Is a Busse Worth it?

The price of the Busse is down the list a ways that they do not interest me. I really don't have any need the kind of indestructible that people claim they have. Many, Many other knives are more that tough enough for me. A small Busse might appeal to me but I hate heavy knives unless someone else is going to pack it or if I will keep it in the 4X4. The styling does not appeal to me but of course that's just a personal thing, some are not to bad. The way that price enters in it to me is the fact that there are so many knives that do the job I need done for a lot less money, I hate putting that many eggs in one basket.

I have already survived the most dangers and strife that this world will ever throw at me so if I ever did need something like that, I don't anymore. The Old Kabar served me extremely well, and so did the backup Ontario.

No need to flame me because these reasons are just my opinion and I am waaaay!!!!! past changing my ways. That said, I value the heck out of others opinions because I am also old enough to know that everyone can learn something every day.
 
Don't take my post as a flame.

I'm just saying that if someone hasn't used one, they can't say if they are worth it or not based on performance.

But, just to make a point, you mention weight. Which model weighs too much, and what are you comparing it to?

For instance, if one says a basic Battle Mistress (let's say a CGFBM in this case) is too heavy. Compared to what? Compared to another 10" blade that is 1/4" thick at the spine? Or compared to a smaller knife you prefer to carry?
If the former, then it's not a Busse issue, it's an issue of not liking big 1/4" choppers, because the weights between similar sized knives won't be all that different.
If the latter, again, it's not a Busse issue it's a "big knioves are heavier than what I like" issue.

See hwat I'm saying? Neither one addresses if Busses are worth it, they are opinions of certain blade designs and characteristics. In other words, you wouldn't like a knife that size even if it cost $40 and had a different name on it.


To address "need": Will you "need" a Busse and their characteristics? Probably not. Will a Ka-Bar do? Probably. Heck it was my blade of choice in the service as well, and it did fine. To put it another way, look at what most people on this very forum EDC, and carry in the woods. I think most of us carry far more than we'll ever "need", so I think if you're posting here, we can all admit that we're beyond the "need" stage. ;)

I'm not telling anyone to not have an opinion, or that their opinion has to be positive. What I am saying is that making performance claims (they can't do [this], they are too [insert characteristic] for doing [that]) doesn't carry much water if you've never actually used on, or specifically the model being asked about (if there was one).

It'd be like me saying a Mazerati (SP?) isn't worth the price because they corner like crap, when I've never driven one.
 
The real question at this point appears to be whether it is possible to baton a Fusion Battle Mistress through a dead horse and, if so, whether that voids the warranty. Regardless of the answer, there is reason to believe that said horse will remain dead.

DeadHorse.JPG


:p
 
don't take my post as a flame.

I'm just saying that if someone hasn't used one, they can't say if they are worth it or not based on performance.

But, just to make a point, you mention weight. Which model weighs too much, and what are you comparing it to?

For instance, if one says a basic battle mistress (let's say a cgfbm in this case) is too heavy. Compared to what? Compared to another 10" blade that is 1/4" thick at the spine? Or compared to a smaller knife you prefer to carry?
If the former, then it's not a busse issue, it's an issue of not liking big 1/4" choppers, because the weights between similar sized knives won't be all that different.
If the latter, again, it's not a busse issue it's a "big knioves are heavier than what i like" issue.

See hwat i'm saying? Neither one addresses if busses are worth it, they are opinions of certain blade designs and characteristics. In other words, you wouldn't like a knife that size even if it cost $40 and had a different name on it.


To address "need": Will you "need" a busse and their characteristics? Probably not. Will a ka-bar do? Probably. Heck it was my blade of choice in the service as well, and it did fine. To put it another way, look at what most people on this very forum edc, and carry in the woods. I think most of us carry far more than we'll ever "need", so i think if you're posting here, we can all admit that we're beyond the "need" stage. ;)

i'm not telling anyone to not have an opinion, or that their opinion has to be positive. What i am saying is that making performance claims (they can't do [this], they are too [insert characteristic] for doing [that]) doesn't carry much water if you've never actually used on, or specifically the model being asked about (if there was one).

It'd be like me saying a mazerati (sp?) isn't worth the price because they corner like crap, when i've never driven one.

perfectly stated!!!
 
The real question at this point appears to be whether it is possible to baton a Fusion Battle Mistress through a dead horse and, if so, whether that voids the warranty. Regardless of the answer, there is reason to believe that said horse will remain dead.

C'mon, everybody knows you can't baton a knife through a dead horse, but you can sure beat it with one!
 
Cpl Punishment, hola

“Re BaldtacoII's post (don't want to quote the whole thing):
I understand your reasoning, but the results that are from those that have actually used Busses should carry more weight. I don't think it's too skewed, since quite a few have posted that they used to have Busses and did not like them.“

That seems reasonable. My objective was just to be cautious. The OP is a name I don't recognize from this subsection. Many people show up on this section of this site asking questions of various bits of kit because unlike the other subsections this one is more about field use. It would be easy for a person to get totally the wrong impression of a bit of kit when that iceberg mechanism is evident. I'd offer the same caveats about say SOG. SOG hardly gets a mention here as it seems most to prefer something else. If a new face showed up asking about SOG as field knives and few regulars from here commented yet there was an influx of people from the SOG section and MT&E praising them the newbie could achieve conclusions that are probably not held by most of us users here.

“Let's be honest, the only criticism so far in this thread of Busse knives by those that don't own them, that carries any weight is the price and aesthetics. Yep, they are pricey. But then, as has been pointed out many times, people spend thousands on stupid things like booze and cigarettes, or great big TVs and such. It means their priorities are different, not that Busses are too expensive. But, if they think any piece of steel isn't worth that price, fine, it's a legitimate opinion.”

I tend to avoid comments on price in absolute terms. I believe the affairs of a man and his purse are private. To poke about it that is a kind of rudeness. I do wonder at a lot of things in relative terms though, including knives. A rip off is a rip of whether one can easily afford to be ripped off or not. I have speculated on that in relation to all sorts of goods. None are exempt and I see no reason why they should be. Still, the price thing does factor in usually used as a cudgel in an attempt to trample dissent. That happens here a lot amongst kids we call Chavs.
Features of the Chav include a disposition toward being bellicose and the insistence on prestige-label clothing despite being poor. The odd fact is they often use those labels as badges of rank in an attempt to humiliate other children not so expensively dressed. The weird part is those they seek to buy rank over with their label dropping often come from significantly more affluent and better bred stock. In fact, most of the comfortably wealthy people I know hold little store by labels and badges and are frequently scruffy gits. On that, any of the arguments that go “you know it's the best, you'd own one too if you could afford it...everything else is sour grapes...” just makes me laugh. Yeah, the money bit is kinda icky.

That said, we cannot overlook the cost because we know of at least two human tendencies. 1] The more something costs the higher it is usually rated. 2] Given two equally tenable alternatives, once a person commits to one they will exaggerate the differences to distance the one they selected from the hitherto not so different. Justification after the fact. It's not surprising that people claw and rake to find explanations amid the tenuous when they may have to explain to a shrewish wife why they have to eat burgers this week or whatever.

“However, others aren't so legitimate. Examples:
"Busses are too thick, they're just sharp prybars...."

Some of that may be true I don't know. I lost interest in them a good while a go. What I do believe though is they should come sharp and so on. After spending a good amount of time on their forums I have to say that I've seen a fair number of complaints even from fans about sharpness, fit and finish and so on. It's not a few isolated cases as some would have me believe. I started of quite positive about them but I have to say it was [and here's that relative money thing] quite sickening to see what some people got for custom knife money.

“"The edge is too obtuse."

Don't care about that. I find that easy to fix. In fact it is a pleasure to do so.

“I don't like their marketing policies”


Not so irrelevant if you believe that the marketing artificially inflates the price. I do. There are other aspects I don't like either but I'll resist getting into that. Sufficient to say I foster no I'll will toward Busse. In fact, I sent a post card to one of the Busse crews daughter to help her with a school project. But I can't overlook the fact that I prefer transparency and plain speak over babble and a sprinkle of pixie dust no matter who is doing it.

“Most yeahsayers like them because they really do work as advertised, their heat treats the 3 Bussekin companies use really do produce superior toughness, and they really do hold their edge, and are pretty easy to sharpen. So you CAN have both excellent toughness and very good edge holding capability, but you will pay for it. Whether having both of those things is worth the price of admission (and even there Scrapyard knives aren't MUCH more expensive than a RAT Cutlery, Becker, etc, and Swamp Rat aren't bad, either) is up to the individual.”

If you read my first post in this thread you will notice that I offered up applause precisely because of the toughness Busse managed to wrangle out of D2. I stand by that. Still not buying into the price thing though. If they were the price of a Buck I'd overlook them just as quickly as I do now. Money isn't the be all and end all for me.

I think OldPhysics summed up nicely with “And each of us gets to make up his or her own mind. I love it.”. That works for me. This is all so subjective only a fool would show up expecting agreement about knives. Personally, I just like to swap inspirations.

:-)
 
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The real question at this point appears to be whether it is possible to baton a Fusion Battle Mistress through a dead horse and, if so, whether that voids the warranty. Regardless of the answer, there is reason to believe that said horse will remain dead.

DeadHorse.JPG


:p


That works. ;-)
Out.
 
The weight is not a Busse thing, I dislike carring any knife in the weight range of the BM or BK-9 or the trailmaster. I would rather carry a lightweight saw and a medium size knife. I would not hesitate to pack any of these knives in my boat or truck and usually do. Someday if the chance comes along to try one of the small Busse's I might give it a try.

My expierence with Busse is with a BM that my cousin owned, we packed into a wilderness cabin and stayed for a couple months. He brought his Busse and I brought a saw and a Buck 110. We both still pack the same knives for the few times we pack anywhere. But I also pack a custom or two from a few of the fine Makers here. Our legs were much younger then.:D
 
Busse, Swamp Rat, and Scrap Yard are the best fixed blade knives on the market IMO.

I prefer Scrap Yard because they are 1/3 the price of Busse's and definitally get the job done no matter what the job is.
 
I have never used the Swamprats. With that, the dead horse can stop being whipped by me.:D:D
 
I understand your reasoning, but the results that are from those that have actually used Busses should carry more weight.
That kind of argument often comes up in discussion regarding Busse or CRK, or various expensive brands.
Problem is that it implies before not buying a knife you should buy it first just to make sure you shouldn't buy it which of course would defeat the purpose of the whole not buying it scheme.
Joke aside you could argue that for some cheap knife like mora, but for a Busse $250 (without shealth) is too much of a ticket just to make sure I don't need another paper weight that will (possibly) marginally outperform more sensibly priced knives in over the top situations that seldomly happen.
 
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I have had several Busse knives.
I am lucky enough to be able to afford whatever knife I want.

I really like the infi steel - but I don't think they out perform sub $150 Fallknivens.
I used a SAR5 exclusively for 1 year. After that I decided to try out my other knives and fell back in love quickly with my Fallknivens.

If I was you - get an F1 and a Ontario 18" machete to convex.
So eventually I may get rid of the Busses.
Enjoy.
 
Joke aside you could argue that for some cheap knife like mora, but for a Busse $250 (without shealth) is too much of a ticket just to make sure I don't need another paper weight that will (possibly) marginally outperform more sensibly priced knives in over the top situations that seldomly happen.

I didn't say the OP had to buy one to know if it's what he wants.

I said that he should weigh the opinions on the performance of the knives from people who have used them higher than from those who never have used them. Sorry, but I see guys say that Busses are too thick or the edge too obtuse to do [X], who have never used one. Doesn't make sense to weigh those as heavily as from someone who has used them (who will generally tell you that it really depends on the specific model).

Other things like price and aesthetics, sure, all opinions are valid.

Hope I cleared that up.

With that, I'm going to stop contributing to the demise of this thread (I know, too late).
 
I almost bought a Busse once to try out INFI but after we agreed to the deal the seller sold it to another American (his choice). Since then my purchasing policy has changed somewhat and I do not believe I will buy a Busse for the following reasons (that make it not worth it TO ME):

Price:materials ratio is nowhere near what I would consider, nor have I heard rave reviews of their manufacturing tolerances (similar to Strider here)

Choils- they make a difference in cutting ability to me, and I hate them. I want my edge at the edge of the handle for close up work. To me "choking up" argument for choils is an excuse for a non-optimal handle configuration.

Abbreviations and fanatics- I can't get into either of them (similar to Benchmade model numbers- I want names not FMBERNDTTE-34)

Availability- I refuse to sit by my computer and watch the time- I have a family that is more important and computer is for downtime only; plus the ridiculous amount of markup that I have seen right after a selling frenzy/whatever they are called (plus they have shut down my access to this site at times with the practice.

No sheath on any knife= no sale (unless slipjoint or clipped folder), especially at their price point.

Obtuse edges- I understand that not all are thick but I refuse to reprofile a new blade, no matter how fast I can do it (Queen fits here as well). I want a knife that fits my slicing requirements first and foremost, even if it is a chopper- if my 10.5" bladed axe can slice paper and shave hair then my knife should be able to as well.



I will admit that this knife is the only Bussekin knife that I have tried out and it was by far a good knife and also not something that I would ever consider buying, due to obtuse edge, handle ergonomics, choil and price.
ScrapYardKiwi.jpg



Once more- these factors are my determinant and if you feel different then no problem, I am choosing to not buy them for these reasons rather than an issue I have with the company. If they made a model with INFI that was 1/8", no choil, razor sharp and a sheath I may change my mind but I'm not holding my breath (and if they make this please let me know so I have the opportunity to change my mind.)

I would like to ask that those who responded to this thread that are not regular posters here to show us in picture form (as is the norm here) your Busse knives being used in a wilderness setting to show us proof of your outdoors use of these knives and their effectiveness. Not that I don't believe you, but visual evidence (which has thus far been the least in any thread of this length that I have seen here) will go a long way in proving your point to the rest of us. This is not a demand or my way of being a dick, but simply a request that will strengthen your argument.
 
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If they made a model with INFI that was 1/8", no choil, razor sharp and a sheath I may change my mind but I'm not holding my breath (and if they make this please let me know so I have the opportunity to change my mind.)


I want one of those too....The wait goes on. Jerry seems to be listening recently so we will see. Oh and did I mention I hate the dam choils and talon holes.
 
I've even be satisfied with something 3/16" thick or less and full flat grind and no choil, though 1/8" would be real nice...
 
As an avid knife guy and avid survival student I am always trying to improve my survival kit. I have been in search of MY ideal survival knife. I'm a big fan of the RC-5 and RC-3, and would like to own a Fallkniven someday. I also really like the Busse SAR4, but they around $400. I don't know anyone who owns a Busse so I don't have a first hand account of how good the INFI steel is or how nice these knives are in person.

My question is.....is a Busse, used as a surival knife, worth it? What is your opinion?



Busse Knives are awesome, when you can get the one you want. For the kind of $$ you are going to spend on a Busse, check out some of the makers here in the Makers area. Tito makes some awesome knives in 60V,90V and made me one in 3V for around $250-$300. Also offers other steels as well I believe.
 
I would like to ask that those who responded to this thread that are not regular posters here to show us in picture form (as is the norm here) your Busse knives being used in a wilderness setting to show us proof of your outdoors use of these knives and their effectiveness. Not that I don't believe you, but visual evidence (which has thus far been the least in any thread of this length that I have seen here) will go a long way in proving your point to the rest of us. This is not a demand or my way of being a dick, but simply a request that will strengthen your argument.

Well, I'm a regular here...and I only have Bussekins, but I'm also a photo-whore and can never resist an invitation :D

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