INFI??? Second thoughts.

ditto to joshua j. its all about the heat treat & quality control. you can research busse's tests which are well documented & judge for yourself. busse edge durability even surpasses fowler & burke forged wonders. 200 & 300 cuts on sisal rope are nothing unusual for burke & fowler, but busse cuts over 2000.
 
I just sold my last Busse knife.
It wasn't bad, it just wasn't all that. I have other knives I like better.

I also just ordered a large knife. I had several manufacturer choices in the blade length and thickness that I wanted, one of which is the current Busse Bushwhacker. I didn't choose the Busse.

I can afford any knife I want, so it isn't a matter of cost that guides my decisions. Design and function is far more important than the type of steel.

Buy a knife you like. Don't buy hype and don't buy marketing.
 
bearcut said:
I just sold my last Busse knife.
It wasn't bad, it just wasn't all that. I have other knives I like better.

I also just ordered a large knife. I had several manufacturer choices in the blade length and thickness that I wanted, one of which is the current Busse Bushwhacker. I didn't choose the Busse.

I can afford any knife I want, so it isn't a matter of cost that guides my decisions. Design and function is far more important than the type of steel.

Buy a knife you like. Don't buy hype and don't buy marketing.
Click to expand...

So what'd you choose?:D
 
Rossi Knives said:
Jimmy Fikes used to go to ABS hammer-ins with a blade forged out of a "new super steel". People would cut and chop with it and cut and chop some more and be blown away with the edge retention. Only then Jimmy would reveal that the "super steel" was just 0-1 heat treated correctly.

I am certainly not saying that INFI is anything mundane. I have heard from independant sources I trust that it is worth the hype. The power of marketing a "mystery" or "exclusive" product is very powerfull and should be looked at critically.

I too am skeptical about anything that I can't varify myself. Having met Jerry and knowing what I know, INFI is not snake oil.

Cheers,

Nick
Click to expand...

Interesting.

I just bought a few and used them. I was impressed, so I bought more.
 
Busse's are like any other item that has the potential to be come coveted--which is what some folks do. And there's nothing wrong with that. Other folks do it w/ 1911 or Sig P210 Pistols, or cameras, or watches, or whatever...

I think INFI is a good steel. I got a nice Busse at a fair price (ie w/o the massive secondary markup), and yes, if I had to pound one of my knives into a tree with a sledgehammer to hang over the cliff to save the maiden in distress, I'd probably pick it ahead of some of my other knives. But it'll be like most Busse knifes--a safe queen. As its a LE knife, that seems appropriate. If I get a fair offer for something I like better, it'll probably go.

But by and large, until you get into the 'artistic' damascus and mother of pearl pieces, they're just knives. A few ounces of metal and handle. And most produced today are pretty good, even if they don't have Busse stamped on the side. I consider Swamprat to be a considerably better value for a near identical knife. And one that isn't so expensive I dare not use it. Same w/ Cold Steel, Gerber, and the other quality makers other there today.

Bottom line--it's your $$, spend it however it makes you happy. But don't get too wound up in INFI hype, or any other for that matter.

My $.02 worth.

BOSS
 
yep they sure have hooked alot of suckers with their crappy marketing plan... but not me. not saying they arent good knives im sure they are but you gotta ask if its too good? like would you really want a knife you never have to sharpen... leaving you without the skills of a normal knife owner. also what if something happened to the knife? what if somone took it or it got lost or "confiscated"? i wouldnt buy crap but i wouldnt blow all my money either. the point is for this tool to do what you need it to do... if a knife 1/3rd the price gets the job done why blow your money. im a bad consumer :)
 
Its about the quality control and warranty, about customer service, although I guess they are people to and you can p!$$ them off. So far they have been very helpful and people like dealing with them, because you get that mom&pops small business feel when dealing with them. Sure marketing has a lot to do with it, Jerry is very keen when it comes to it.

I bought my first Busse because of the warranty, and second because i thought it was pretty and I'd be able to sell it for a lot more later. I'm unable to sell it for a lot more or to sell it at all, and not because people aren't willing to buy it. I love it, it fits me. I traded the first one for a more bulkier model, and I love it as well.

The thing with INFI is that its all limited runs, so once the production stops people who missed out will have to pay more to get it. Even users go for as much and ussualy more then factory price. So it makes sense to buy one try it out and if you don't like it sell it and buy something else. These knives give a piece of mind, you can buy one and trust it. That's what draws me to these knives.


That, and excessive drinking, encouraged by the hog brotherhood and boss hog himself.
 
If you dont mind paying the price, and carrying a thick/heavy/very tough knife with a fair amount of corrosion resistance then busse is the knife for you. On the other hand there are many other knives out there that will mirror a busses performance at a lower price.
 
kkj87a said:
yep they sure have hooked alot of suckers with their crappy marketing plan... but not me.
Click to expand...

Well dang! I'll be 50 years old this year, been buying/using/collecting since my teens, worked with a knife in my Game processsing buisness, and worked most of my years as a meatcutter......and now I find out I'm just a Sucker:grumpy:
Why oh why didn't someone enlighten me sooner:p
 
kkj87a said:
yep they sure have hooked alot of suckers with their crappy marketing plan... but not me. not saying they arent good knives im sure they are but you gotta ask if its too good? like would you really want a knife you never have to sharpen... leaving you without the skills of a normal knife owner.
Click to expand...

What is this nonsense? You think INFI is some magic steel that doesn't dull?
 
Not that this nut should be taken seriously, just pointing out a fact.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, 90% of what he says is crap but I was still impressed by how hard it is to break a Busse.
 
I have two Busses. A safe queen and a user. The user is a FBMLE. Great knife, but it has a fairly thick grind. I expect I can chop with it into pretty much anything fibrous without damaging the edge. So far I have seen no edge deformation and it is still very sharp. (Not re-sharpened yet.)

However, it appears that thinner ground Busses-- like the Sarsquatch-- do not survive heavy duty chopping so well.

There appears to be more than a few threads concerning thinner ground Busses and edge damage from serious use.

The lateral strength of the Busses is legendary. But I wonder about edge strength with thinner grinds.

Anyone else been wondering about this lately?
 
Good Grief, I have a Game Warden and must admit the little fella might as well be made of cylindrical glass with little rocks and a lighter attached because Busses are like crack. I had the Bussekin (Swamprats and Scrapyards) they can't touch the quality and simplistic beauty of the Busse cutlery.

Caveats imho are price and gimmicky sales techniques to drive up demand and price it's a free market though.

The steel is the important part and INFI is the real deal. I was one of the biggest skeptics but now I am a believer.

I have to say that Justin and Ranger knives makes a great product as well, without the mythos and extra two hundred bucks. ; )
 
INFI has: 0.5% carbon, 8.5% Chromium, 0.74% nickel, 0.36% vanadium 1.3% molybdenum 0.95% cobalt and 0.11% nitrogen.

see http://www.ebladestore.com/steel_chart.shtml for other steel.
INFI steel is custom made for Busse. Combined with good heat treatment gives it good performance.

Is it a wonder steel? My guess is that if it was THE most fantastic steel in the world it would be offered for other applications by steel manufacturers.

They don't, so i am convinced that the metallurgist engineers in this world, either don't know their job, or are not convinced that other steels don't have similar performance or they would all start using INFI.

The people who buy Busse are convinced that INFI is the best steel available for knives. That is possible.
But does it warrant the high price? Each it's own.
I am convinced that i could sell 420J steel for 10 times the value to Brittney Spears fans because Brittney spears quenched it with her own urine!

But IMHO some Busse customers have a strong "confirmation bias"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias
This bias is supported and enlarged by the other peers who confirm each others bias by gathering in peer groups like the busse forum.
The fact that the resale value is always mentioned could be an indicator that the people who buy Busses have a subcontious feeling that their knives are too expensive BUT that they can always sell it again for a high price.
It seems that the pool of customers of Busse products is rather small and that they support the myth of the INFI wonder steel to convince themselve that they didn't fell for a marketing gimmick.
 
Jim malone said:
INFI has: 0.5% carbon, 8.5% Chromium, 0.74% nickel, 0.36% vanadium 1.3% molybdenum 0.95% cobalt and 0.11% nitrogen.

see http://www.ebladestore.com/steel_chart.shtml for other steel.
INFI steel is custom made for Busse. Combined with good heat treatment gives it good performance.

Is it a wonder steel? My guess is that if it was THE most fantastic steel in the world it would be offered for other applications by steel manufacturers.

They don't, so i am convinced that the metallurgist engineers in this world, either don't know their job, or are not convinced that other steels don't have similar performance or they would all start using INFI.

The people who buy Busse are convinced that INFI is the best steel available for knives. That is possible.
But does it warrant the high price? Each it's own.
I am convinced that i could sell 420J steel for 10 times the value to Brittney Spears fans because Brittney spears quenched it with her own urine!

But IMHO some Busse customers have a strong "confirmation bias"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias
This bias is supported and enlarged by the other peers who confirm each others bias by gathering in peer groups like the busse forum.
The fact that the resale value is always mentioned could be an indicator that the people who buy Busses have a subcontious feeling that their knives are too expensive BUT that they can always sell it again for a high price.
It seems that the pool of customers of Busse products is rather small and that they support the myth of the INFI wonder steel to convince themselve that they didn't fell for a marketing gimmick.
Click to expand...

I do not know if INFI is a "wonder steel" or not. It is a high quality steel that out performs several others in it's class, if not on edge retention than on durability. Is this enough to justify the price tag? Since Busse is still in business I would say enough people seem to think so. As far as to why other knife makers do not use INFI, is it possible that it would not be as cost effective as other more popular steels to mass-produce? Maybe the extensive heat treatment is more effort than most knife companies are willing to put forth. Not to mention the "I won't spend more than $100 for a knife" crowd. All I know is I have yet to meet a Busse owner that hated INFI. That’s got to say something.
 
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