Modifying my Cold Steel Bushman

What i did with mine is,I went to a horse supply store,They have a tape that is like a acebandge,that they wrap the horses ankles with,It comes and alot of differnt colors,I picked orange,Its soft,you can mold it to your hand,and its real cheap,and durable.Its only a couple of dollars,I use it when i fight wildland fires,someone steps in a hole and tweeks there ankle. Great stuff!
 
It's most likely 3M Vetrap. Great stuff is right.
 
I have the large Bushman on order, but have'nt received it yet. But when i get it, i will wrap the handle in 3M's rubber tape (fuses to itself) for a sure grip.
 
I used the 3M rubber self-fusing tape as well on both my mini and regular bushman. This provides enough grip that the cord wrap over top stays tight.

To attach the spear point I use a small screw-eye. You can turn it into the wood with any small stick and they tie onto the sheath real easy. Mac
 
^ hey good idea - i never thought to wrap paracord over the 3M tape!!! thanks!!! :cool:

has anyone rigged theor Bushman as a spear yet?? i would be like to see pics and hear how it throws etc!!
 
While mine is "stock" I can comment on the spear making/throwing. A few years back I cut saplings (not sure of the type of tree) of various lengths (approx 2 1/2 ft up to 5 1/2 feet), then cut/whittled the end down to fit inside the BM handle. I keep small wood screws in my fishing/survival vest so I used a SAK to affix the blade to the shaft.
My "target" was a sheet of 1/2 inch thick plywood (approx 3X8 feet). I painted a few small baseball sized circles on it as aiming points.
After many attempts (I mean MANY), my accuracy from approx 20-25 feet had not really improved (the 4-4 1/2 ft sapling seemed to "throw" the best for me) BUT the Bushman held up well and penetrated the 1/2 plywood extremely well. Behind the sheet of plywood were brick-sized stones and the blade definitely took it's toll. I probably made 90-100 throws. Not one of the saplings broke/snapped (with just that one small wood screw) and while the edge had dulled, the point was perfect and it took all of 10 minutes with a Lansky to bring it back to shaving sharp. I was also surprised how little of the black finish was removed by that many throws. Nothing scientific but a fun little test and nothing that would break the wallet of it broke!
 
As I have stated in the past,I still think you should use your knife to sharpen sticks into spears and save the knife for future use.Not an original idea of my own.I read it somewhere and it made sense.tom. :cool:
 
Dep Tom,

In most cases I'd say you're right. The CS Bushman is more like a spearhead you can use like a knife. Once assembled as a spear it is far more effective than a knife lashed to a stick. A CS Bushman on a 6 foot hardened shaft is nothing to mess with. Mac
 
YES!!! just got my new Bushy in the mail. :) took a handful of RedBird stirke anywhere matches, dipped them in wax, put them into a tiny ziploc. Wrapped the matches with 20' of fine copper wire (for making snares). Took 15' of 15lb test braided fishing line, added a razor sharp bait hook for fishing and wrapped on wax soaked cardboard (firestarter). added a water purification tablet or two, several prescription painkillers, a sheet of plastic and put the whole works into another ziploc bag (to be used for holding water and purifying) and put it inside the handle . wrapped the entire handle with paracord and capped it off with a big azz champagne cork (fishing float :D )

wrapped more paracord around the sheath. Currently in the proccess of making a hiking staff out of solid oak 72" long and 1" wide, soaked in Tung oil for 2 weeks to water proof. the staff will fit into the handle of the Bushy for a modified thrusting spear.


:cool:
 
woody,
Just a suggestion. Next time, try painting the heads of the matches with clear nail polish. They seem to hold up better than wax/paraffin that can melt and/or flake off. I recently found an old brass matchsafe that I had misplaced for 4-5 years. For kicks, I tested every match and all 20 lit right away (most with just one strike against the file blade of my Leatherman tool).
BTW, I experimented with coating the whole match stick (i.e. NATO lifeboat matches) but found the dried nail polish flammable enough to engulf the entire match stick too quickly. Ouch!
 
Does anyone else just stick half a bannana in the end?????
Just kidding :)


Have you tried doing "heavy duty " type work with the bushman??? It seems like the handle would not be comfortable???
 
I haven't tried it yet but the next time I get out into the bush I plan to attach my large bushman to a short 18 inch handle and use it like a machete. I imagine I'll have to do something to keep the blade from turning in my hand. A round stick won't index well.

I also thought of shaping an axe handle to fit the Bushman. That would make it like a straight bush hook. It would also be quite ugly as a close combat weapon, sort of a fast hatchet that also trusts.

When using the CS Bushman attached to a shaft. Keep the original sheath handy to use as a blade cover. I spent a long weekend with my daughters mini bushman set up like a spear. The thing is so sharp and scary that it was nice to have the sheath along to keep things safe.

I attach her spearhead with a screw eye. This allows me to tie the sheath on with a piece of paracord and a bow knot. It's not slow to get it uncovered if necessary and it is much safer leaned against a tree or laying on the ground. Mac
 
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