Question about the old Busse swords?

Walking Man

Walking Man

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I am curious. Are the Busse swords intended to hold up as well as traditional katana? I know that's a lot to ask of a sword, but from what I understand, extra special care has to be taken to make sure the back is soft and the front is hard. It must be true, because the good ones are SO expensive.
thank you.
 
They should be significantly stronger than a traditional katana. A signifigant portion of a japanese swords design was a compromise due to the lack of quality steel they had to work with, it really is impressive what they do with the raw materials. Howard Clark's L6 bainite structure katanas are well regarded as the strongest toughest traditional style blades, and I'd wager infi (while perhaps not as tough) is a step up in terms of general performance.

**edit: this is assuming they're infi, I honestly forget sometimes that Jerry used to use A2 in his large blades, in which case I'd say it's a tough call, since I've never used nor have I heard of any serious reviews on Jerry's old A2 blades**
 
This may sound "hypish" but here's what Jerry said a few years ago when i asked him the same question:
INFI Steel is so good that it doesn't need the differential tempering required by other steels. ( Differential tempering produces the softer, tougher, springy spine with a greatly increased hardness at the edge; the "Hamon line" on the blade, above the edge, is where the clay was put on the edge while heat treating, to cool the blade at different rates along its entire length )
INFI has a toughness at high hardness unlike anything out there. The lateral strength of INFI is unmatched by any differentially tempered katana that i personally am aware of. And lateral strength isn't usually even considered when a Katana or a War Tachi is made; not that it isn't important, it's just that other considerations are made higher priority in the making of the sword. INFI Steel is made with properties that just naturally lends itself to the stuff swords are "supposed" to be made for: taking a hard beating and dishing it out, without bending, breaking, chipping, warping or other alterations...
Just a short thought, since i researched this awhile back, i thought i'd pass on the info....
Intense
Nitridic
Foundation
Inside

INFI is Forever.... Just Accept It.
Clif
 
If that's the case then I'd have to swing my opinion back over to a "well made" traditional sword, Jerry's D2 may be the toughest you can get out of D2, but I still have doubts as to how well it would hold up compared to a properly hardened katana in regards to resistance to breakage.
 
Close, but no Johnny Walker Blue. . . . . D-2 would make for a frightening sword. . . . for the user!!!! :eek: D-2 would need to be at such a low rockwell hardness in order to achieve the proper impact resistance that it would lose much of its best attribute which is edge-holding.

The American Kenseis were made from A-2 and were brought to an optimal hardness for high impact resistance and edge strength.

In a sword competition about 10 years ago where many custom and traditional swords were used, the American Kensei with a satin finish and zero edge, took top honors in overall performance.

Nuke on my Kensei loving friends!!!!


Jerry
 
I came so close to buying one when they came out, I'm kicking myself for not pulling the trigger. I remember seeing a great review in one of the mags, SF I think, and they really hacked the hell out of lots of stuff.
 
tknife said:
I came so close to buying one when they came out, I'm kicking myself for not pulling the trigger. I remember seeing a great review in one of the mags, SF I think, and they really hacked the hell out of lots of stuff.
Click to expand...


No worries TKnife. . . . They've barely gone up in price. . . . :eek: :eek: :eek: ;)
 
So Jerry, does that mean you will sell me one at slightly above the original cost?
:confused:
 
a few side notes about infi swords -

one of the benefits of infi is not only that it can take a lot of lateral stress, but in the way that it takes it. ats34 at 1/4 will take, say, 400lbs lateral torque and then snap off with no bend. infi will take 450lbs, then start to bend a little, at 600lbs, it begins to get to the setting point, at 700 it takes a set. im not sure if it would break at any given point, so im not going to let it be an option in this example. those numbers were taken completely out of the air and in no way reflect the real world numbers.

so, what you end up with is a steel that will require more presure to start to bend because of the high hardness - but will bend under enough pressure because of the characteristics of infi.

the lower the rockwell, the "tougher" the steel will be, the the easier it is to bend. i wouldn't be suprised if the torque numbers were considerably lower for a traditional katana to make it take a set then they are for an infi sword. after that, it all in how the edge holds under heavy use, wich infi is known for.




in regards to spring tempering the back - jerry has said that infi doesnt take well to differencial hardening or spring tempering, because of its ability to transfer heat throughout its matrix easily. it might be possible to acheive it with enough effort time and money, but with how well infi reacts at high hardness, the gains probably wouldnt be worth it
 
You bastids! I have successfully resisted the slightest urge to acquire an AK since I started collecting in 2002. Now I feel the hunger growing in my belly. Thanks a lot! :D
 
http://homepage.mac.com/zombiekiller/badmojo/swords.html

it would suck to have to stock removal it out of a 40"x8"x1/4" plate of infi (wich may not be possible), but if you could do a katana with a decent amount of torii sori instead of the mu-sori style, it would be truly amazing... (curvature in blade at center, rather then no curvature - to aid in withdrawal from sheath. with mu-sori style, you cant withdraw into a strike, you have to pull the sword straight out, and then start curving into the strike, dimishing any power it may have originally had.)
 
I happen to know where one is currently up for sale. Oddly enough I've actually handled this exact one at a previous show...the dealer just hasn't sold it yet.

Can't post it here or the moderating hog will cry havoc and let slip the dogs of thread deletion...

If anyone is interested, email me and I'll email you the link.
 
I think I know which one you mean. I saw it a little while ago. I'd have to move a big piece or two to manage that one.
 
I have a CRAZY idea.
Do you guys want to try and whine to get Jerry to do another sword?
It doesn't have to be a Katana, personally, I'm a little partial to the Chinese Gim Swords, but, heck, it could an English longsword, or maybe a Roman Gladius.
Yeah, that would be cool. I'd also dig a Nordic style sword, but hey,
let the ideas begin:
 
Hey, at $100 an inch, knock yourself out. I think I would rather find a Kensei, when the funds are available.
 
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