You just never know until you try them back to back, which knives have the best "feel" and work best for a given task. Today's task was slashing brush, or bushwacking. I gathered some of my favorite light fast choppers for a little comparison on the vegetation in my yard. None of these have a factory edge. They have all been sharpened and are very sharp.

Top to bottom:
ESEE Junglas "machete"
Scrap Yard Dog Father LE
Busse Bushwacker Mistress
Browning Crowel/Barker Competition knife
Ranger RD9
Swamp Rat M9LE

The testing area:

First up was the Busse BWM, a 3/16" thick 10.5" blade of INFI steel with micarta handles. It slashed pretty well, but felt a bit heavy for snap cuts.


Not bad, but I know I have faster blades than this one. It's a good all-arounder, though.

Next up was the DFLE. This has been a favorite of mine since I got it. It served me well in the Altamaha, slashing through brush and chopping fallen limbs from my path. It can chop and slash. It cut these brances clean, and felt faster and easier to me than the BWM.


Then it was the ESEE Junglas. The Junglas excells at this, as one might expect.


The Junglas was the best slasher so far. And it can chop, too. But at 22 oz, I'd still take the DFLE over it for extended use. 17 oz is much lighter to swing and carry.
But then came a little surprise for me. This Browning, which is a so-so chopper but a brush slashing demon!

Swish! Look how clean it cuts standing palmetto leaves. This thing has great balance and feel.


Next up was the Swamp Rat M9LE. I love this knife! Talk about lively in the hand. It was very very close to the Browning in slashing performance.



I am surprised that this 9" blade is so competitive with the longer ones. This is a great bowie.
Finally, my Ranger RD9. With its flat grind, this knife is fast, too.
[img]http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w64/rivershaman/Busse/Bushwackers018.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w64/rivershaman/Busse/Bushwackers018.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w64/rivershaman/Busse/Bushwackers020.jpg[/img]
The Ranger can hold its own, for sure.

Ok, so what, if anything, does it all mean? Not much, really. It means I prefer fast handling big blades for bush slashing. Why do I like the Junglas better than the Bushwacker for slashing brush? It all has to do with balance.



The Junglas balances right at the blade/handle junction, while the BWM is slightly more blade heavy. Of course, in chopping wood, that blade heavy feel is an advantage.

And wouldn't you know it? That fast handling M9LE balances more like the Junglas. Same for the RD9.

So here is how I rated these fine knives today for ease of use when bushwacking. Top to bottom. But don't fret if your favorite isn't on top. They all work just fine. These are just my subjective prefences for this task only.

It's been a good afternoon.

Thanks Vic,now I want/need/want/need/want a Junglas. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

Thanks for the pics and posting!

Hows about the handle(s) you like the most?

Saw a tempting M9 the other day...so tempting...

All have good, comfortable handles. I particularly like the Junglas handle, the Browning, and the Bushwacker's in that order. As for the DFLE, it is the only one with Res C, which is epecially good when chopping hard wood and was fine for today's light duty as well. But the M9 and Ranger handles are fine. Get that M9. It's a fine knife.

thanks for the writeup vic, i know it must have made weed whacking last much longer in order to document everything.

also, i find it ironic how the "bushwacker" is on the bottom lol

Compared to my old FBM, FFBM, or KZ, it would be on top in this contest! It's a great knife, my favorite Busse. I just like the balance and feel of the Junglas better. Bear in mind that I could have used a $6.00 machete today and kicked ALL the others bad. What I was doing was seeing which of all these fine big knives was the easiest to slash vegetation with. That's all. It doesn't mean the one the came out on top is the "best" knife by any means.

thanks for the awesome review HornDog.

ive had my eye on that Junglas for some time now, this write just convinced me to get one. i love the look of it. i think the Junglas with my SOD and my Muk LE will be the perfect set up for my next outing.

Beside Busse and Busse-kin blades, the only other fixed blade knife company i buy from is ESEE. the RC-4 and RC-6 are amazing blades.

yea i know, but it made me giggle

I have to agree, the ESEE knives perform very well for the money. I would never say that they are as tough as the Busses or Scrappers, because they are not. But they work well and come nice and sharp.

plus they have a great price point and their warranty rivals that of any bussekin