Late to the Party ... but the BWM's are here!

PeterPHWS

PeterPHWS

Joined
Dec 31, 2005
Messages
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Not one of my best pic's but had to take it in doors last night after picking up the BWM's and my Mashed Cat sheaths ..... both parcels arrived at the same time :thumbup:

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From the top going down is a Satin FBM Combat Grade ... I have shortened the blade to exactly 9.95 inches from the tip to the base of the handle and given this a much steeper edge grind ... it presently weighs 23.5 oz's and has the balance point exactly in the middle of the finger choil ... this is a VERY fast knife in the hand now ... and is my Infi competition cutting "project".
The blade length qualifies but for max OAL of 15 inches I would have to remove the pommel and grind the grip back to just on the right hand side of the rear tube fastner ....going up on a plumb line from the lowest right hand part of the grip. This would upset the great balance it has though ...so while they let me use it as is I am going to stick with it "as is". Presently though I am just doing some practising at home before I go for the obligatory course. Love this knife though .... VERY SHARP ... I am still working on the optimum edge "profile" but it is very close now ... I sanded it down thinner on the sides slightly near the choil to get the cut going and left more weight towards the tip for chopping .... the edge is a "constant" angle but it looks deeper at the front than towards the rear .... this works brilliant at slicing through water bottles ... and the "beef" up front works for the 2x4's ....

However the Basic 9 qualifies perfectly from "out of the box" ....although at 14 oz's it gives a bit away in the weight aspect .... but it cuts like a light sabre ... it was practising with this knife that made me aware of what the ASM grind can really do ... the only thing it lacks "umpf" on though is the 2x4 chopping because the competition knives weigh an awful lot more and this tells when doing it ... hence the FBM "project" ... when that is finished it will be able to "run" with the "big dogs" ....

Next in weight though is the BWM LE .... and at 22 oz's I love this knife ... the balance point is just in the front half of the finger choil ... very close to the FBM above ... and the "handling" is just the same but with more "reach" at 10.5 inches and a thinner profile it feels even more "dexterous" .... Wow ... I love how this feels! :thumbup::cool: The "grip shape" is very nice ...plenty of room front and rear ... the edges where the tube fastners are recessed on the G10 need a little "taper sanding" just to remove the sharpness there and going down from the first rivet from the ricasso there is a nice thumb grove shape for the standard grip that I am going to sand smoother because when working the knife when chopping ... rocking the knife with a Khukri type flick means you don't want the horizontal lines on the grips rubbing "unduly" .... but there again I mostly prefer smooth grips on my knives anyway as simple "experience" for me says they work best.

Next up is the BWM which suprisingly is not much less in weight ...mine is 21 oz's but it felt more blade heavy... and it IS!:eek: On checking the balance point this knife with a thinner tang and 10.5" blade has a balance point just in front of the finger choil and is further down the blade than the BWM LE.
Sort of "shades" of the DFLE ... as this knife also has a balance point well down the blade and infront of a longer choil as well .... so that does bode well for the BWM being a cracking "chopper" despite it's relatively light weight. The DFLE really shines at chopping .... and I am sure this is a lot to do with "blade heavy balance" ... as despite it's light 17 oz weight it has a 10 1/8th inch blade and is very effective .... as are a number of Res C handled knives such as the Camp Tramp and the Basic 9. The linen micarta grips on the BWM feel slightly smoother than the G10 on the LE .... essentially more "comfortable" in hand ... but will also benefit from a bit of "smoothing" ...from using G10 on the Zilla ... once you get the grips smooth they are each as comfortable as the other :thumbup:

The Basic 9 at the bottom is certainly one of my all time favourites ... the ASM edge just plain "works" better than you would think possible for "cutting" .... and as a bonus is the easiest and quickest knife I have to "sharpen" ... I am in the process of trying to see if this can be "tweaked" to get it even better by way of playing with some of the angles although this will be a "nuance" thing I suspect and very hard to "tell" ... however I have managed to pick up another Basic 9 which I can use as a "base point" ... it is the exact same knife being the "smooth coated" model ... and there is more "fun" to be had doing this ...:D

Here ia a pic of the other one which is on it's way and many thanks to the kind Hog who let me have it :thumbup: .... these are "rare" things the Basic 9's and very hard to find ....

sm_9_right_side_edge.jpg


Definately one of Jerry's best knives IMO ... now if he would only do a run of NMFBM's with an ASM edge ....:cool:
 
Another great review/writeup Peter, But I'm curious as to how you think the BWBM-LE is going to do for you. I'm wanting to get one because they look very well done. It seems everyone is also raving about this model Busse. What niche would she serve in the BM lineup. Thanks, :)
 
I think the BWM LE will be my "go to" BM for belt carry/webbing use ... it is .5 oz lighter than my FSH Variant and yet would be just as efficient in use ... more so if you needed to use it as a machete ... it is basically a more comfortable gripped SHBM ... for webbing use I can spray the blade with Krylon paint and do a temp cammo job in the same way as I do the rifle .... do both at the same time infact when changing a theatre of Ops that need it ... and wash off the paint with thinner for domestic use .... although I retire soon :( but I can still get to use them in Comps and in Training ... right now all I seem to do is teach and provide training .... Lyme's disease has me off the "active" rota ... so they will see a lot more civi use doing deer stalking and satin works fine here ... :thumbup:

For me weight wise they both make a nice alternative to a FSH/NMSFNO for belt carry with "umpf" on chopping as they are the same comparable weights ....

If I wanted really lighter weight I would stick with a Basic 9 or a DFLE .... but these BWM's should out chop them .... we will see ... but I have always known I would love and use a SHBM if they were sensible money ... now I have two cracking BWM's for less than one of these on the exchange and I reckon the BWM LE feels every bit as good as the SHBM ...

Well ... let's just say I have'nt been able to put my LE down since it arrived ... and that's not like me ... I usually don't fuss over "gear" ... but the balance and feel keep making you want to pick it up ... last time I was like this was with the feel and balance of my SIG P210 after it had come back from the custom shop ....:D:D and that must be well over 15 years ago ... the only knife I have which I keep checking the feel and balance on in a similar way is the DFLE ... it has a cracking "balance" to it ... the Basic 9 is similar as well ... they both feel fast chopper/fighters ... and stand out from the crowd like this ... or to me they do ... :thumbup:
 
Congratulations on the new knives. I like the BWM a lot, although (on most days) I find the grips to be a little larger than optimal for my hands. Sometimes though, I'll pick one up and think to myself, "they're pretty darned comfortable; what was I thinking?"

I suspect that a lot of people have decided to pass on the BWM due to economic worries. I can't fault that decision because I think I'd feel pretty stupid if I caught the axe just after dropping a bundle on knives. However, once they weather the storm, they'll probably wish that they'd gotten at least one; I balked at the LE's price, but ended up placing two orders for a total of 6 Micarta-handled CG BWMs (so far).
 
Hi Jim,

If funds allow consider an LE as you need to compare it to your SHBM .... I think you will be pleasantly suprised .... lol ... 6 CG BWM's ... you don't do things by halves do you...:D:thumbup:
 
I wish I never ordered a BWMLE:mad::mad:

Now, I want to spend every dollar I earn on more BWMLE's:eek::D
 
Peter,

Can't wait to see your impressions after taking them out into the field. And also interested to see how your handle mods look.
 
Nice pics and reviews.

I am torn between the value priced CG and the killer reports about the LE.

Anyone loving their CG?
 
seattleduke said:
Peter,

Can't wait to see your impressions after taking them out into the field. And also interested to see how your handle mods look.
Click to expand...

I will post some pic's when the handle mod's are finished ... I want to take these grips to a smooth matt finish ... I should have them done in a few days time ...
 
Thanks Tom .... slowly getting there ... :thumbup: :D

I said I would post a pic of the handle mod's I wanted to do .... with the BWM LE I wanted to smooth the grips .... it is pictured with a 3B2 which as those who have handled them know has the most comfortable of grips with smooth black G10 .... this "feel" is what I wanted the BWM LE to have ....

P1010055.jpg


Again sorry for the indoor pic's but I only got this finished late tonight ... however the knife now feels like "smooth velvet" in the hand and I am well pleased ....:)
 
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