Opinions on ASH1s

I have the Skinny, LE, and CG.

I bought the CG first and when I first held this thing in my hand I said, "WHOA, now I get it!" This thing feels GOOD. I was so happy I called Jerry to say thanks.

When I got the LE, I was disappointed .... at first. It doesn't have that utterly beefy, rock solid feel of the CG.

Then I got the Skinny. Great knife -- very useful.

If I had to keep one (!), I'd go with the LE. It's "just right". But the CG is the Beast. Nothin' like it. Solid, will not break, incredible in the hand. Just don't use it for an apple -- unless it's sauce!

The Skinny is the best value. Great knife for the money. Still love the CG though. Even if I hardly use the thing, it defines Busse for me.
 
I have a combat grade and for me its one of those " If you look up combat knife in the dictionary " you would see an ash1 picture. Nuclear tough is right,even if I wont ever need to chop other knives in half its nice to know I could if i felt so inclined. or drive the damned thing into a tree with a rock because I need a step............or cut the roof off a car because the ac not working. In short thank you Jerry Busse for your vision and for my knife ,my grail----------------Joe
 
Yeaah long time lurker,I prefer to just spectate usually but in the true spirit of "lets drink" I just got back from the irish pub where the next table bought us a round of Jaeger bombs,I found this little drink amusing and ordered up a round of boiler-makers ...........you guys should have seen the look on their faces when that waitress sat those draft budweisers and full shots of jack daniels in front of em .....priceless. anyhoo im feeling a little mouthy tonite so hey ,GO ASH-1.
 
I've got the fat CG and the skinny and I like them both.

I got the CG first and the comments are right that it's a truck of a knife! It very solid. I love the fact that it will handle just about any heavy task thrown at it without too many problems. In it's unmodified form (to me) it does feel a tad heavy to carry. To me it balances towards the handle which makes it feel like a very heavy duty utility knife.

Like the person earlier who saber ground his blade to reduce weight, I decided to skeletonize the handle. This way I get to keep the full strength blade (0.32") with the weight reduced and balance shifted towards the blade for improved chopping performance. I managed to trim the weight down to 18oz. It's not perfect but for me it's an improvement. This is now my goto blade.

The skinny on the other hand has just the right weight to be just about the perfect all-rounder camp utility knife. With the convex grind the tip looks very similar in thickness to the fat CG (first half inch). So it too is a very solid knife for less weight.

I don't have the 0.22 version but if your not planning to rough treat your blade like prying or digging into wood with the tip then I feel that (with the full flat grind) it would probably be the best general cutter/slicer.

If I wanted a tough all-rounder to carry everywhere without modifications then I would go with the skinny. For a camp cutter, slicer, food prep, game preparer then the 0.22. For a bomb proof do it all then the 0.32 CG.

If I had to only pick one then it would be the fat CG.

Your original choice of 0.22 is still an excellent choice. Ask yourself how many times do you really need to pry or wood dig?
 
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ASHLEy is my favorite of the bunch! :D :thumbup:

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Ash1 is too fat and very handle heavy. Stock that thick should be reserved for choppers, and the Ash1 is certainly not a chopper.
 
.... or drive the damned thing into a tree with a rock because I need a step............or cut the roof off a car because the ac not working.

Let's face it. You could do those same things with a knife that's 0.187" thick. Or less.

I decided to skeletonize the handle. This way I get to keep the full strength blade (0.32") with the weight reduced and balance shifted towards the blade for improved chopping performance. I managed to trim the weight down to 18oz.

How did you do that? We've heard that drilling hardened INFI is a real b***h.
 
I can tell you that initially it wasn't easy!

After much trial and error I finally discovered sharped tungsten carbide drill bits. With a solid drill press (solid platform-I chocked it up with wood underneath it) and clamp to hold the work piece down. (No way in hell would I want to hold a sharpen piece of infi that might get stuck in a power drill)

Slowest speed on drill, steady firm pressure and motor oil to cool and lubricate the bit. The bit will cut through infi (full tempered) like a hot knife through butter. With a bit of care you can keep the metal from heating up so you don't loose it's heat treat temper.

Here's the bits I used:

http://www.axminster.co.uk/product-Bosch-Bosch-Multi-Construction-Drill-Bits-35478.htm
http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-MC06-4-..._4?ie=UTF8&s=industrial&qid=1277306783&sr=8-4

To get back to the original post. I still think that the 0.22 Ash is a great choice and as the post above stated the handles on the thinner blade does makes it more comfortable. (At least my skinny does)

I personnally I don't mind the thicker profile of the 0.32 and I have magnum handles as well. (I have average sized hands). My modified CG Ash1 is still my personal favorite.
 
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