Hi Unsub,
Thanks for the explanation of the different steels in the Busse Kin knives. I was interested to see that Spyderco were reverting to 01 steel for a bushcraft knife. Bushcraft knives are perhaps the most up and coming of knives which you now see on belt kit over here as a personal knife and it is not hard to see why...the size and shape lend themselves very well to fighting/general use.
I have tried these and can say I am impressed at the comfort and ease of sharpening on a Scandi grind .....here are mine....
This is the "original" Ray Mears/Alan Wood Bushcrafter...made from 01 Tool Steel with a great heat treat
This one is by Mick Wardell and is a Damascus 01 blend which has an even better edge holding ability and is slightly smaller but both are basically 4 inch blades.
The Scandi grind makes sharpening easy compared to a Convex edge on a straight grind but these are the ultimate edges for longevity and strength. I have some knives with convex edges on truly super steels and the cutting power of these is amazing. The first is a Fallknaven Idun on Cowry X steel.
This is a beautifully balanced knife at 4 inches although I have not used it and keep it perfect incase I might need to sell it. I have another Cowry X knife which I do use.....both are done by Hattori in Japan...he is contracted for the Idun and does these knives himself... and this one I sanded and modified the stag handle for a comfortable grip. Here it is
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Both knives have hidden tangs but both are as you would expect very sturdy.
Japan seems to be the home for convex edges and knives which eptimise the "poetry of steel". Here are my best two knives made by a custom maker Mr Itou...they have convex edges and the steel is R2 Damascus. All these blades are hand forged and ground by masters who have a lifetime of skill under their belts. I thought the Hattori knives would be unbeatable until I saw this man's work and the edge holding is "crazy sharp".
This is a 5 inch drop point done in R2 Steel and Big Horn Sheep handles,red liner and silver nickel guard with a tapered tang for balance and shock strength. It has a bigger brother with exactly the same specifications but this is a 6.5inch SOG Bowie style blade and is perhaps my favouite knife.
This last knife if it were done with green micarta handles and no silver bolsters or guard would make for one hell of a webbing knife.....but some things are often too nice to rough up.....although I am a firm beleiver in using knives so that the pleasure of the workmanship and steel choice and edge geometry can be appreciated. The Hattori stag handle which I do use has made me realise just why these knives are conceived. They do really give you better performance.
Got to go now and hope you enjoy the pics.