Runnin' for the porch - PIC HEAVY

Well, I've got a heck of a long way to go, but I'm going to make this my post rack em & stack em thread. I figure I could share a whole bunch of pics & some stories along the way.

This is the Busse that started it all for me, a nice shot of it fresh and minty, taken well before I got her. FBM LE #4 and she was a beautiful virgin.

I got her used though. She came with a nice Chuddy Bear Leather sheath. Stout, but heavy.

My second piece of Wauseon steel was S5LE # 101

This is one of my earliest pics of my first Dog... also the first sheath I ever ordered, a BB kydex.

The third one was a show special ASH1, bama clay with the old tequila sunrise g10. It felt amazing, but seemed too pretty to use, so it got traded.

I should say, I got the INFI bug back in 2009. I jumped in head first with the expensive stuff and it took me a while to warm up to the other steels offered by the kin blades. I didn't know what I was missing.

My first four blades were all off the aftermarket.

Here's a pic of them.
FBM LE
ASH1
S5LE
Mil overrun Active Duty

Then I decided to place my first order from BC and had my first taste of Amy-0 customer service. She was great!

I ordered a Tank Buster to match my FBM LE which officially started my bruiser collection. Went ahead and sprung for a BWM at the same time.

Picked up a nice BLR takedown about the same time.

I KNOW that you have some fantastic knives Tim! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />

It was early in winter when they arrived, so I got to do my first cold weather testing on both blades. My chesapeake loves the cold.

Thanks Tom. I guess I do have a goody or two... not near what some fellas have, but enough to get by just in case. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Hard to believe this was three winters back already. Doesn't seem that long.
Looks about the same right now though.

Oh, I think you will get by! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />

I ordered the BWM with pumpkin & tanker gray to match my tractor.

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif" alt="" /> Nice tractor! I have an old Allis Chalmers 190XT myself. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Of course neither of them look as new & pretty now though.
Somewhere along the way, I did my first handle mod and hand smoothed the 'Kubota Wacker' which made it much more comfortable for my hands.

Some days I'm not sure... but I am getting better at not scratching every itch, can't afford to. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

Nice work! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />

Allis was one of my grandma's old favorites for the farm. She wound up working/retiring from Case though, since it was close to where she lived.

Ya got any pics of the old girl?

Nothing in photobucket. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

Thanks!

Then I started getting into the heavy testing phase, making sure my money was well spent.

I don't feel the need to do that since everyone does! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I was not disappointed. INFI is tough stuff.

Then I started looking for the elusive snakeskin.
A couple of my early scores, a mojo and sjtac.

I really like that sjtac! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I'm going to go pester the wife now, but keep posting! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />

The wisdom that comes with time and experience. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> I am getting there... slowly. Heavy testing is expensive on the body and the wallet.

Speaking of body damage, that mojo earned the name SnakeBite after it did this the day I received it.


Went right through the jeans like butter with a non-shaving edge.

That's what I should be doing... but I am on a mission. Have fun and will do.

The wound from SnakeBite gave me a chance to try out super glue for the first real good reason. Works great and now I keep it handy!

Some tire stabbing tests.

Awesome pics! Hope to see more of your story.

None the worse for the wear.

A couple of 2008 SE competition finish blades. Still my favorite finish if satin isn't an option. Hell Razor and Jack Hammer.

The Jack Hammer and earlier posted sjtac went into the shop for some handle swapping, along with a CGFBM that came back with a competition finish to match.

The end result, a unique CBT user pair:

A degreased handle shot of the rattlehammer

A couple of other snakes I picked up not long after that to go with the mojo.

The BATAC in the previous pic wound up getting stripped and modded a little bit to make it more belt friendly. I only like points on one end of my knife, they hurt less that way. Also picked up my EDC, the snake meaner HACK

Found another nice shot of the snakeskin cbt pair.

Found a neat pic of my favorite way to carry a small edc fixed blade. Easy to get to from most common positions, yet easy to hide.

Great pics and knives!!!

Thanks!

At one point I went on a SAR binge.

Here is a SAR 6 BOSS Jack comparison. Two blades in the 6 inch range that are totally different animals.

The SAR 3 was my first steady edc after trying to edc the S5LE for a short while.

It's a great little tire stabber. Actually, the SAR 3/4/6/7/8 are some of the best designs for this kind of work, even over some you would think better at it.

This shows a comparison to a cold steel srk with the bj and sar6.
It was my carry knife during my time in the sandbox, pre-Busse days.

This was my first Rat. A banned ratweiler.

The ratweiler has green linen on orange liners with a very comfortable grip. Shortly after I scored a user Camp Tramp.

I really like res-c, so I started getting a few more.

Picked the wife up a valentine's gift last year. She uses it a lot for chores.

This is a really sweet sheath that came with my battle rat. It works great in a cross draw carry.

But it is one of my few safe queens.

One of my other hobbies is trucks, especially 4wd diesels. This one was my first cummins conversion.

Yanked out the 454.

Set up a good 6BT and NV4500HD to go in.

Fits great.

Once it was running, I used it to move from the southern border to the northern one. This load was 27k gross.

It still sees a lot of action out in the woods hauling random stuff.

Another load that brought old blue home.

Definitely my most useful 4wd diesel by far. You would be amazed at what kind of projects you can come up with once you have a good tractor.

A big, expensive reason I switched from a pellet stove to a wood stove. Who would have thought people would pay over $200 for a ton of sawdust...

Feeding the yaks. Their favorite part of winter by far.

If you've never seen a yak in the dark, they look a little strange.

They also look odd when they blow their winter coat in the spring.

This one is a little wild, so bribery is about the only way to get a hand on her.

A comparison of a 18 month old bull to a 7 year old, his dad.

Oops, missed the pic. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/doh.gif" alt="" />

For comparison, scottish highland cattle to yaks in the background. For some reason, a lot of people confuse the two.

Another way to use the tractor, the backblade makes it easier to smooth ground or plow snow. Not as great as having a motor grader, but a heck of a lot cheaper.

What you remove to get 3 point attachment capability. Takes about 15 minutes when you only do it once or twice a year.

Back to knives for a bit. I mentioned collecting bruisers earlier. This was my early collection. Still have these.

Oops, well, I forgot the HACK went byebye. It's so little I didn't see it in there.

Two more I picked up around Blade 2010, thanks to a proxy friend.

The SJTAC that gave up it's snakeskin handles came back looking like this.

That then inspired me to strip my Gladius.

And then the matching BOSS Jack.

The Gladius is no lightweight.

WOW Tim, you have some great equipment there! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif" alt="" /> Did you rob a bank? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

No, I shop very carefully and buy used when I can to save a ton. Some things get sold along the way to fund other things too. The big thing is if a person can get themself out of debt, the money you make in payments can be saved and applied to other things. Cash is still king, especially when working out a deal with someone. It isn't easy, but it sure is worth it in the end. If you are going to take on a payment, try to get 0% interest, pay early and pay often until you are done. AVOID credit cards and other high interest debt traps like the plague. I learned the hard way and started over.

Hey Tom, remember this show?

AG Russell 2010 was my first Busse attended knife show. I met Garth and Woz, as well as Private Klink and several others.

There were a lot of goodies for such a small show. It was a lot of fun.

I don't think this many AK47's have been at one show since...

Choices, choices...

In the end, the one of kind grind was the pick. The Battle Pappy was pretty sweet too.

First time I held the Battle Pappy.

My first day's haul... put a hurtin' on the wallet for sure.

I couldn't leave without that bruiser AK though. Some chances only come once.

Got to meet the Gunny.

Oh Man, I would LOVE an AK! But WAY to rich for my Redneck wallet!

Another show shot, smaller stuff

I've always liked the Gunny in movies.

Some decent kin stuff too. I missed out on the vex that was there.

Oh and I liked him in the commercials he's done lately too.

WOW, you've got a lot of Pics Tim.

The show special I had that got away... that yellow/black linen handle was sweet. Couldn't keep them all though.

In it's hay day, this was my bruiser collection.

Good God Tim, that stash would pay for my house! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Wow great pics, love the knifes and def. love the late 70s ford.

Haha, thanks. It is a bit of a pile, but a lot more fun than trying to chop wood with a bunch of dollar bills.

The Ford is one of way too many projects around here and my favorite body style of their pickups. The sad thing is the body is rusted beyond repair, as in if you don't put keep your feet on the pedals you go Flintstones,<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif" alt="" /> so I mostly picked it up cheap for a drivetrain swap. The dana 44 will probably wind up under a 4bt powered Tahoe or Suburban depending on which one gets the 4.10's, and the rear posi will most likely find itself in a front D60. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/loopy.gif" alt="" />

This shot shows the variation between blue & black G10 vs black & blue G10. The first color listed being the more prominent one. SAR 8 & SAR 6

Speaking of SAR handles, these are some shots of various grips they offer. One of my favorite micarta/g10 handle shapes.
Choked up on the choil.

Very solid reverse grip, handy for weeds in awkward spots.

Standard grip... feels perfect!

A stabbing grip.

A reverse stabbing grip.

This grip works great for cutting taut rope if there is something behind it you don't want to make edge contact with.

The thumb jimping seems to help with control, maybe just in the mind, but it makes it easy to locate your hand on the knife too. Also works great for an improvised fire steel striker spot. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

And this is one of the neatest features of the SAR handle... that big bubble butt is very easy to hang onto when your chopping wood.

A closeup of the SAR jimping.

Another SAR I really like, the SARsquatch!

Two of my favorite midsized INFI users together.

Another pair of midsized users, the Camp Tramp and 711.

They both chop great, even frozen wood.

Frozen steel seems to be no trouble either.

Good old SR101, whether differentially hardened or through hardened, no edge damage on either.

In hand, you would be hard pressed to guess which is which.

The 711 is just a hair longer, the CT is just a hair wider.

A slight difference in the spine grinds.

Both will fit into a spec ops style sheath, the longer one. The 711 requires no modding of the sheath, the CT requires the liner to be heated up and molded for the extra width.

Both are awesome users! Get at least one if you can.

A res-c vortex. No subliminal messaging here...

...but if there was, X marks the spot!

More 711 CT shots.

Tough choice between the top three, with the BJ thrown in for perspective.

My first blue rat made it's way into the house.

It's a pretty one, with teeth.

One more look.

Is this a Camp Tramp or a 711?? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

What have we here!?! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

A War Boar!

It goes will with it stealthy friends.

That´s nice! I like karambits!

My earliest American ancestors were from Virginia when it was a colony, and so is this FNP45 Tactical. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I like more about your War Boar. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

yeah those years did have cancer issues but they sure were sexy. great pics again love the blue and black.

Yes, they are a very handy blade shape for utility work, and they don't take up much space for the blade length you get. I hear they are very popular in eastern countries. One has to be careful with this one though, it bites if you give it the chance.

I think I have at least one or two more shots of the WB.

Yup, here's another.

Well, I did find a couple more older shots with the War Boar.

Of course it's more of a comparison shot than a closeup...

Ok, here's some more Blue and Black then.

The elusive Ruger SR1911... took me over a year to get one for a fair price. It was born about where I was.

When it's really cold and you have lots of layers on, you need to carry in a manner that is easy to get to with gloves. It's not about tactical, it's about being able to get to your tools when a jacket is mandatory.

My hunting setup for whenever I may run into bears, wolves, moose or big hungry kitties.

I highly recommend the Trijicon TR20-2G for a lightweight, yet very impressive 3-9 x 40mm scope. The glass is very clear, and the tritium makes looking at dark critters or low lit spots very nice. This shot shows that my camera is not set up for this as it doesn't show what you see in person, but you get the idea.

This one has a special story to it.

This story to be exact.

This makes 250

So this is how that story goes. I wanted to surprise my Sweetheart with a proposal she wasn't at all expecting. So I hid the ring in a place she would never suspect because I am always buying new toys, I know, who would believe it, right? So I told her I wanted her to check this new gun out while hanging out with some friends for Thanksgiving a couple years ago and this is what she saw when she opened it.

Nice surprice! I guess she said yes! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Yup, those are Yogo sapphires, like the sign three posts ago mentioned. But they are the very rare purple ones set in a Montana mined Palladium, made by a Montana jeweler. All American, All Montanan. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Thankfully she said yes!

It was kinda hard to guess the ring size due to the difference in our hand sizes and having never taken her to try anything on, but as you can see from the previous pic I lucked out and nailed it.

Another demonstration, this time on a Boss Jack.
Hers, then mine obviously. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

Anyhow, back to the story. We set the wedding for a beautiful summer day in Montana, and the day was almost as pretty as she was.

The wedding site was small, simple and natural.

We even timed it right for the photographer to get some great shots afterward.

You may have noticed I was wearing a knife during the ceremony. Here is the wedding muk.

After all, I was going to have to cut the cake...

A task easily mastered by the HOG Muk.

It was definitely a tasty cake with Montana huckleberry in the middle.

But the cake was nowhere near as yummy as the Famous Dave's BBQ that showed up!

A western outdoor wedding isn't complete without a fiddle.

Or some outdoor fun.

I should mention our photographer was fast. He took the shot above only seconds after this one, and he had to jump a barbed wire fence in between locations!

Is this the same as putting your woman up on a pedestal?

The neighbors stopped by unexpectedly and offered us a ride. We hadn't met them before this, folks are friendly around these parts.

The photographer took full advantage and went along for the ride.

Most of the country was roasting that day, but it was just nice and warm here. I had to save the weather map for nostalgia.

It was still warm enough to kick off our boots and cool our feet off in the creek for a spell.

2011 was the centennial for the 1911... so we even fired off 250 rounds to celebrate the day. Judging her work.

The guests got to participate.

A really cool shot.

The last shots were fired after the sun went down with the help of a work light. Showing off a bit one handed.

It was a great year... on top of getting married to a great lady, I was inducted by a great lady at Busse.

To top the year off, I became a dad for the first time. Ah, the wonderful memories pictures can help you remember.

Well, time to hit the hay and I'll pick this up again next chance I get. Let me know if there is anything in particular you guys would like to see. It was a great Veteran's day, I hope everyone else had a great one too. Stay safe and keep your head down.

Wow lots and lots of great pics and stories, I would love to do some prospecting of my own out there sometime that will be the better of the two uses(and the one I hope I get to) of the deuce rv. Looks like you got a he11 of a lady, congrats albeit a bit late. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Run puppy run

Holy oinkin' yowza Tim!!! I just drained my phone battery on this thread. Great pics and set of knives. Congats on the wedding. Some priceless photos there. Nice to see so many users that have been put to the test.

Amazing run! Hung on your every word!
Beautiful story of love, knives and posterity!

Seriously!

Nice pics, though. Looks like a fun wedding!

Tim, I really enjoy looking at those pics; you and Natalie had such a wonderful and beautiful day! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />



Now, Run Tim Run!!! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Run, Forest, Run!

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" /> I don't think I like you very much any more. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/banghead.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I carry an emerson combat karambit all the time and it NEVER leaves my pocket, unless there is a valid need, but I have had my hand on it a few times, just in case.

Well, you didn't make JYD (Yet), but You'll get there.

You REALLY posted up some nice pics. Your Wedding pics were really nice and thank you for sharing them with us. Looks like your bride is gonna be a keeper for sure, you are a lucky man. Enjoy your lives together as you bring up the Young 'un! Oh Might I say Montana is a great place to do it.

I love this picture of you. I think it represents just how happy I get when I get a knife!

Love this pic too, had to find the knives though, took me a couple of secs.

One of my favorites when the topic wasn't knives! GREAT shot!

Okay, now let's go on a little trip to Glacier National Park

The road through the park was closed, so we just saw a little edge of it.

My sister, the little guy, and I

I found a foot shaped rock.

Funky washed out tree

Pretty colors

Waterfall

The water level was pretty low

The kiddo and I... oh and a Basic 9- thus the grin. I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to take big knives into national parks.

Cool old bridge

More water works

They have these cool old vehicles for tours

Getting dark! Bye, Glacier!

This summer, we noticed the yaks started bending the fencing to get to the brush outside the fence line. So we went to hacking up the brush!

And the wife helped, too, looking a little crazed in this picture...

Before:

After:

Take that, ladies!

Here's an old pic of Whiskey and I from Arizona

We all know that my "thing" is knives. Well, my wife's "thing" is animals.
Here are some animals we have accrued over the last few years:

Dierks and a couple of the girls

Yoko

Chicks

Barbie- Highland Cow

Muscovy ducks

And their daughters

Did you hear? We have a new puppy!

She's getting to know everyone still

Cool little dog.

...and chickens.

Dierks likes her

Her name is "Punkin' Patch" and we call her Punky

Yinny loves the snow

Dierks keeping watch out for threats

Look! It's a Chipmunk

This is our rooster, Lincoln

We also have some little critters around the place other than cute *but destructive!* Chipmunks. Here's a Frog in the creek:

Baby Garter Snake:

Okay, this concludes the 'raiding the wife's photobucket' section of this thread. Hope you enjoyed it!

Great pics Tim! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />

great pics as usual, are the yaks brighter than cattle? Dealing with cows since I was young I have grown to dislike them and there brainless acts. lol

Thanks guys. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Yes, the yaks are much smarter and less obnoxious, but you still have to watch the horns if they get in a mood. They also taste better to me, like buffalo but slightly sweeter. Very cold hardy and disease resistant too, but they grow slower since they eat about 1/3rd of what cattle do. The cows can live/breed into their late 20's, bulls stop producing around 13-15 and either are put out to pasture or sent to freezer camp. Their tracks look like elk instead of cattle.

wow so they are quite a bit different then, Yeah the horns look like something to mind. lol
I would love to swing by harvest some wolfs and try some yak burgers sometime.

Yes, again GREAT pictures. Thank you!

Really liking all the pics!! Thank you for sharing.

Punky is adorable....I think you need a new avatar, Punky style <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> That pic in post #668267 is perfect...just crop it down so you can show her off.

What breed is she? Looks like a cattle dog of some sort...Australian Shepard?

Hmmm...about a third of the way to the porch. You're gonna have to scale up the picture taking, and very likely, the Photobucket account <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Beautiful family, farm, pets, animals, knives, vehicles, you must be counting your blessings every day!

+1 to all that ^! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />