The Contenders...

Phil,

Looks like you are having fun:thumbup: Very interesting results.

I too found the BATACLE to be a surprisingly good chopper for its size. I have also tried the CGASH1 and it did slightly better because of shear mass.

Surprised to see that the WFBM is neck to neck with the FBMLE. I would have thought that the FBMLE would win because of its heft, good geometry, and more foward balance. Your accuracy with the WFBM definitely has a lot to do with weight and comfort. Its lighter weight probably made it easier to swing and control yet still was able to bite just as deep as the FBMLE utlilizing better geometry.
 
Justabuyer said:
No it did not. It was hands down the biggest heaviest knife in the small knife section. Frankly its not a small knife. It should have been compared against the Old school RatW which wiped the floor with it.
ASH1 are not good choppers. This test mirrors my results.

I will state up front that I am under-impressed with the ASh1.

To big and clunky for fine work, poorly balanced and handled for heavy chopping. Seriously..... Name on thing it does better than other Busse offerings besides empty your wallet.
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Jim,

Tell us how you really feel :D I would have to agree with you on this one. It is probably also heavier than the Ratweiler. The ASH1 is even a tiny bit heavier than my FABM. But there would be no contest if those 2 went toe to toe. Likewise the Ratweiler would also cleanly spank it.
 
on_the_edge said:
Are you going to send the M6 back to SR? It seems there may be a heat treat issue with that one. I need to go chop with mine and make sure it is ok now.
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I will probably talk to Eric about this one, but since the custom mods were not done by SR, I may be out of luck. We shall see...

on_the_edge said:
Also, that CG ASH-1 did shockingly well comparatively. Since I don't have one, to what would you attribute that better performance?
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I think 2 things...
1) The Heft!! At .320" thick, this thing has some power behind it.
2) The handle!!! This style keeps your hand firmly in place. So while you cannot choke back on the handle really, it fits better than the other handles of the blades I tested. Also, the Magnum countours of the CG ASH-1 make this thing fit like a glove. The blade didn't twist a single bit on impact. Very impressive IMHO... :thumbup:
 
Ban said:
Phil,

Looks like you are having fun:thumbup: Very interesting results.

I too found the BATACLE to be a surprisingly good chopper for its size. I have also tried the CGASH1 and it did slightly better because of shear mass.

Surprised to see that the WFBM is neck to neck with the FBMLE. I would have thought that the FBMLE would win because of its heft, good geometry, and more foward balance. Your accuracy with the WFBM definitely has a lot to do with weight and comfort. Its lighter weight probably made it easier to swing and control yet still was able to bite just as deep as the FBMLE utlilizing better geometry.
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My thinking exactly!! It was very easy to chop with and I felt that I could chop longer with the WFBM than the FBM LE. :thumbup:

Thanks for an insane blade man!!
 
Ban said:
Likewise the Ratweiler would also cleanly spank it.
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Not 100% sure I would agree. The size of the RatWeiler caused me to have less control than the CG ASH-1. While the CG-ASH-1 is disproportionately thick for it's size, it felt VERY good while chopping. The RatWeiler twisted more in my hand. Oh, and the CG ASH-1 was the last blade I tested, so my hands were hurting considerably more at that point.

I am not trying to be seen as an ASH-1 Koolaid Drinker here, but I was surprisingly impressed with it. I was certain that the RatWeiler would easily beat out the CG ASH-1, but IMHO, I leaned more towards the CG ASH-1. Again, I am not stating Busse/Swamp Rat facts here, just my experiences... :)
 
Put up the end result boards for thr RW and the ASh1. That pretty much speaks for itself.

The RW is a freak of a knife.... It chops way out of its own league. The ASH1 is lucky to live up to its absurd wieght.

Listen this is JUST my OPINION. I just know that if I was off to someplace I needed a medium size knife that may be called on for some chopping the only reason I would reach for my ASH1 is to get it out of the way so I could grab my RW. :D
 
Ask and Ye shall receive!!

CG-ASH-1 (back) vs. Old School RatWeiler:
DSC_01220.jpg

DSC_01230.jpg


So, from my test here, the RatWeiler moved WAY MORE wood than the CG-ASH-1. Not even close. Both, with about the same amount of chops, went equally deep into the 2x4. So the only difference for ME (not anyone else) is the control I experienced. Again, this is just my experience. If I had to grab only one to take with me I would have a hard time deciding. Maybe if the RatWeiler was "Ban"-ized ;) a little, it may pull away.

But as I mentioned, the real difference between these two wasn't only about the amount of wood I removed (RatWeiler is insane!), but it was also about the feel (CG ASH-1 took this one). The CG-ASH-1 provided my stubby fingers and hand more control over the chopping. MUCH less blade twist on impact. Like I said before, these are only my experiences and should be taken with a grain of salt! :thumbup:

Thanks for all the input guys!! Throw some more at this thread!! :thumbup:
 
Justabuyer said:
No it did not. It was hands down the biggest heaviest knife in the small knife section. Frankly its not a small knife. It should have been compared against the Old school RatW which wiped the floor with it.

ASH1 are not good choppers. This test mirrors my results.

I will state up front that I am under-impressed with the ASh1.

To big and clunky for fine work, poorly balanced and handled for heavy chopping. Seriously..... Name on thing it does better than other Busse offerings besides empty your wallet.
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Ah, so there are at least two of us that won't drink the Kool-Ade for the ASH-1. :p :thumbup: I traded away the SE that I scored at Blade, and was pretty sure I wouldn't want the fatty CG, which was confirmed when I had a chance to handle one. I guess I will have to wait for the next Busse anniversary to get my HOG name on a blade.
 
Phil, GREAT test/review! :thumbup:

Gotta love the old RW. It was Cliff Stamp's review that started me on this road to ruin. I used to think that the RW and the CT were essentially the same blade with different handles, until I finally got a CT, and I just didn't like it.

You have inspired me to try a chopping test with some of my toys come spring.
 
Nice reveiw. Thanks for the pics and info. I think you did a great job presenting your impressions and experience with each blade. If I was looking for a chopper your information would give me a starting point for my search.
 
It would "appear" to me from pictures that the M6 was heavily reprofiled/satin finished by belt sander.

I have to wonder if the M6 edge had the temper somehow damaged with over-heating when regrinding/refinishing (??????).

If that is the case, I have to wonder how sensitive the blade edges are to heat build up from belt sanders or was there just way too much heat build up from the belt?

..... Or is this just a defective blade? SR-101 has not typically been damaged nearly so easily. I have seen SR-101 take much more abuse and show WAY less damage..

Very curious as to what went wrong........

I would be curious to follow the progress of this to see if it is covered by warranty.

Keep us posted.

.
 
Great job man. I really need to try out an Old School RW! Looks amazing. As far as the ASH1 goes... I just did another chop test and posted in another thread so as not to clutter up this one. But the ASH1 still does okay IMO for not being what I consider a "chopper". I need an RW for comparison. Anyone? ;)
 
Also to consider are the angles used to chop for each knife. I have noticed that if I chop more perpendicularly the path of destruction is more narow, as seen in the ASH1 above. Where as if I widen the choppin area larger chunks will be romoved such as is seen in the with the RW result above.

I will say that the handle on the ASH1 tore my pinky up nicely. I am betting that the handle on the RW would not do this.

I am happy to see the power of the RW re-confirmed. Again. I think it was Schuey who compared the RW and SH-E and the RW won out for him. It is THE SR knife that I have considered to be a "One Knife Only" deal. Do you think it would make much difference if it were INFI instead of SR101? Or would the differences, aside from corrosion resistance, be to small to tell outside of strict testing conditions? And how does the newer Chopweiler stack up here. I think one factor that has prevented me from buying a RW is I am a little unclear as to how close in size to my FFBM it is. I'm thinking they are close so would rather just grab the FFBM but maybe there is a bigger difference than I realize.

I need me an old school RW now! ;) I'm on the prowl now. ;)
 
Ban and I talked about this a little last night. He mentioned something that suddenly made things a little clearer on my impressions on the RW. For my size hands, the rear swell on the RW's handle made things less comfortable than the CG ASH-1, TAC and Fusion handles.

He also mentioned (and I agreed with him) that a lot of control comes from the rear of the grip and with my shorter fingers, the RW is much too tall. Take a look at a Busse Fusion handle and you will see that the rear part just in front of the pommel is not very tall. Same with the CG ASH-1 and even the TAC handles. I think this made a BIG difference for me with regards to control.

Ban and I have some plans for the RW. :eek: I bet with a little profile tweaking and a change to the handle shape, the RW will be even more of a monster and provide some more control for smaller hands like mine. :thumbup:
 
Jeepnut22 said:
Ban and I have some plans for the RW. :eek: I bet with a little profile tweaking and a change to the handle shape, the RW will be even more of a monster and provide some more control for smaller hands like mine. :thumbup:
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:eek: Sounds interesting. One thing to keep in mind, the original RW handle was shaped to allow a good grip if you choked back on it, to get a longer lever arm for chopping. Depending on how you mod the profile, that dual duty aspect may be altered. Keep us posted.
 
Guy,
What about an ASH-1 LE? They are thinner at least. Is it the thickness of the CGs that you don't like or something else?
 
on_the_edge said:
Guy,
What about an ASH-1 LE? They are thinner at least. Is it the thickness of the CGs that you don't like or something else?
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I think that the ASH-1 SE from blade was thin, like the LE? It just never did anything for me, in looks or feel, so it went away. No regrets. I had a chance to hold a few CGs the other day, when I was over at steelnut's place, and I really did not like the fatty.
 
Next weekend will be the tree test....and what ever else is lying around test. I wonder if I should go get some cow femur bones from the butcher to see how well INFI does on bones.

Then afterwards split the femur, season it, grill it, and have a marrow roast.
 
dduangrat said:
Next weekend will be the tree test....and what ever else is lying around test. I wonder if I should go get some cow femur bones from the butcher to see how well INFI does on bones.

Then afterwards split the femur, season it, grill it, and have a marrow roast.
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Yo man, I'd be up for that! :thumbup: At least the Marrow Roast! :eek:
 
Jeepnut,
Great review and pics. Thanks for posting them.

Drop me a note at ratknives@insightbb.com so I can give you the info you need to send the M6 in. We want to check it out.

Also if you are planning anymore testing I have a loaner Chopweiler that would like to participate. ;)
 
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