What's your other big hobby or interest?

[dragonfire101]

This is my favorite Busse Combat Leaner Meaner StreetView attachment 121450

 

[dragonfire101]

View attachment 121451

Here are the Radalls Fresc I'm suyou'll ull like these better. My favorite is second down skinning knife.

 

[BOWTECH]

Todays hobby. Chanterelle hunting.

Awesome mushrooms! A delicacy. Nice find Buck. Now that’s how it’s done. Congrats to you sir.

 

[USMuscle9403]

Lifting weights, firearms (1911's <3) spending time with my dogs, UFOs and learning interesting facts about space and ancient archaeology, sex, building custom chicken coops

A UFO guy, awesome! Been fascinated since I was a boy, then my sister, her kids and I had an experience in 2009 that changed all our lives, I think.

 

[alfresco]

This is my favorite Busse Combat Leaner Meaner StreetView attachment 121450

Nice!

I like the finish (sandblasted?) and the handle.

The design is cool to.

How long tip toe?

Do you know what find of steel is is made from?

May I ask the price?

 

[Kid Dynamite]

I was playing lots of Texas holdem till this pandemic screwed everything up. But other hobby is collecting sports memorabilia(autographs).. Favorite athlete, of course is MIKE TYSON.

 

[pheenix]

I've built many. The glocks are very easy , if you start doing 1911's or AR's they are a little more involved. I did a sig p320 x5 legion , had to machine the fire control unit and assemble it. Was very tedious but it's my favorite pistol.

My buddy works at spikes tactical. I dont build but i appreciate the end result. LOL I have ZEV Glocks, some nice M4s

 

[USMuscle9403]

I was playing lots of Texas holdem till this pandemic screwed everything up. But other hobby is collecting sports memorabilia(autographs).. Favorite athlete, of course is MIKE TYSON.

I collected autos over the years, as well! Mostly older baseball players; especially Ted Williams, Joe Dimaggio and Mickey Mantle. My dad was friends with two MLB players (built their homes or additions to their homes) growing up, and one collected autographs, as well. We were over at his house and I was a kid admiring his collection when he said, "just pick something, you can have it" I pointed out a ball signed by Ted Williams. He laughed and said, "except for that!", he'd met him and had the baseball signed in person. A few days later, a package arrived at our house for me. It was the baseball signed by Ted Williams.

 

[Ashop]

I have a million interest and hobbies. I like cars, motorcycles, racing in general. I enjoy gardening. I like to fish. I could just keep going....

 

[dragonfire101]

Nice!

I like the finish (sandblasted?) and the handle.

The design is cool to.

How long tip toe?

Do you know what find of steel is is made from?

May I ask the price?

Busse Combat Knife Co. Meaner Street, 4" blade, 8 3/4" over all length, .195 thick steel is INFI, blade coating is Muddy Brown, handles are micarta.

This one is about $600 they dont make anymore. They have the same models different years and slight difererences go up tp 1500 of thsis model. Thee come out with special runs every few years but those still at least $500. I got an awesome deal on it because someone spilled paint on it so won an ebay bid of $150 few years back. I just took a lil wd40 and majic eraser came off no problem.

INFI is a proprietary steel and heat-treat protocol developed by Busse Combat Knife Co. It is ONLY available through Busse Combat.


Steel Grade Card: INFI


March 23, 2018

Simple question: Is INFI worth it? Simple answer: YES.
INFI is the perfect fodder for forum fights—it is expensive, exclusive, and somewhat shrouded in mystery. It also has an air of impossibility towards it. All of this makes for partisanship and partisanship is the core of the dregs of forum participation. People against INFI decry it as a cheap industrial chopping steel that sells because of hype not performance. People for INFI speak of it in hushed tones, like the secret mantra of a long-hidden religious order. In the end, like with all things, I am not a partisan. I think both sides get it wrong. But the steel, well, the steel itself is pretty darn good.
First, I have no idea how it would perform outside the role in which I used it—as a steel for a big chopper. Second, because of a very generous friend, I was able to do whatever I wanted with the steel. His words—if you break it, I didn’t want it anyway. Third, I got to test it a lot, doing all sorts of fun things—chopping wood, building a small lean to, fire prep, and even some food prep.
INFI is a proprietary steel/heat treat and is exclusively produced by Busse. Apparently there have been at least two iterations of INFI with the later version using Nitrogen as a hardening element in conjuction with a reduced amount of carbon. Here is the steel composition chart. There is no datasheet as it is not a product of a metallurgy company (or, alternatively, this information is not publicly available). Additionally, there is no price per cubic inch because INFI is not commercially available in bar stock or rod form.
Hardness: 3 out of 5; just right for a chopper
INFI is generally hardened to 57-60 HRc and my sample performed as if it were hardened to this level. It was very sharp for a good bit of time, but less than something like S35VN or 3V. It didn’t do so hot in extremely coarse material like cardboard and rope, but nothing does well there, except for crazy stuff like Maxamet or REX 121. Its definitely not that hard, but I would be worried if it was, as choppers that hard will definitely chip (both of my most recent fixed blades in S35VN and 3V have had some issues with chipping). In terms of hardness it is appreciably softer than 3V, but then again, 3V was designed to be tough and hard with no concern for corrosion resistance. INFI is a bit more balanced and to achieve that balance it tends to be softer. It would be interesting to see how INFI would perform on a knife with thin stock.
Toughness: 5 out of 5; amazing stuff
Oh man, this is one of two places where INFI just stunned me. It is absolutely as tough as Busse claims. In using it to make a shelter, it took a beating, twisting and slamming into some rough and tough wood and occasionally hitting the ground on a overstrike or two. After work that chipped lesser steels, the INFI blade had only one small ding and I was able to get rid of it with a few seconds on a sharpener. The question is whether it is tougher than 3V. My answer is a qualified one. I have used 3V a lot. My go to fixed blade is a Bark River Bravo 1 LT in 3V and it has a lot of use on it. I feel very comfortable with 3V (and the the Bravo 1). I know what it can do. I still feel like I was exploring INFI’s capabilities. In that light I would say this—I have pushed 3V farther than I pushed INFI, but INFI never had issues with that I was doing to it. In fact it was less chippy than 3V even during my limited use. Is it tougher? It just might be, I don’t know. I just might have to buy a Street Boss and find out. Either way—you can’t go wrong. These two steels are the premium tough steels on the market.
Corrosion Resistance: 4 out of 5; if its not stainless, I couldn’t tell
I left sap and steak juice on the blade overnight and it had no negative effects. I have done the same to 3V and it looked awful and had to be buffed to get back to its satin shine. Compared to something more stainless, like D2, I still thought INFI was better. I have had D2 develop dull spots that looked like the precusor to actual rust, but again in my two or so months of use, INFI was no worse for wear. If its not truly stainless, its as close as it gets.
Sharpenability: 5 out of 5; the secret sauce of INFI is this—it sharpens like 1095 despite its high hardness and toughness.
If you sharpen your own knives you probably know the joys of 1095. It makes everyone feel like a grindmaster. It sharpens easily and the results are both aesthetically pleasing, a polished glow, and laser sharp. Unfortunately most steels aren't that good. INFI is. The results I got with my normal sharpening routine, which includes a Ken Onion Worksharp and some green compound, were, as its owner indicated when he got the knife back—screaming sharp. INFI is a joy to sharpen. And because of its high toughness, it retains that edge quite well and strops like a dream.
Overall Score: 17 out of 20 with a very high price premium.
INFI is one of my favorite steels available. As a chopper steel, I can’t think of a better choice. I do like it more than 3V in that role because it is nearly as tough, more stainless, and easier to sharpen. If toughness and hardness are your only concerns 3V is better and M4 is better, but for a balance INFI is darn good. The nitrogen does seem to make a difference as the low carbon content would suggest a buttersoft blade, but its actually quite hard, just a bit harder than good 1095 (like Rowen’s heat treated 1095 from ESEE).
Is it worth the money? Well, yes, from a certain point of view. If you want this combination of features in a steel, you have no alternative and so in that sense, it absolutely is worth it—its your only option. But if you can make some compromises, 3V does a good INFI impression. It is a different steel with different stated performance goals, but they are pretty similar.
I am a big fan of INFI, but beore I get rid of all of my 3V stuff (which I wouldn’t do—now that I have good sheath for my Bravo 1 LT, its hard to imagine using another mid-sized knife), I would like to see and use it on a thinner blade in a non-chopper role. It might be too soft for that, whereas knives like that in 3V are just awesome. A Bird and Trout knife or a 4.5 inch camp knife in INFI is my next fixed blade target.
Overall I really like INFI and the price premium, while very high, results in a steel that does stuff nothing else that I know of can.

 

[jhntruevine]

Fishing & cooking....was a chef for 20 years but left that trade 20 years ago to work with people with addiction issues.

 

[alfresco]

View attachment 121451

I like the grind on these.

 

[alfresco]

Busse Combat Knife Co. Meaner Street, 4" blade, 8 3/4" over all length, .195 thick steel is INFI, blade coating is Muddy Brown, handles are micarta.

This one is about $600 they dont make anymore. They have the same models different years and slight difererences go up tp 1500 of thsis model. Thee come out with special runs every few years but those still at least $500. I got an awesome deal on it because someone spilled paint on it so won an ebay bid of $150 few years back. I just took a lil wd40 and majic eraser came off no problem.

INFI is a proprietary steel and heat-treat protocol developed by Busse Combat Knife Co. It is ONLY available through Busse Combat.

(deleted)

Interesting steel. Never heard of it before but I have been out of touch with that world
for many many years.

If you are interested in steel like I was, check out this very interesting, and one of my
favorite books called A Search For Structure; Selected Essays on Science, Art and History
by Cyril Stanley Smith https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/search-structure

 

[IronFist]

with whatever time i have left after work and weights, i enjoy gardening , relaxes my mind.

 

[benchmstr]

This one is kinda sad for me...I have had a unique ability to obsess since I was a child. I don’t have hobbies..I have psychotic obsessions!

if I can find just a shred of interest in an activity or topic it consumes me, and I’m highly competitive.

as a pre-teen and teenager I was an Olympic level shotgun shooter and was top 30 in the world overall and top 5 under 20 years old. I then took up 3 gun and made it very high before I went to pistol. Pistol wise I have grand mastered in pretty much every USPSA division except single stack and revolver. Then precision rifle competitions came along! I am still an advisor in all of these fields and coach more than I compete. I did all of this while lifting and training and a full time job. I competed in several different weight classes in powerlifting but I always liked helping others in that sport more than I liked competing.

A neighbor of mine is a lifelong wine and beer maker...I thought I could do better and 6 years ago started making both. I have won probably 12-15 medals since then from wine making competitions. I am always giving the shit away too because wine and beer give me intestinal inflammation. I don’t even drink it!

then there is cooking! I thought my dads brisket sucked when I was 10 and thought I could do a better job..I spent 3 weeks starting a fire in the smoker everyday to teach myselfhow to create perfect then blue smoke...then I started competitive bbq to which I have probably 300 trophies and medals for. This also led to competitive cooking in general. I specialize in from scratch Italian and Argentinian.

I am also fortunate enough to work in a field where every promotion is based on exams vs ass kissing. Every exam I have taken has set a new record.

so, the only thing I have ever had an interest in I have put absolutely everything into it and turned it in to a job. Which kills the aspect of “hobby”.

but lifting is the only thing that has humbled me and probably why I have stuck with it the longest without waiver.

 

[Rot-Iron66]

Guitar and Bass (played for 30+ years in local metal bands).
Firearms (own 9) but really just like the range/target shooting.

 

[alfresco]

I have a million interest and hobbies. I like cars, motorcycles, racing in general. I enjoy gardening. I like to fish. I could just keep going....

"Specialization is for insects"
- Lazarus Long

 

[goback2013]

taking 2mg of a thc/cbd edible and running for a few hours.

 

[EWRECK]

Handmade neck knife from friend.

 

[Pekkerwood]

Thanks for the knife compliment.

Your arrowheads, what are they made of?

They are all over the place on Sonoma County if you know where to look.
I hunted in an are that was truly rich in heads. Found some bowels also and
1 bead. When I re-visited the area years ago it is all homes, has been
privatized so I was very lucky have it available in my youth. The home owners
probably have no clue what lies is under their houses.

There still some places I am familiar with near, perhaps in (can't take 'um)
Lassen Park where I spent my high school summers working at a resort
that my Uncle owned that are / were rich in arrowheads. Once is clear as
glass. Another absolutely perfect arrow point. Very beautiful and amazing
what those Indians could do with a piece of obsidian.

Alfresco:

Arrowheads. The bane of my youth. I grew up on a creek just down from a fresh water spring that served as an Cherokee settlement at one time prior to the Trail of Tears. Cherokee from this area fought against the Creek Indians during the war of 1812 prior to that I believe. The area then was an active Civil War battlefield. During the summers the worse sound in the world was my mother crying out in the morning "We are going to hunt arrowheads". This seemed to always seemed to be middle of July and 95 degrees, but I know many days were in the Spring because we would do freshly plowed fields. Just in our own back yard we got hundreds when we tilled up for a garden. Also dolls made of clay. We found pieces used for drills etc. My mother made displays and loaned one to the local museum as well as to a restored antebellum mansion. They have since been retrieved, not without some difficulty. We also had various artifacts from the Civil War.

Before my mother passed my sister made a relief display for each of my siblings of ones we had found fifty years earlier. I certainly appreciate them now, but as a youth I hated the search as it kept me from swimming, baseball, biking, etc.

We literally had five gallon buckets of none perfect ones. Multiple buckets. My father gave many away

As adult hobbies, I have alternated between Trout Fishing, Bass Fishing, Deep Sea Fishing, Squash, Reading, and Traveling. Squash is to be no more after one hip replacement and one upcoming.

PWood