- Joined
- May 21, 2001
- Messages
- 2,871
Well I finally had a chance to put this blade through its paces. As most of you know by now, the Camp Tramp by Swamp Rat Knives is a second generation Busse spinoff. The knife is over 7 inches in length, .025 thick, black crinkle covered blade with a high, flat, symetrical grind edge. The steel is a 52100 derivative with a proprietary heat treat. Overall the knife shows its lineage from the now defunct Busse Basic series, although the Camp Tramp is noticeably heavier than the Busse Basic #7 due in large part to a broader blade profile. The Camp Tramp sports the same Resiprene type handle material, although it is a bit harder than the Busse Basic series.
I carried the unused knife along on a fly-in fishing trip up here in Alaska. Out of the box sharpness was excellent. The edge would easily shave hair off my forearm, stick on a thumbnail and hold until the blade was rocked from perpendicular to below 45 degress, and it would push cut copier paper against the grain.
In the field I used the knife to filet salmon, prepare food in the cabin, and chop alder for fire wood. The alder varied in diameter from one to 4 inches, and included both green and dried wood. The knife made short work of the alder chopping duties, often halving 3 and 4 inch branches in as little four swings. The blade heft served very well in this capacity, and the handle shape and texture never created any hot spots or blisters even though my hands are soft from office work. The large, broad, thick blade would not normally be associated with filleting fish. However, the large choil in front of the handle, the overall good balance, and the high grind allowed me to quickly fillet several salmon with little difficulty. In the kitchen (small cabin table actually), the large, thick blade was not as efficient at slicing onions and other vegetables as a thinner bladed chef's knife would have been, but again the Camp Tramp was up to the task.
So after four days of kitchen duty, filleting and wood chopping how did the knife hold up? The knife held its edge superbly. In fact I never had to touch up the edge at all. It remained shaving sharp from beginning to end. The crinkle finish cleaned easily and showed very little signs of wear. It did smooth out above the edge from the chopping activity, but this only seemed to improve its function. Some discoloration did occur along the edge where the black finish ended, but this is to be expected of a non stainless steel knife. I quickly removed the discoloration with a shot of knife polish and a WD-40 back. Altogether I would give this knife an A, reserving the + for something better to come along, if it ever does. Anyone looking for a large, functional outdoors knife would do well to consider the Camp Tramp. At its price point and performance it is worthy follow-up to the Busse Basic line.
I carried the unused knife along on a fly-in fishing trip up here in Alaska. Out of the box sharpness was excellent. The edge would easily shave hair off my forearm, stick on a thumbnail and hold until the blade was rocked from perpendicular to below 45 degress, and it would push cut copier paper against the grain.
In the field I used the knife to filet salmon, prepare food in the cabin, and chop alder for fire wood. The alder varied in diameter from one to 4 inches, and included both green and dried wood. The knife made short work of the alder chopping duties, often halving 3 and 4 inch branches in as little four swings. The blade heft served very well in this capacity, and the handle shape and texture never created any hot spots or blisters even though my hands are soft from office work. The large, broad, thick blade would not normally be associated with filleting fish. However, the large choil in front of the handle, the overall good balance, and the high grind allowed me to quickly fillet several salmon with little difficulty. In the kitchen (small cabin table actually), the large, thick blade was not as efficient at slicing onions and other vegetables as a thinner bladed chef's knife would have been, but again the Camp Tramp was up to the task.
So after four days of kitchen duty, filleting and wood chopping how did the knife hold up? The knife held its edge superbly. In fact I never had to touch up the edge at all. It remained shaving sharp from beginning to end. The crinkle finish cleaned easily and showed very little signs of wear. It did smooth out above the edge from the chopping activity, but this only seemed to improve its function. Some discoloration did occur along the edge where the black finish ended, but this is to be expected of a non stainless steel knife. I quickly removed the discoloration with a shot of knife polish and a WD-40 back. Altogether I would give this knife an A, reserving the + for something better to come along, if it ever does. Anyone looking for a large, functional outdoors knife would do well to consider the Camp Tramp. At its price point and performance it is worthy follow-up to the Busse Basic line.
