Is a Busse Worth it?

[udtjim]

I am used to it.

 

[desmobob]

Your opinion. If you think INFI is some kind of magic mojo that makes a Busse a Busse then you can go with that. Personally, I give Busse a lot more credit than that. Nobody can dispute the close linkages between Jerry's operation and those of scrapyard and swamprat. Its a family business and the names simply designate different product lines. It would be like claiming byrd knives have nothing to do with spyderco.

You certainly have a vivid imagination. I didn't say I thought INFI was some kind of magic mojo, nor did I claim that Scrapyard and Swamprat had nothing to do with Busse. I tried to point out that Busse knives use a proprietary steel and heat treat process that separates them from the other lower budget alternative lines produced by family members.

Again, the OP asked "Is a Busse worth it?"


It appears the majority of people that actually own and use Busse knives say "Yes."

Stay sharp,
desmobob

 

[Dantor]

Folks keep bringing the SwampRat and ScrapYard knives into the discussion. The vast majority of these knives are not INFI and they shouldn't be considered as "a less expensive Busse" in the context of the discussion. And, the OP asked if a Busse was worth it, not a Swamp Rat or ScrapYard.

The INFI steel and complex heat treat are what make Busse knives Busses

Scrapyard SS4 and now the S5LE are INFI, same Busse (Bat) place, same Busse (Bat) treatment, same Bat family !
and are in the secondary market and should be considered.

S5LE, SS4, GW

 

[desmobob]

Scrapyard SS4 and now the S5LE are INFI, same Busse (Bat) place, same Busse (Bat) treatment, same Bat family !
and are in the secondary market and should be considered.

S5LE, SS4, GW

That's why I said "the vast majority," not "all."

INFI at that price is a steal (see post #30 in this thread) and I think those handles are comfortable compared to Micarta.


Stay sharp,
desmobob

 

[udtjim]

Handles are strictly in the hand of the holder, no knife feels the same to any two people.

 

[kgd]

Okay I'll let the named lines drop but thanks for complimenting my imagination

Again, the OP asked "Is a Busse worth it?"

It appears the majority of people that actually own and use Busse knives say "Yes."

Stay sharp,
desmobob

Still this was pointed out earlier in the thread as a kind of circular logic. People who don't think Busse knives are worth it are not going to make the investment in the first place. Yet they have still made a judgement as to the value of a Busse knife.

People who do think they are worth it are likely to kick in money. Saying that people who invested in a Busse and were happy with their choice is the only criteria on which to evaluate 'Are Busse's worth it' biases the whole question. If you wanted to examine this question, then a new thread should be posted: 'How many Busse owners were satisfied/dissatisfied with their choice?'.

Edit - 8:12 pm - ahw well....I'm just in an argumentative mood tonight and don't have enough lively threads to keep me occupied....In the end I think Busse's are pretty fine knives , heck, I've been flipping flopping on that throughout this thread...I'll just stop now before Joezilla bonks me with a machette

 

[baldtaco-II]

heaven forfend

 

[vvk]

I have been in search of MY ideal survival knife. ...is a Busse, used as a surival knife, worth it? 'm a big fan of the RC-5 and RC-3, and would like to own a Fallkniven someday.

Being there done that
I have a couple of Falkniven's and Busse's.
I think you should answer two questions before making a buying decision.

First, do you need small 4-5 inch knife? If this is the case, my advise is that you go for Fallkniven(S1). S1 is very efficient cutter, tough and light. The main advantage of Busse is toughness, something that you do not need in that size as usually you already have hatchet, larger knife or folding saw to handle larger tasks.

Second, if you need bigger knife (7-8 inches) Busse may make more sense price wise as this type of a knife faces tasks like chopping or selfed defense where the extra thickness and not being stainless are not as big an issue as they are for the small 4 inch blades.

My personal take is that realistically, not in the fantasy land, you will never need supper thick 4 inch knife. Thus, you do not the $400 Sar4. On the other hand if you decide that for collection purposes, do not lie to yourself with this "survival" BS ! , you need Busse you would be better of with something with 7+ inches as this is the type of knife where Busse shines.

I never used or carried my Busse's in the woods as they are too heavy to carry but at least one Falkniven is always in my backpack (A2 is my favorite)

Finally, remember that there are many collectors and backyard choppers here, thus for more realistic advise you should go to some backpacking forum, where people really go outdoors and use knives in more realistic way.

 

[customizerwannabe]

I buy Busse strictly as an investment. I hear a lot of "they're meant to be used", but who can afford to chop wood with a thousand dollar knife. They're built to be used but priced for the safe. I'll use an Ontario Rat for camp work. I have used a Sarsquatch while hiking and it works well but is heavy, and is it better than an Ontario Rat 5? Dunno. I'll say they are very good investments. I'd love a MOAB but 2K+ for a factory machette? I don't think so. Could buy a handful of awesome customs for that much. I remain a Busse fan but certainly not a fan-atic.

 

[Liam Ryan]

I really want a scrapyard S5, those handles look amazingly comfy.

 

[Dantor]

I really want a scrapyard S5, those handles look amazingly comfy.

the Mudder-handles are excellent! and they are coming out on the secondary market (here), gone from the company store now.

but Dan Busse really seems to listen to us and Mudders-models have been coming out more and more, hopefully you will get more chances/offerings in the future

 

[Andros]

It would really depend who you asked. For my personal tastes and uses, I cannot justify that kind of dough for somthing that will only marginally out-perform a $6 tramontina machete. I think it was Pict that said you get the first 80% of the function with the first 20% of the cost.

Now, I will wait for the Busse folks to yell at me.

Edited to add: If you are looking for extreme durability, I think a Fallkniven would do well for you. I cant imagine anything else being any noticable amount tougher than laminated VG-10. Plus, a Fallkniven will come with a better grind.

But, to each his own.

I am not going to yell at ya; I'd rather offer my 2¢.

First of all a machete is one of the best choices for soft vegetation; that is why it is used heavily in the tropics. But in dence wood it will stick easily or, even glance off, which can be very dangerous. So, the very thin profile of a machete makes it a less than ideal choice for thick wood chopping. Of course, I think it also makes it a bad choice for wood splitting/batoning.

Concerning Fallkniven and laminated VG10, laminated VG10 is very capable at handling lateral stress, plus it takes an excellent edge and offers good wear resistance. If you also take into account that it comes with a beautiful full convex edge formation, you have a great knife altogether. The problem is that if while using such a knife to baton wood with, it hits a rock as the blade clears the wood, you will find the hard way that most likely your knife just chipped. Not so with a comparable Busse though.

Take care.

 

[Andros]

I have noticed that many people say that Busse knives are expensive knives. Aside from the LE's and fully custom models I believe they are not.

If you look at the current Busse offering (i.e. the Tank Buster Combat Grade) you will see that you get a knife with a cutting edge length ranging from 5-7/8" to 6-3/8" depending on whether you want the knife with or, without choil, with a blade thickness of .220” and a high saber ground with convex edge formation for $287. If you also factor in the numerous combinations that are being offered you actually buy a custom knife made of INFI for this price. Now, go and see what type of knife you can buy with comparable characteristics from the majority of knifemakers and at what price. Most likely you will find that you can get less for your money.

Many have mentioned that they actually don’t need in the outdoors such an overbuilt knife. It all has to do with the type of outdoor activities one is getting involved into. If we are talking about going for a walk in the nearest park then this may be the case. But if you go deep in the wilderness then this is not the case. Like with guns one needs reliability, so is the same with knives. Reliability with guns means that every time you pull the trigger it should go “boom”, whereas reliability with knives means not breaking.

That said, I like my puukkos, as much as I enjoy my heavy choppers and everything in between. But if I go deep in the wilderness I’d rather have something I know it will take whatever the need might bring, than being left with a broken blade. I have had such an experience whereas my handmade bowie made of 5160 lost a few chunks from its edge as I was chopping wood with it and let me tell you, it’s anything but a pleasant one. Thank God my buddy carried a better knife than mine. If you ever find yourself in such a position I guarantee you that you will think twice before factoring the cost parameter in your decision as to what knife you should buy.

 

[customizerwannabe]

If I were in a survival situation I might consider a thinner Busse. 99% of us are weekend warriors and not in that position. Busse's can take punishment. I've seen plenty of youtubes attesting to that. So can a lot of super cheap knives though. It all comes down to personal comfort. Busse is an insurance policy. You pretty much know you'll be able to depend on it. I think the Swamp Rats and Scrapyard knives are pretty reasonably priced. If I had to bug out in a SHTF scenario and could only take one folding knife it would be a Carrillo folder. If I could only take one fixed blade, it would be a Busse. Get whatever helps you sleep at night.

 

[vvk]

If I were in a survival situation I might consider a thinner Busse. 99% of us are weekend warriors and not in that position. Busse's can take punishment. I've seen plenty of youtubes attesting to that. So can a lot of super cheap knives though. It all comes down to personal comfort. Busse is an insurance policy. You pretty much know you'll be able to depend on it. I think the Swamp Rats and Scrapyard knives are pretty reasonably priced. If I had to bug out in a SHTF scenario and could only take one folding knife it would be a Carrillo folder. If I could only take one fixed blade, it would be a Busse. Get whatever helps you sleep at night.

I agree with most of the things you say. However, the original poster was looking at 4 inch Busse and wondering if they are worth $400. I like the idea of very tough, big knife and I guess you are not grabbing a "game warden" Busse in your theoretical SHTF scenario ):

 

[1kimo4u]

actually the sar4 has a 4 7/8" blade. OAL is over 10". lot of infi for the retail price of $275.

 

[customizerwannabe]

I agree with most of the things you say. However, the original poster was looking at 4 inch Busse and wondering if they are worth $400. I like the idea of very tough, big knife and I guess you are not grabbing a "game warden" Busse in your theoretical SHTF scenario ):

My bad. Nope. It wouldn't be a GW, that's for sure. I have one but didn't and wouldn't pay 400.00 for it. I wouldn't pay 400.00 for any of their 4 inchers. I'm not really sold on the INFI is the "all things" concept. It's good steel, but it still rolls and can chip. I'm liking Horton a lot lately. Again though, a bigger blade. For a blade around 4" get a Strider folder and you have the best of both worlds. Tough and pocketable for around the same price.

 

[Bushman5]

some people like em, some people don't, those that like em, love em, those that don't like em, dont love em, its all personal choice.

but the only way your going to know if you like em, is to try them.............otherwise your just a piddling puppy spewing piddle! .

 

[texastonydobbs]

awe -Geez these type of threads go on forever... LOL
I have had 10 different Busse Blade ,6 Swamp Rats & 6 Scrapyards out of all those Busse Kin blades I kept 2 both Scrapyard DF & DM.
Busse made in USA & High Quality ,none finer. Expensive You bet... worth it matter of opinion and your pocket book. Me; my pocket book can not take 'em... but if you can afford 'em why not buy what some consider the best, again opinions this thread is no different to me that what is a better gun Glock vs. H&K Vs. XD ... everyone has an opinion and everybody has different taste. pick up a Busse and form your own opinion. I suggest the Active duty as a good Starter Busse. if you dont like it you can always Trade/Sale it right here on BF.(if membership is gold or better to sale)

 

[Lycosa]

Drink It!!