Tell me about Busse knives

somniloquist

somniloquist

Joined
Aug 9, 2007
Messages
1,423
Hi folks,

I have been around this forum for a while and I have definitely heard about the brand. It seems to have a very loyal following and INFI has what seems like a mythical reputation. I am finally pretty curious about picking one up and wanted to hear peoples' thoughts.

I am an outdoorsy kind of guy and like to go on long, backcountry canoe trips. I think I would like to try out a big chopper and Busse seems appealing. I know I am probably better off with an axe for wood processing (or...gasp...a folding saw) but I already have both of those and let's be honest, a big chopper is probably more fun.

I have a couple camp blades in 3V; am I going to notice a big difference with INFI? What's a good model to try be in the 6-10" range? Where can I get a sheath?

Your thoughts regarding these questions and in general are appreciated.
 
OH man, now you did it. The Hogs, will be out in force in short order I am sure.

I have never owned on so I cannot comment on the particular properties of the knives but I can speak a little to Jerry Busse's something close to marketing genius. Early on he apparently determined that if he created an artificial scarcity in the marketplace that he would thereby create a bordering on absurd secondary market. This would in turn guarantee that he would sell everything that his shop cranked out. He could add to the thrill of collecting victory by only making knives available by an arcane and hard to navigate buying process or by going to a knife show. (GEC took great notes on this by the way with similar success.)

In terms of the designs themselves, they appear to be reasonably serviceable, although definitely intended for those with mall ninja tendencies (I know I have some of those tendencies myself.)

With regard to the steel it appears to be tough enough to use as a knife, although its real capabilities are masked by many of the extremely overbuilt designs.

Busse does also apparently honor his warranty no matter what. This is admirable although I am sure that there is some small comfort that the significant price tags, overbuilt designs and loss of value on the secondary market if the knives are actually used will insure that the warranty is rarely ever exercised. Let's drink indeed!
 
somniloquist said:
I have a couple camp blades in 3V; am I going to notice a big difference with INFI?
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INFI is noticeably tougher and more stain resistant than average 3V with a normal heat treat. This is particularly the case for micro edge damage under abusive use. So INFI will fare much better when chopping hardwood, accidentally hitting rocks, cutting something with course dirt in it, etc.

3V with 'delta heat treat' (e.g. Carothers Performance Knives) is on par with INFI for toughness and stain resistance - and has better edge holding, but is harder to sharpen.

Triton said:
OH man, now you did it. The Hogs, will be out in force in short order I am sure.
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You sound cynical. :confused:

Triton said:
He could add to the thrill of collecting victory by only making knives available by an arcane and hard to navigate buying process or by going to a knife show.
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1. Go to their website.
2. Select the knife you want.
3. Hit the 'buy' button.

Not too arcane.

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I am indifferent about Busse knives. Back when I first became a member they were the first maker that I ordered a knife from, and it was a bad experience. They were growing fast and going through real growing pains. At the time, they hadn’t hired a customer service team, and their order processing system was a disaster. You would call and Jerry or someone in production would answer the phone, take your order and promise a delivery date. Invariably, they would miss the date, and if you called they would give you more dates that would also be missed.

About 8 months into that routine, we had a significant and heated thread on this site and Jerry really got an earful from all of us. Fortunately, they were smart enough to pay attention and swiftly added a service team. Things really improve at that point.

I have had a few of their knives over the years and still have a couple in the collection which I would never want to get rid of. On the positive side the knives are solid, the steel is good and the maker has both a good reputation and warranty.

On the negative side, the knives are relatively expensive, especially given that do not come with sheaths; which is another sore point for me, since I dislike the sport of finding a compatible sheath. Then over the years they have developed a cult-like following with its own unique language which is yet another barrier to entry, since I have a hard time following the jargon on their sub forum.

I like the knives, but generally find it easier and more rewarding to work with the many custom makers on this site. While INFI is an excellent proprietary steel, there are other good choices for large camp knives. It comes down to personal taste. The Hogs are definitely happy with their choices, but sometimes we want variety and prefer not to line up at the trough.

n2s
 
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Busse was the magical knife for a moment in my knife hobby time. Finally, after the influence of Walking Dead, I decided to get the TGLB. :D I paid expensive overseas shipping, import taxes, had sheath made for it.. paid lot of money for it. As far as the quality goes, it was excellent and was definitely the kind of knife that survives nuclear explosion.

However, even after regrinding the knife for thinner grind I quite could not see use for it and sold it. Even as chopper it was tad bit too thick for my taste (and yes, I know it's not exactly chopping model). Maybe larger model could have worked better.

I can see the appeal, but they are not for me generally.
 
somniloquist said:
Hi folks,

I have been around this forum for a while and I have definitely heard about the brand. It seems to have a very loyal following and INFI has what seems like a mythical reputation. I am finally pretty curious about picking one up and wanted to hear peoples' thoughts.

I am an outdoorsy kind of guy and like to go on long, backcountry canoe trips. I think I would like to try out a big chopper and Busse seems appealing. I know I am probably better off with an axe for wood processing (or...gasp...a folding saw) but I already have both of those and let's be honest, a big chopper is probably more fun.

I have a couple camp blades in 3V; am I going to notice a big difference with INFI? What's a good model to try be in the 6-10" range? Where can I get a sheath?

Your thoughts regarding these questions and in general are appreciated.
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Greetings and welcome to the madness.

My advice is that you repost this question in the Busse forum. https://www.bladeforums.com/forums/busse-combat-knives.713/

;)
 
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not2sharp said:
I am indifferent about Busse knives. Back when I first became a member they were the first maker that I ordered a knife from, and it was a bad experience. They were growing fast and going through real growing pains. At the time, they hadn’t hired a customer service team, and their order processing system was a disaster. You would call and Jerry or someone in production would answer the phone, take your order and promise a delivery date. Invariably, they would miss the date, and if you called they would give you more dates that would also be missed.

About 8 months into that routine, we had a significant and heated thread on this site and Jerry really got an earful from all of us. Fortunately, they were smart enough to pay attention and swiftly added a service team. Things really improve at that point.

I have had a few of their knives over the years and still have a couple in the collection which I would never want to get rid of. On the positive side the knives are solid, the steel is good and the maker has both a good reputation and warranty.

On the negative side, the knives are relatively expensive, especially given that do not come with sheaths; which is another sore point for me, since I dislike the sport of finding a compatible sheath. Then over the years they have developed a cult-like following with its own unique language which is yet another barrier to entry, since I have a hard time following the jargon on their sub forum.

I like the knives, but generally find it easier and more rewarding to work with the many custom makers on this site. While INFI is an excellent proprietary steel, there are other good choices for large camp knives. It comes down to personal taste. The Hogs are definitely happy with their choices, but sometimes we want variety and prefer not to line up at the trough.

n2s
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My recollections of the brand ar exactly what N2S mentions. I never warmed up to them.
 
Simply put, they used to be the only game in town if you wanted an indestructible chopper with like, a 70 degree inclusive froe-shaped edge in a super tough steel.

Nowadays, they aren't. Plenty of other companies putting out large (and small) knives in 3V that can chop through a cinder block the same as Busses can. Many of whom make knives that are way sharper right out of the box.
 
skyhorse said:
He’s going to need a Busse to English dictionary.
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Haha, you hit the nail on the head here. I have definitely looked at the Busse forum before and could not really understand everything that was going on. The product names all seem to take on these acronyms and then I get lost. It's part of the reason why I started a thread in the General section :)

There was a comparison made above about chipping 3V that was very interesting to me. I have a Koster MUCK that chipped quite significantly after some chopping and it made me pretty unhappy. I wasn't doing anything crazy, just trying to split some firewood. That's part of what has me interested in Busse. Or maybe I should be looking for something in a super tough steel like S7?
 
somniloquist said:
Haha, you hit the nail on the head here. I have definitely looked at the Busse forum before and could not really understand everything that was going on. The product names all seem to take on these acronyms and then I get lost. It's part of the reason why I started a thread in the General section :)

There was a comparison made above about chipping 3V that was very interesting to me. I have a Koster MUCK that chipped quite significantly after some chopping and it made me pretty unhappy. I wasn't doing anything crazy, just trying to split some firewood. That's part of what has me interested in Busse. Or maybe I should be looking for something in a super tough steel like S7?
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If I was looking for the knife you seem to want, I'd be giving CPK a real serious consideration.You won't have to scrounge for a sheath , grind your own edge or feel like you're joining some weird cult. YMMV :)
 
somniloquist said:
Haha, you hit the nail on the head here. I have definitely looked at the Busse forum before and could not really understand everything that was going on. The product names all seem to take on these acronyms and then I get lost. It's part of the reason why I started a thread in the General section :)

There was a comparison made above about chipping 3V that was very interesting to me. I have a Koster MUCK that chipped quite significantly after some chopping and it made me pretty unhappy. I wasn't doing anything crazy, just trying to split some firewood. That's part of what has me interested in Busse. Or maybe I should be looking for something in a super tough steel like S7?
Click to expand...

CPK has what you're looking for, and frankly, I think their handle ergonomics are vastly superior as well. It's a win win.
 
skyhorse said:
If I was looking for the knife you seem to want, I'd be giving CPK a real serious consideration.You won't have to scrounge for a sheath , grind your own edge or feel like you're joining some weird cult. YMMV :)
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If we're being honest, it's just another flavor of some weird cult...and, at least with Busse-kin, there is the option of ordering off the website for some models.
That part acknowledged, I've liked every CPK I've handled...even if there were features with which I wasn't thrilled (I dislike fullers).
 
somniloquist said:
..... Or maybe I should be looking for something in a super tough steel like S7?
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Busse is a good choice and so is CPK. I have one of the CPK Behemoths and it's a really nice beautiful knife. I would also encourage you to take a look at Bill Siegle's stuff. He has been making choppers for 30 years. He uses 5160 almost exclusively, which remains one of the best steel out there for heavy knife applications, and his stuff comes sharp and ready to go at about half the price of the other two. With Siegle you will get a good sharp knife, with excellent ergonomics and a sturdy sheath, at a price point where you can more likely afford to use the knife. He has his own sub forum and is very approachable. He has made a few knives for me over the last 20 years and has yet to disappoint; and, he is a solo artist, so it is easier to get exactly what you want.

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n2s
 
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somniloquist said:
Hi folks,

I have been around this forum for a while and I have definitely heard about the brand. It seems to have a very loyal following and INFI has what seems like a mythical reputation. I am finally pretty curious about picking one up and wanted to hear peoples' thoughts.

I am an outdoorsy kind of guy and like to go on long, backcountry canoe trips. I think I would like to try out a big chopper and Busse seems appealing. I know I am probably better off with an axe for wood processing (or...gasp...a folding saw) but I already have both of those and let's be honest, a big chopper is probably more fun.

I have a couple camp blades in 3V; am I going to notice a big difference with INFI? What's a good model to try be in the 6-10" range? Where can I get a sheath?

Your thoughts regarding these questions and in general are appreciated.
Click to expand...

I really don’t think you can go wrong with a Busse chopper. Your first hurdle is going through all the different designs over the years. You can pick from available knives on secondary market or new off website. You will receive plenty of help and info in the Busse forum, just as in most loyal knife follower brands. I wouldn’t worry too much about sheaths. Plenty of sheath makers out there. But you’ll have to factor that into your buying, unless you grab one with a sheath off exchange.
CPK is also another great option you wouldn’t go wrong with. Their delta 3v is really great stuff !!! I have their MC and HDMC truly great knives :)
There’s also Gossman knives, Shannon steel and others.

Good luck with your search :) Let us know what you decide
 
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