Large Cold Steel Bushman - Good Outdoor Knife

Mitchell Knives

Mitchell Knives

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May 21, 2000
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I picked up one of these this weekend, and have been impressed so far. Right out of the box the edge was sharp, not razor sharp but a good utility edge. The edge was ground a little unevenly but not too bad. I finially got around to testing it yesterday. I started by mounting the knife to a 3.5-4 foot handle and using it to cut some pine limbs and vegetation. I then proceded to use it as a spear. Surprisingly, the blade did not break in half or bend as I expected. Acutually, the spear shaft broke, therefore ending that segment of the testing. I then removed the broken shaft, and decided to try and snap the tip off by stabbing it into a very hard tree stump. The knife held up well, and only after several attempts did the blade develop a small bend in the tip. To correct this, I simply snapped the blade out in the opposite direction a few times. Edge retention was what I expected, as heavy duty chopping is tough on an edge. Afterwards, I was able to restore the edge using a stone in about 30 seconds. Today I took the blade out of it's sheath and noticed a few tiny rust spots where the coating had rubbed off. Not a big deal considering I never cleaned it off.

Overall the Bushman is a decent knife for the price. It has a good amount belly for cutting and is not too thick. It is extremely easy to sharpen in the field and very durable. If you just want a good beater knife, the Bushman is not a bad choice.
 
I think its not just a decent knife for the price, but one of the best performance-to-cost ratio knives around. CS has done some nice things and raised the bar in several areas. Not everything they touch is gold, but they've hit some gems, and the Bushman is certainly one of them!
 
Correct. For $18.00 (What I paid, probably cheaper online) I don't think you can get a much better large fixed blade. It certainly performs better than a lot of more expensive knives out there. The next time I go camping, I'll carry it along and see how it stacks up for basic chores.

A lot of people complain about the sheath but, it does not bother me at all. This is the kind of knife that I would stash at the camp site for chores, or just throw in the trunk and forget. So, as long as the sheath does it's basic function, I'm happy.

The fact that it can be used as a spear is also a great feature. I doubt that I would ever really need to use the knife in this fashion but, I still think it's neat. If you put a really nice spear shaft on the end, it could make an awesome weapon in the woods or your home.

I'll have to test out the Carbon V blade some more. As I said, it seemed to have pretty good durability and edge retention. One thing that I really like is the ease of sharpening. I might put a really good edge on it with my Sharpmaker and see how it does on rope and fabric. I'll post how it performed later.
 
How is the handle when used by itself, comfort / security? Does the fold around meet evenly, or is there an open join?

-Cliff
 
I have the mini Bushman and there is an open join, which somewhat compromises the idea of using the hollow handle for "survival supplies". I'd be interested to know if anyone has capped off the end of the handle and what they used. Incidentally, I "upgraded" the sheath (which is pretty lousy) to one of Normark's - a typically great product from him.
 
You could probably find two corks that would fit in both ends of the handle. i'm sure you could seal up the juncture with epoxy or silicone. Even though it is an open joint, it is very strong. This is were I expected the blade to snap off or bend but, it held up with no problems.

The handle feels fairly secure. It flairs out at the end and has the same finish as the blade. If you wanted to make it more grippy, you could add some traction tape or slide some thin bike innertube over the handle. Personally, it dosn't really bother me enough to make any modifications. Maybe later I'll do some work on it though.
 
I put the handle contents in a tiny zip loc bag to keep them dry. I sealed the front opening by trimming a piece of candle and press fitting it. Dual purpose plug and firestarting material. I sealed the back with a couple layers of heavy duty 100 mph tape. I then wound the handle with about 10 ft of paracord and tied it off using an old Boy Scout cinch.

I carry the Bushman on whitewater trips where I don't want to lose a $3-400 Busse or Mad Dog in the river. It does a very good job filleting salmon.
 
Frank's right. If you do want Carbon V and a decent similar knife, check for discontinued Cold Steel Hudson Bay models on ebay. I got mine for about $15.
HB
 
The join on the handle is very well mated on my Bushman. It is very comfortable to use with no handle wrap. I dislike the cold shock of the bare handle against my ribs when out camping so I have wrapped my handle. I have used some roadie's gaff tape (like duct tape, but a cloth-like texture and more durable) as a base, and then wrapped the handle with paracord sheath.

the Bushman is a very hard knife to beat in pure utility. The cheap price makes it easy to just USE the Bushman instead of worrying about if you're going to damage it...
 
I have both the large & small Bushman knives & besides the custom sheaths from Eric of On-scene tactical - http://www.mnsi.net/~nbtnoel/
EXCELLENT, by the way !!!
I also have used "plastic dip" from the hardware store on the handles, I did not think to plug the bottom of the handle, but the plastic dip did fill in the seam of the handle as well as to provide a better grip than bare metal.
 
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