Chris Reeve's heat treatment for fixed blades tends to be on the soft side. Logically this would make for a tougher knife, but apparently that doesn't work with S30V. A lot of what I've read about his GB knife says the same thing, that in one way or another the heat treatment is incorrect. I have no experience with it, so I can't offer my opinion. However, I have had experience with his Sebenza's and they are correctly heat treated. (Apparently they are heat treated differently from the GB, as Chris Reeve lists the Rockwell hardness as being harder, at 58-59RC)

I noticed they also tested a Strider BT, which is also S30V like the GB, but with what is supposed to be a more appropriate heat treatment (as evidence by the higher Rockwell hardness ~60RC vs ~56 for the GB). The video on that site confirms this, as they beat the tar out of that thing and it took the abuse for quite a long time. It is slightly thicker (by less than 1mm) which might have had some effect, but not to the extent that is shown. In my opinion S30V isn't to blame, it just needs to be heat treated correctly (which seems to be more difficult to do with S30V than many other steels)

I don't know how Doug's Mk3 would react to the same destructive testing, but it is a smaller and thinner knife than both the GB and the Strider, so that has to be taken into account.

Cliif Stamp's knife resource/review page is perhaps a better source of reviews. He abuses knifes badly at times too, but in ways that might be useful in emergency situations where the knife is expendable.

Nobody would ever want to section a steel-belted radial tire with a pocket folder made of H-1 steel, but it's nice to know that it will work if you need a fire badly and that's what you have to work with. Most of Cliff's tests are strictly real-world, answering questions of suitability for preparing food, clearing vegetation, cutting rope, etc, by actually performing those tasks.

Somewhere in a Himalayan glacier lies a knife lost over half a century ago. It's owner was Slavomir Rawicz, a polish cavalry officer arrested in 1939 by the Soviets and imprisoned in a Yakutsk Gulag. The dropping of that criticaly important knife was one of the most wrenching moments in this narrative. Slavomir, with 5 comrades escaped with ony this knife and a unhafted axehead. The survivors completed a 4000 mile trek by foot to British India and freedom. Anyone familiar with the quality of the few russian made knives being exported? Anyone ever try to put an edge on the Kalashnikov bayonet? If there is any selling 'hype' in the cutlery business, then it's evil , malformed brother chained in the attic is deservedly these idiots.You want knife performance? Buy a Old Hickory cosmetic second from Ragweedforge and use it exclusively on your next foray into the real world.

"...ever try to put an edge on the Kalashnikov bayonet?..."

Or any bayonet for that matter. All that I have handled are sooo hard you can not touch the edge...

Benjammin,

I looked at their website and they appear to only have one model. I like the model, but would like to see some others.

Bill

That's the other edge of the blade with Busse, I'm afraid. They release production runs few and far between, leaving the market in a high demand mode constantly: good for them, bad for those of us who want Busse knives.

Here's a site that shows quite a few different models of Busse knives.

Bad Mojo Busse Knife List

Sadly, you will have to go to the secondary market if you want to buy any previous production models, all at a premium, unless you get damned lucky. We're talking Ebay, Bladeforums, etc.

Do some research, see what all the "experts" have to say about it, then maybe take a chance if you find a wad of cash is burning a hole in your pocket.

I didn't say it was going to be easy, I did my time and paid the price, and will likely get more, but that's just me. When I find something that I know works, I don't mind the effort so much.

Yes, yes, a good bayonet or a well groomed piece of obsidian are most effective and durable, quite capable of getting the job done if you do your part. There's no arguing that point, and I am all too happy to concede that the old hickory was a fair standard for mountain men plying their trade in the Rockies and beyond 200 years ago.

I would tend to think that most made do with what was available at the time because that's all there was for the most part. I can't imagine a one of them old timers that wouldn't be up for a trade to a Busse blade once having seen a good side by side comparison for durability and abuse. Is it a big enough difference that would forever foresake their old carbon steel patina covered butcher blades? Maybe not, which is why I have a few of them same type knives in my drawer as well.

Let me put it another way, you can certainly make do with a nice sidelock 50 cal muzzleloader shooting 380 grain maxie ball with 90 grains of ff blackpowder, if you are willing to always get within 75-150 yards of your target and practice your marksmanship enough to know what you and the firearm are capable of; there are a lot of folks that still do that, but from a survival perspective, why would you settle for such a thing when a decent bolt action 30-06, which may cost 3 or 4 times more, will be much more useful, practical, and versatile? Likewise, I can build a house using a rock tied to a stick to pound nails with, but I'd prefer to spend some money for a good hammer instead, or maybe even splurge and rent an air gun. You can certainly make do with less, and there's no doubt that a rock can be used to pound nails into wood non-stop, but there's a reason why most folks don't use rocks anymore, despite the fact that they are relatively inexpensive and fairly easy to find. Of course, knowing how to pound nails using a rock might be considered an invaluable thing, should you ever find yourself in need of building a house but without a hammer. There's a big difference between the two schools of thought I reckon.

In the ETS gendre, I think there's motivation to find what works, learn how, then look for something better. Frugality counts for something, but only insofar as you get your money's worth the way I see it. I hunted with an old bolt action in 308 with a 4x Tasco scope for a long time, then I got my hands on a Browning stainless A-Bolt in 7mm mag with a Leupold Vari-X II in 3-9x and decided it was time to spend $1,000. Has it improved my ability to put game on the table, well maybe. More to the point, I feel a lot more comfortable and confident in what I can do with the new rifle than I am able to with the 308, should the need arise. That was worth the $600+ upgrade for me. I lost the old 308 in a fire, but I would still have it in my arsenal anyways if it hadn't burned up.

Benjammin, that is the point I wanted to make. An expert, and I want to make it clear, I'm no survival expert; but, a true expert can for exemple use obsidian, can use a discarted piece of steel etc. successfully if he needs to. But most experts also keep themselves well informed to able to distinguish good from not so good equipment. That is what this site is about.

FYI for anybody looking for one. There's an ERGO Battle Mistress (2001) on eBay right now. Current bid is just over $300. As well as some smaller Busse knives.

Bingo. We should all work on improving our proficiencies, whilst also looking for demonstrable upgrades. I think it is mutually beneficial. As our proficiency with the basics improves, so to our ability to recognize enhancements, which in turn allow us to build on our proficiencies, also making us better at the basics by helping us think outside the box more.

Should anyone have trouble still justifying the need to drop $300+ for a knife, I would still endorse spending whatever you can afford to get the best knife you can and learn to use it and maintain it within it's limitations. Even a good stone knife can last more than a lifetime if used properly and maintained well.