INFI vs

E

Ether

Joined
Apr 22, 2002
Messages
20
I recently read a claim by a knife seller (forget which one, might be BKCG) that Cold Steel's San Mai III is one of the best production steels ever! Is this true? How does this compare to something like INFI?
 
Seems pointless to me wedging a good steel between 2 poorer ones - its just like a plating, not really of any structural importance. At least thats how it seems.

I thought INFI was one of the ultimate cutting steels, didn't realise it only excelled at chopping? What is the ultimate cutting steel then?
 
The sandwhich is supposed to make it stronger.

My point is about info is it's only used by Busse, and Busse only makes knives with very thick edges, relative to most other knives. If your want cutting, the you need a decent steel, but more importantly blade profile, heat treat etc.

The problem is you can't just ask about steel without considering these other factors. It's not that easy, sorry.

If you want to ask, "What's is the sharpest, best ease of cutting production pocket knife for $100 or less?", then that's a much better question though that's till a very general kind of question.
 
Fair enough. Is it fair to say then that edge retension is the most important factor in cutting ability? I've read quite about INFI with good maliablity and rc58-60 and all the stuff - guess i'm blinded by cool worlds and numbers - still want one though!
 
DaveH said:
.

My point is about info is it's only used by Busse, and Busse only makes knives with very thick edges, relative to most other knives. If your want cutting, the you need a decent steel, but more importantly blade profile, heat treat etc.
Click to expand...


Dave,
This just isn't true, it is a false claim that continues to be spread by lack of knowledge or just plain ignorance. There are many Busses out there that have extremely thin edges, and if you don't think they are thin enough for your intended use, just ask and they'll thin them down even further. I don't know any other production companies that would put the edge on the knife that you want.

Just in case you don't believe me here are a couple, while these are customs there are others
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=360951&highlight=filet
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=367852

Also, you may want to check out the Active Duties, the Nick's, the Desert Defender was hollow ground with a beautiful edge. I'm sure there are more that I'm missing also.

:D:D
 
Thanks for the info Eric, I had an active duty and it didn't compare in cutting ability to my sebenza, for things that I cut, boxes paper, rope, and similar. You make a good point that they could be thinned down, but if you want a thinner knife I'm not sure why you'd buy a thick one in the first place.
 
What about the steel heart (or fusion steel heart as it is now) is that a blade qith a profile originally intended for chopping? Getting a bit confused now!
 
DaveH said:
Thanks for the info Eric, I had an active duty and it didn't compare in cutting ability to my sebenza, for things that I cut, boxes paper, rope, and similar. You make a good point that they could be thinned down, but if you want a thinner knife I'm not sure why you'd buy a thick one in the first place.
Click to expand...

I guess you don't buy a thick one, you ask them to thin it and then you buy it ;)

Joking aside, you buy one, that has the steel and HT that will hold an edge forever, handle abuse and hard use if needed, and from a manufacturer that has an unbeatable warranty and excellent customer service. Busse fits that bill for me.

:D:D
 
Ether said:
Seems pointless to me wedging a good steel between 2 poorer ones ...
Click to expand...

It makes it easier on the maker to grind, and makes the blade as a whole more resitant to impact and bending, plus the corrosion resistance is higher.

What is the ultimate cutting steel then?
Click to expand...

For light stress use, no impacts, no torques, look for something very hard and very wear resistant, M2 at 65 HRC is a decent place to start.

DaveH said:
...if you want a thinner knife I'm not sure why you'd buy a thick one in the first place.
Click to expand...

It is impossible for any knife, outside of a true one of a kind custom to be optomized for the user as the edge configuration has to match their skill level, physical ability, and methods, even on the same tasks.

Part of learning how to use any knife is figuring out what is the optimal edge setting for you, if you know before hand then just ask and they will do it as Eric noted. If you don't, then it isn't like you can pick an optimal knife NIB anyway.

There is more to a knife than the thickness of its edge, I have bought knives I knew I was going to have to modify because I wanted the steel, the overall blade design, and have passed on knives with much closer edge profiles to what I would personally pick for the same reason.

Ether said:
What about the steel heart (or fusion steel heart as it is now) is that a blade qith a profile originally intended for chopping?
Click to expand...

That is one of the intended uses yes, and with it comes the requirement of having more strength, though the claims made about them being overly thick are usually widely exaggerated, I have compared the cutting ability of several in the reviews, they fare very well against knives of that nature.

Though yes an Active Duty won't cut light materials as well as a Sebenza they are made for different tasks. However I have knives that can outcut a Sebenza by the same amount, it isn't like it is optomized for light stress cutting either.

-Cliff
 
Anthony Lombardo said:
spoken like a true busse employee..I mean aficionado.
Click to expand...


Actually spoken like someone who states the truth, the post regarding the "live Blade Show cutting competition" was pruned but here is a comment by Mike Turber about it in another thread. I guess you don't consider 2771 pieces of 1" Hemp Rope "good enough" :eek:

Jerry is very passionate about his knives but unlike others I don't call it hype.

I have tested Busse's knives against several other brands and Busse has never lost. Becker was not out yet and I would love to test them against each other. Well maybe I have.....

In fact I did so right in front of Ethan becker at the Wallace farm. The test was not scientific so the results are not worthy of posting. Even Ethan likes the Busse and said it choped extremely well. He is not one to BS either and he is a very mild laid back kind of guy, but I bet if you piss him off he could mess ya up

I will say this. The Becker is perhaps the better buy, but the Busse is the better steel and knife overall, IMHO.

Guys someone has to be king in the utility knife market and right now it seems to be Busse. As long as he is king of the hill people will take shots at him. There are some companies who think they are king of the hill and seem to offer challenges. When Jerry and myself included take them up on them, they back down.

Guess what, I am not on the Busse payroll and I do not sell Busse. Ethan and Jerry are both considered friends of equal stature in my mind, although Ethan is a much better cook and I like his $$$ wine and boze!

Jerry has the gift of gab and I have never caught him in BS. I was witnes to his live test at the Blade Show a few years back and we did this test over I think 3 hours. 2,7771 cuts!


Click here for that one

Another test Mad Dog -vs- Mission Cold Steel Trailmaster -vs- Basic #9

And the famous 7" test!

So it is a few years later, there are more knives out there. What knives do you want to see tested against each other?


The thread with this comment can be found here http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=218354
 
Good mix of opinions there - cheers. Cliff, you've made my INFI lust seem justifiable again - now if only I could find one in England; ohh and the loads of money to buy one!
 
Eric Isaacson said:
I guess you don't consider 2771 pieces of 1" Hemp Rope "good enough"
Click to expand...

Take a knife and push it through that size of rope a few thousand times and see if you can even do that with a knife that doesn't cut well or has high edge retention. Busse also had demos of himself using a SHBM to cut through a huge bundle of one inch hemp rope, a couple of strands off a dozen pieces. The knives also easily chopped up 2x4's. People like to paint the image that they are only concrete block choppers because this allows them to discredit the knives and the maker and thus not have to face a comparison with the knives - which Busse has had an open offer for years to do a public comparison live.

-Cliff
 
The one Busse I have is a great chopper, and a great slicer. My mom even uses it in the kitchen to cut up meat for chili and stuff like that. True, its no skoutu (sp?) but it works pretty darn good for a "combat" knife!
 
I think it's spelled santoku.

I have a love/hate relationship with Busse knives.

Speaking as a bowie combatives practitioner, they're too heavy and too clumsy for my needs.

Speaking as someone who is just getting into wilderness survivalism, and will need a knife that can and has proven to withstand "abuse"...it's really tough to beat the Busse reputation. You just can't beat the satisfaction of owning a knife that can take abuse, and if it fails in any way, the company will fix/replace, no questions asked.

In this somewhat specific field of tough survival knives, Busse's reputation is king.
 
Thanks 4 Ranges.

I believe you have a Magnum EU17, right? I have one too, and agree, its no fighter, its a utility knife. Personally, from what I've seen, Busse doesnt make any dedicated "fighters" like a Hell's Belle.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top