Hard Knocks
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My wandering girl came home...
Swamp Rat and SYKCO Chat
- Thread starter Uncle Timbo
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Yep, have a TGSE (A2) and DS8 as well, but they're both still unused. It's kind of funny, because arguably either smaller blades or larger blades are "better" for most of my uses, but I still like the mid-sized ones a lot. Definitely easier to belt carry a 7-8" blade than a full sized chopper though and they can still do a lot.
Gratuitous pic after splitting some firewood in the garage today:
bikerector
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As if the ratweiler couldn't get any better, I think I no have the best looking one ever made. I'm out my rucki, but I'm good with that trade every day of the week.
And a guess a few other recent arrivals made there way. I think today, I see if that busse can overtake the ratweiler. Initially impressions say no, but we shall see. With the high winds and freezin rain we had this week, I have a lot of fresh limbs laying around the woods to get some product testing in. After some coffee... time to go wake up some beavers and neighbors.
And a guess a few other recent arrivals made there way. I think today, I see if that busse can overtake the ratweiler. Initially impressions say no, but we shall see. With the high winds and freezin rain we had this week, I have a lot of fresh limbs laying around the woods to get some product testing in. After some coffee... time to go wake up some beavers and neighbors.
Uncle Timbo
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Inky - I love these knives. Right now my only chopper is my Infiweiler and I don't know how you all decide which knife gets playtime. After awhile don't you get a favorite?Oh man, oh man, oh man!!!
Sort of crappy pic but I wanted to put something up. Pretty excited over here. Handle doesn't disappoint, feels amazing to hold. Plan to put it to use later today whenever I get through this bogus work stuff lol.
Uncle Timbo
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Dave - what's it like having the ultimate chopper? I'll bet that baby could chew up more wood than BE's whole family of beavers.My wandering girl came home...
The Boss oughta think about naming the next chopper from the Swamp....The Eager Beaver!
Uncle Timbo
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BE - I think I can speak for all of us when I say we're anxious to see how the new knife stacks up.As if the ratweiler couldn't get any better, I think I no have the best looking one ever made. I'm out my rucki, but I'm good with that trade every day of the week.
And a guess a few other recent arrivals made there way. I think today, I see if that busse can overtake the ratweiler. Initially impressions say no, but we shall see. With the high winds and freezin rain we had this week, I have a lot of fresh limbs laying around the woods to get some product testing in. After some coffee... time to go wake up some beavers and neighbors.
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Yeah man, definitely. I guess in my case it's more like favorites. Pretty much reached a saturation point on users a while ago. The Chopweiler is the first fixed blade I've picked up and immediately used in a loooong time, but it's one I've had eyes for since the beginning.
I'm a knife knut, so I still get the itch, but none of the blades I picked up in pt. 2 have dethroned my existing users and they're all still unused. Pretty much everything Busse has offered since the DS8 has been an easy pass for me even though a lot of great stuff has come up.
Should probably re-up my membership and sell some stuff but I still like all of them and don't need the dough, so I've been happy to just hold on to everything for now. Actually had the BG Hell Razor listed on the Exchange at one point a while back when it was still new. Don't know what I was thinking, lol! Had it listed at what would probably be considered a crazy deal these days, but for whatever reason there were no takers that day and thankfully I came to my senses and pulled it before it was claimed, whew! I would have been eating regerts for dessert, haha.
Hard Knocks
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bikerector
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So I noticed this after using the knife a bit today; looks like I may not have gotten a perfect knife, not sure how much I care as it's a bit aesthetic. For what this thing ran, I may have to give the busse crew a call and see what they think.
Machine marks on one side are a lot cleaner than the other. On initial inspection (noticed after I used it) I thought it was like the lines were smashed down from batoning a bit but it looks much clearer that it was that way as I received it. I'm not sure if the lines are supposed to be there or if its supposed to be flat, bellow the double-fuller bit.
On to the stuff you actually want to see. Did a bit of chopping into a dead tree that I knocked down with the 1311. It was soft, which makes it fun to cut as chips fly all over the place. But it doesn't harm live trees and I get to test out the differences.
The handle is not great for heavy chopping, let's get that out of the way right now. I found the handle too small for my size large hands so I kept sliding back to the the pinky hook, and that was very uncomfortable. The knife chops well, but is uncomfortable. +1 ratweiler. I think I know why, I'll get to that after we discuss batonning.
This is kind of where it kept wanting to slide to. I think the handle either needs some more grip to resist sliding, or it needs a lanyard and then hang the hand way off the back. In the 1st pic here, you can see the pinky hook ends up right in the middle of the hand on a back grip position, which is where I frequently hold knives while chopping, or where they end up after a dozen swings as things slide down. The aggressive hook is not comfortable for this type of chopping, heavy chopping.
I will add, at the end of the day I did some light "bushcraft" chopping and it was splendid. The type of chopping to shape sticks, make notches, etc. Pictures pretty poor of the cedar stick but there's a pair of notches in there and the section without bark is squared up, like if you were shaping it to mate pieces of sticks together. It looked better on my camera or I would've grabbed another.
It was a phenomenal battoner, more comfortable than the ratweiler and on par with a resiprene handle. I'm certain what makes it comfortable for batoning is why it likes to slide so much more than the ratweiler, and that's the slight rise at the tail of the handle on the top. Pretty much what fits into your palm while beating on wood.
Then some fun pictures
And then discovering that my hike is ending short, as this part of the creek a foot higher than normal whereas the first little stream crossing is normal height, really weird. I tried to see if there was an ice jam down stream but the hollow cavity under the ice in the swampy areas was sketchy and I ended up knee deep eventually so I gave up.
Ultimately, I think I prefer the ratweiler still. The nano fusion forsaken steel heart is a cool ass knife but the handle is a touch small. The handle works really well if you treat the knife as a big bushcraft knife, and it's better at that than the ratweiler. The ratweiler handle is a lot nicer for chopping wood. The NFFSH is pretty much great for everything except taking heavy swings. If I was hunting or bushcrafting and would need to clear some stuff and cleaning game was something I would do frequently, NFFSH. If I was going to use the knife more for cleaning up logs and use it for shelter building or wood processing, ratweiler (cleaning up logs is a big use of the RW for me). The blades are pretty similar, it's all in the handles.
Keep in mind, my RW is a thin cut so the blade thickness is pretty close to the NFFSH.
Before fully picking the RW as my favorite of the two, I do want to get a lanyard on there where hanging the hand off the back for chopping is safer and more secure. I've down that with the RW and that may be why I'm more comfortable chopping with it. But, the RW doesn't slide as badly when using the whole grip either. If you don't need to chop wood, the NFFSH is killer.
Machine marks on one side are a lot cleaner than the other. On initial inspection (noticed after I used it) I thought it was like the lines were smashed down from batoning a bit but it looks much clearer that it was that way as I received it. I'm not sure if the lines are supposed to be there or if its supposed to be flat, bellow the double-fuller bit.
On to the stuff you actually want to see. Did a bit of chopping into a dead tree that I knocked down with the 1311. It was soft, which makes it fun to cut as chips fly all over the place. But it doesn't harm live trees and I get to test out the differences.
The handle is not great for heavy chopping, let's get that out of the way right now. I found the handle too small for my size large hands so I kept sliding back to the the pinky hook, and that was very uncomfortable. The knife chops well, but is uncomfortable. +1 ratweiler. I think I know why, I'll get to that after we discuss batonning.
This is kind of where it kept wanting to slide to. I think the handle either needs some more grip to resist sliding, or it needs a lanyard and then hang the hand way off the back. In the 1st pic here, you can see the pinky hook ends up right in the middle of the hand on a back grip position, which is where I frequently hold knives while chopping, or where they end up after a dozen swings as things slide down. The aggressive hook is not comfortable for this type of chopping, heavy chopping.
I will add, at the end of the day I did some light "bushcraft" chopping and it was splendid. The type of chopping to shape sticks, make notches, etc. Pictures pretty poor of the cedar stick but there's a pair of notches in there and the section without bark is squared up, like if you were shaping it to mate pieces of sticks together. It looked better on my camera or I would've grabbed another.
It was a phenomenal battoner, more comfortable than the ratweiler and on par with a resiprene handle. I'm certain what makes it comfortable for batoning is why it likes to slide so much more than the ratweiler, and that's the slight rise at the tail of the handle on the top. Pretty much what fits into your palm while beating on wood.
Then some fun pictures
And then discovering that my hike is ending short, as this part of the creek a foot higher than normal whereas the first little stream crossing is normal height, really weird. I tried to see if there was an ice jam down stream but the hollow cavity under the ice in the swampy areas was sketchy and I ended up knee deep eventually so I gave up.
Ultimately, I think I prefer the ratweiler still. The nano fusion forsaken steel heart is a cool ass knife but the handle is a touch small. The handle works really well if you treat the knife as a big bushcraft knife, and it's better at that than the ratweiler. The ratweiler handle is a lot nicer for chopping wood. The NFFSH is pretty much great for everything except taking heavy swings. If I was hunting or bushcrafting and would need to clear some stuff and cleaning game was something I would do frequently, NFFSH. If I was going to use the knife more for cleaning up logs and use it for shelter building or wood processing, ratweiler (cleaning up logs is a big use of the RW for me). The blades are pretty similar, it's all in the handles.
Keep in mind, my RW is a thin cut so the blade thickness is pretty close to the NFFSH.
Before fully picking the RW as my favorite of the two, I do want to get a lanyard on there where hanging the hand off the back for chopping is safer and more secure. I've down that with the RW and that may be why I'm more comfortable chopping with it. But, the RW doesn't slide as badly when using the whole grip either. If you don't need to chop wood, the NFFSH is killer.
Hard Knocks
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It sure is a good looking blade BE. Although my mind wants to call it a NF BM rather than steel heart. I just offloaded my CG FBM, but keep thinking this NFFSH might deserve a look. Thanks for thoughts!
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Thanks as always for sharing your trek
bikerector
.
I've literally felt your pain on the pinky bite. Had similar experience with the DTBM and heavy chopping. Ultimately went for the rear talon delete on it. Doesn't look as cool but functionally it made a huge difference. The handles are super comfy with the diy hand-sanded scales:
It's been almost completely supplanted by the BME2 though. Haven't used the BGFBM, but just holding it next to the BME, the Fusion handles don't fit my hands nearly as well as the BME or DTBM.
Been tempted by the MSE many, many times. Not sure it could beat out my AMS and SOS though, so I haven't picked one up.
bikerector
.I've literally felt your pain on the pinky bite. Had similar experience with the DTBM and heavy chopping. Ultimately went for the rear talon delete on it. Doesn't look as cool but functionally it made a huge difference. The handles are super comfy with the diy hand-sanded scales:
It's been almost completely supplanted by the BME2 though. Haven't used the BGFBM, but just holding it next to the BME, the Fusion handles don't fit my hands nearly as well as the BME or DTBM.
Been tempted by the MSE many, many times. Not sure it could beat out my AMS and SOS though, so I haven't picked one up.
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bikerector
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Thanks as always for sharing your trek
I've literally felt your pain on the pinky bike. Had similar experience with the DTBM and heavy chopping. Ultimately went for the rear talon delete on it. Doesn't look as cool but functionally it made a huge difference. The handles are super comfy with the diy hand-sanded scales:
It's been almost completely supplanted by the BME2 though. Haven't used the BGFBM, but just holding it next to the BME, the Fusion handles don't fit my hands nearly as well as the BME or DTBM.
Been tempted by the MSE many, many times. Not sure it could beat out my AMS and SOS though, so I haven't picked one up.
I just had an MSE delivered yesterday. So far, I like.
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.....it's a comp finish I presume, that is about what I would expect, but it's a bit hard to see in the light.So I noticed this after using the knife a bit today; looks like I may not have gotten a perfect knife, not sure how much I care as it's a bit aesthetic.
bikerector
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It is the comp finish. It's hard to get it to show in pics but the 1st pic below shows clear lines running parallel to the edge and they're more obscured in the 2nd. It reminds me of the northarm skaha CNC'ed lines, but one side isn't as well done on the busse.
Edit: I think long term, I'll sand it smooth anyway. Or have someone do it for me. The finish is roughly what you would have when you strip a coating off, showing rough machining lines.
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I think that is actually about right for Comp Finish, this was one of the reasons Jerry didn't offer it for ages, but we all begged for it's return. It is a working finish not so much aesthetic.
bikerector
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Got it, I didn't know that. So it isn't necessarily supposed to be a smoothed looking finish at all, just sand coating, more or less.
I wish that info was on their website. The "blade finishes" page could use something more than just the colors. Like double cut, what is that? It's been very difficult for someone not in the know to get caught up to speed on the blistering amount of different offerings they have. It's even more challenging when they have a new offering up on the website and only a couple pictures of the different options and finishes. They sell everything they make so I can't argue with the business strategy, but it doesn't help me figure out the differences in options to know which one I may want.
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This was when old comp finish was discontinued....
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/the-competition-finish-is-gone.1103682/
.... you can see that was not well received !!
Best way to find out is to post your questions in the Busse forum, we are a very accommodating bunch and people will be happy to answer for you. There were a number of caveats posted about comp finish when it started to make a limited return (and the new version is much more refined than the old version - which I greatly preferred), Double Cut is essentially bead blasted, two different grits one course followed by a finer grit (ie Double Cut) I like it myself.
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/the-competition-finish-is-gone.1103682/
.... you can see that was not well received !!
Best way to find out is to post your questions in the Busse forum, we are a very accommodating bunch and people will be happy to answer for you. There were a number of caveats posted about comp finish when it started to make a limited return (and the new version is much more refined than the old version - which I greatly preferred), Double Cut is essentially bead blasted, two different grits one course followed by a finer grit (ie Double Cut) I like it myself.
bikerector
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True, but sometimes it nice if that info is just out there. Preferences I guess.
That link you shared, with the following quote, is everything I needed to know about comp finish. The way one side is finished nicely while the other isn't lead me to think there was a flaw. Still might be but as I now know that comp finish is a rough finish, I can stop thinking if this was a mistake or if that's how it's supposed to be. I could've been one of those complaining to the crew simply out of ignorance of what to expect from comp finish.
"The Competition Finish was meant to be just what it said it was, a "competition grade finish".
It was not supposed to be "pretty" or "perfect" and although I believe we had made that quite clear, there seemed to be way too much confusion.
We received so many returns for machine marks and other marks left behind during the production process that the added time in refinishing the blades to meet the customer's expectations made it way too costly to continue.
Hope that helps,
Jerry"
That link you shared, with the following quote, is everything I needed to know about comp finish. The way one side is finished nicely while the other isn't lead me to think there was a flaw. Still might be but as I now know that comp finish is a rough finish, I can stop thinking if this was a mistake or if that's how it's supposed to be. I could've been one of those complaining to the crew simply out of ignorance of what to expect from comp finish.
"The Competition Finish was meant to be just what it said it was, a "competition grade finish".
It was not supposed to be "pretty" or "perfect" and although I believe we had made that quite clear, there seemed to be way too much confusion.
We received so many returns for machine marks and other marks left behind during the production process that the added time in refinishing the blades to meet the customer's expectations made it way too costly to continue.
Hope that helps,
Jerry
"
