike, well said indeed!!! There is so much that can be said about that comfort zone. Shoot I don't want something like a bad experience to befall me or anyone, but that knowing and having some peace of mind goes along way to having a positive mind set in a bad situation or at least one that could be fixed.
 
We all know that Busse knives are great for prying; they got me to pry open my wallet MANY times!..:eek:..:D
 
I like the way you think about thinks Mike, and have always enjoyed your threads:thumbup:
 
I think of Busse and hard use knives as the Ferraris of the knife world. You may be able to get it done with another knife, just like you can get there with a ford, but you feel a lot better knowing you can get it done better.
 
Very well said. There's alot of knives out there than can cut better than a Busse but as an all around tool that is more than "just a knife" I think Busse's really shine.

I do things with my Busses that I didn't know were possible with other knives. Back when I carried Gerbers and leathermans etc... I didn't even know you could split wood with a knife or chop down a tree, or pry something. That was a totally foreign concept to me. Now I know that if Im carrying a Busse I have not only a knife but also a prying tool, a chisel, a wood chopping tool, and depending on the model a hammer and a machete.

Busse- The ultimate multi tool :)
 
Quite a keen observation, Mike--great insight on the fundamental value of these knives. :thumbup:
 
Multitool. Can't wait for my tglb so i can pocket carry it bare with a clip everywhere i go!!
 
Same reason I carry shovels in my vehicles. (and usually a tomahawk, duck tape, rope, surgical gloves, face obscuring mask........... wait, what were we talking about again?)
 
I feel in a SHTF scenario I would use the spade and water to clean up the mess rather then my BUSSSE :)
 
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