INFI is for real Folks!

M

Mike Turber

Joined
Oct 2, 1998
Messages
5,461
INFI is for real folks!

No hype here and after playing with this stuff for several weeks I hereby announce that INFI is the steel of the century!

And combine it with Busse's unique edge geometry and you got one KICK ASS knife!

I am not sure how to explain this and any of you members who have received your knife and have different results please advise right here and right now!

I have chopped, sliced, cut, ripped, punctured, pounded and beat the living **** out of this stuff and it just keeps wanting more. My only beef is I want a Busse #9 with a blade as thick as the Trailmaster. Yes folks I want more beef! That was the only thing I could see that I wanted more of and that is blade thickness on the longer #9. More beef equals more weight and that equals more centrifugal force when I chop the hell out of something.

The basic series is an all round KICK ASS knife and I take nothing away from it. All I want is more. 4 knives in a line is not enough for me. I want a Busse Machete, a dive knife, a fighter and of course a tactical folder.

Do I sound like a Busse billboard?

Sure I do and this stuff is for real. The magazines will not talk so much about this steel for obvious reasons but make up your own minds. Get one in your hands and do your own tests.

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Best Regards,
Mike Turber
BladeForums Site Owner and Administrator
Do it! Do it right! Do it right NOW!
www.wowinc.com
www.gigandknives.com
www.macedirect.com
www.dragon-forge.com
The above sites are pure shamless plugs!
 
does it wash the car and do the dishes? Seriously, be nice if it wasn't so damn ugly. Maybe micarta handle or something.
 
Hey Mike, didn't I see you on the side of the road the other day, stuck up on a couple of posts?
smile.gif


I think Mr. Busse has put a lot of time and effort into his creation and deserves his loyal following. INFI edge-holding is unreal. And I remember a site (Ron Hoods?) that torture-tested a BM to breaking point. That was equally impressive coming from someone that seemed to know what he was talking about. 80 degrees if I remember right? And snapping back to straight after 40?

Not sure about a non-stainless dive knife. I would be a sucker for a full size machete though.

jeff
 
Yup that was me on the side of the road. Will work for INFI!

I don't get this worked up over steel folks as it is not my primary passion, or secondary for that matter. It is just I have tried my best to destroy the edge on this stuff and I can't or at least I can't afford to try it! I have yet to take a Busse edge to failure and a quite honestly it is pissing me off
smile.gif


------------------
Best Regards,
Mike Turber
BladeForums Site Owner and Administrator
Do it! Do it right! Do it right NOW!
www.wowinc.com
www.gigandknives.com
www.macedirect.com
www.dragon-forge.com
The above sites are pure shamless plugs!
 
Now that is something I would be happy to get pissed off about! (?)

Now I HAVE to get one.
Thanks a lot, Mike...
When will it all end?

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The individualist without strategy who takes opponents lightly will inevitably become the captive of others.


 
If my blades ever arrive maybe I'll be able to share the joy. Until then I'll just sit here in the darkness beside my flickering screen and sulk.
 
I'm one third of the way through the 18 week wait for my Mean Street in INFI. Sounds like it's well worth the wait!
 
Hey Mike, how about a wider blade instead of more thickness?

My only concern with the Basic series is the handle material.

I'd like something hard enough to pound with. Either an extended tang like the Fallkniven or a harder substance like Zytel.

Ten
 
I got all fired up about how well the Carbon V did. A $45 Master Hunter, $55 SRK, $65 Bush Ranger, etc., even my $10 Red River/Hudson Bay knives :^), seem to be a lot of knive if the comparisons with other 1095 and VG10 knives hold.
 
-not sure about a non-stainless dive knife-

I thought INFI was supposed to be corrosion resistant?

If all INFI does is hold an edge and be pretty tough, I feel a little let down.

Now, if it holds an edge, is pretty tough, and is highly resistant to corrosion, then I'll be seriously impressed.
 
INFI sounds great......I look forward to being able to afford an INFI blade in a style that meets my needs

I posted, recently, on a meeting with an Australian maker who seemed to know his stuff.
I mentioned to him INFI and the fact that it involved introducing of nitrogen into a steel alloy.
He had never heard of Busse but did seem to know about the effects of adding nitrogen to steel.
He gave me a rather long and involved (and convincing) talk on how to get the nitrogen into the steel..... and the effects on edge carbides. Involved long periods of exposure to nitrogen gas in a vacuum and under heat.
Well, that's how I remember it.
Nothing new under the Sun ??

BTW......my words and music....not his.
And if Busse did it first : great.



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BrianWE
ICQ #21525343
I think :therefore, I am......I think


 
What if any is the difference between "modified infi" and "infi"?

As far as the basics go I wish the grip was not so flat on the sides and had a stop on the top. I like the feel of my Mean Street better than the basic's grip. But, I like the Basic's grip much better than the CS grip.

I would be interested in an infi folder as well. Can they grind 0.125" stock the same as 0.25"?

Giz
 
Hey Snick. INFI can't walk on water. It's not corrosion proof but it doesn't rust like carbon steels do either. From what I've gathered here at the Forums and having mine soaked for hours it seems pretty resistant though. One individual deliberately left his wet and covered with sap overnight and noted only slight discoloration.

The extreme environment of salt-water is another matter. That would make an interesting test. But not interesting enough to dump mine in a bucket of ocean overnight.
smile.gif


It would be nice if Busse could come up with a true stainless while keeping the properties of INFI though. That would assure the steel next-gen status.

jeff
 
Mike,
Do you also have a Busse Battle Mistress?

The Busse Battle Mistress has a wider blade and is thus a few ounces heavier. It makes it a better chopper. I like the Basic also, but for chopping I prefer a Battle Mistress. I learned this after Hurricane Irene blew through Miami.

If you have to carry it a long way and might not use it much it might be more efficient to carry the Basic. I do like the choil design on the Battle Mistress.

I did notice extremely small chips on the edge of both blades after chopping. It would be like taking the point of a needle or pin an pricking the very edge. They would not affect performance in any meaningful way, but I was surprised considering Infi's reputation for toughness. As I recall, I could only see them with my reading glasses or under a magnifying glass.

If you do have a Battle Mistress, or if someone else has one, I have an edge question. It was my understanding that the Battle Mistress has a symetrical edge as opposed to the special asymetrical edge that the Basic was designed to have. On mine the right side edge is slightly wider. OK, after measuring it I guess not that much difference, about 5/64" versus 7/64". Is the grind of the blade slightly off or is this by design?

In any event, both knives are great.

By the way re width, the B. Mistress is about 1 53/64" wide from the back to the edge measured somewhere along the main section of blade.
 
We have an interesting little collection of comments about INFI now. Mike is proclaiming it the steel of the century, based on his experience with modified INFI. Donald is saying he's seeing little indents (or chips?). And previously Cliff felt that (modified?) INFI performed somewhere around D-2 (for edgeholding? I forget).

Looking forward to trying out a Basic for myself!

Joe
 
I second Lobo and Tenbeers comments on the handle material. G 10 would be my choice. An exposed tang on the pommel area would make the Basics more conducive to hammering or crushing (coconuts or skulls, your choice), similar to the Fallkniven design.

Question Mike T.: is the "second generation" black coating (with ceramic) on these Basics as impervious to accelerated salt spray tests as specified on the original A2 steel series? If so, then corrosion should not be of great concern, less the edge that is. This topic has not been bought up yet. Very curious.

L8r,
Nakano

 
Concerning the edge holding, I cut 600 cm of cardboard in a controlled manner like Mike did and as well noticed no difference in the edge at all. You need to use more speed to dull the edge, or something more abrasive.

Note that when I commented that M-INFI was similar to D2 in edge holding this was on soft materials only. Note as well the D2 blade was a very thin 62 RC blade ground by Mel Sorg that cut exceptionally well. It would have easily out lasted all other knives Mike ran. D2 is far more wear resistant than O1, A2 etc., let alone a stainless like VG-10. As well being 62 RC it is very stiff and the edge resists rolling strongly.

The important point as far as I am concerned is that M-INFI has very good toughness and ductility. I have done a lot of cutting with the Basic and BM that would have caused gross damage to the D2 blade and the Busses held up fine. It is the combination of properties that makes it a good steel not any one aspect alone (as it is easily beaten in any specific property by other steels).

As for chipping, I have not noticed any chipping on clean wood, no rocks. If I did I would reprofile the edge and repeat the cutting. If it still chipped I would suspect a flaw in materials or construction. I would then jam in in a stump, throw my full weight on it, and return the pieces for ease of grain inspection as I have a low tolerance for that kind of thing. However that is just me . A more reasonable approach would be to contact Busse and ask if what you are seeing is the expected behavior.

-Cliff

[This message has been edited by Cliff Stamp (edited 25 October 1999).]
 
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