Dan,
Thank you for the updates and info on the changes/specs. I agree, take care of the guys in uniform first.

First up is the new saber grind on the Regulator. Our tests have shown that it makes for a much better chopper than the Regulator with a full-height grind!

I would have thought it would have been the other way around but it does make sense since the mass is more centered. I am looking forward to a trial between the TT and production Regulator.


The saber grind also allows for heavier rounding of the spine without the risk of breaking the plunge line of the grind which can in turn cause a stress riser at that point which could lead to a catastrophic failure. The heavier rounding of the spine allows for heavier impacts by spreading the energy of that impact over the entire radius as opposed to spiking at the sharp corner. It will also greatly increase the life expectancy of your baton when splitting wood, etc. . .

That is a good thing in my book. I noticed on a NMSFNO that the rounding does aid the baton. Looks good too!


Concerns about the rigidity of the guard led to 2 changes. First the thickness of the guard was substantially increased. Second, we now have the guard extending slightly over the ricasso which adds to the rigidity.


This is good news to me, as others too I am sure. Seeing how it is beefed up there should not be as much problem. For me, its not like I am stoping a blade coming into my hand with a steel guard.


Extensive testing led to the conclusion that through-hardening supplied more than sufficient toughness in a blade of this thickness. Once we compared the high cost of differential treatment versus the performance gain, it was decided that the Yard's long standing goal of price to performance ratio could best be met by through hardening.

Even better news on the performance and price ratio. I am wanting a couple for myself and one for my brother. I will be picking my brother up from Chicago in March and had planned on giving him a SOD but the Regulator is more his type of knife.



This knife was primarily designed for military use and a fairly large number have already found their way into the hands of America's elite fighting units. Military orders of this knife keep pouring in and it appears to be destined to be one of the Yard's most popular models.

Great news on our soldiers getting the toughest blade they can. I have read and heard too many accounts of lesser knives not making it through a campaign or tour. The first time I really heard about the Busse knives was from a cousin that carried one in A-stan and Iraq.


With that in mind, we have are making a ton of these!!! This mass production approach has led to greatly decreased costs per unit. In other words, you Dogs should be very excited by the pricing!!!!
Oh yeah, got to love that!
It's still the same thickness.

I love to hear that. Good thickness for serious use.


I have to be honest with you, the saber grind shocked all of us when it emerged as the best chopper. And the difference in efficiency was pretty big.

Thanks for testing them out for us. I bet it was fun in that cold!


I was really rooting for the full height grind as I thought it looked as though it would chop better and it is MUCH cheaper to manufacture. Saber grinds have to be much more accurate than full height grinds which means that we are forced to use CNC grinders as opposed to mechanical or hydraulic grinders which are much less expensive to run.

I thought it would have been the other way around since it took longer to take more material off. Glad I learned something new today.


Here's another one for you that made little sense at first. The full height grind caused much greater hand and arm fatigue than did the saber ground model. The saber ground version remained comfortable to chop with even in cold weather with no gloves on for extensive periods of time. We ultimately attributed this to the dampened vibration of the blade from the extra rigidity... sort of like a bull barrel on a high power rifle or simliar to difference you feel when you club yourself in the head with an empty bottle instead of a full one.

Man, you had to put that into terms I can understand! Been there and done that. Do you think some of it might have been due to a little more Res-C?