If Not Randall, Then What?

[Elder Shooter]

Ho, Ho. I have one that looks exactly like that which I found at an estate sale. On close inspection I see yours is Randall made. Mine was made by Bratstvo Ohrid in Yugoslavia and appears to be of high quality manufacture. The online asking prices are pretty high but I got mine for only $15. I read that they were never military issue but were commonly carried in the Serbian wars.

 

[garddogg56]

Marbles with real wear

 

[PauldL]

Busse Combat Fusion Battle Saw
(Battle Mistress with Saw Teeth)

 

[PauldL]

Jerry Busse has a couple of subsidiary lines as well, known as " bussekin", Scrap Yard Knives (SYKCO), and Swamp Rat knives. I was put off at first until I tried a couple of SYKCO knives. What drew me to SYKCO was the handles made of Reseprine C, a rubber or synthetic material that fully encloses the tang. The reseprine handles are some of the most comfortable handles I have tried. That led me to try the Busse Combat and Swamp Rat knives. I found an EDC-sized knife from the Busse custom shop for under $200, so sharp it cut through the side of the very sturdy sheath in just a few insertions. Busse replaced the sheath immediately, no questions asked, even though I probably contributed to the damage.
I have found what I consider to be bargains, and haven't yet spent over $350, including sheath. Prices on many of his larger knives run well past that, to $500-1000. I have picked up several of the less-expensive Bussekin as well. They all come with the same guarantee, which almost invites abuse, although I don't think too many owners can bring themselves to treat a knife really badly.

Don't knkw how I missed your post!
But, yes I love the Busse'kin SYKCO & Swamp Rat Blades!
My 1st ever Busse was a Swamp Rat R7 (Rodent 7) - ive always liked Swamp Rat a little better than SYKCO (scrap yard knives) anyways
But, for the last few years its been all INFI in mostly Custom Shop pieces
There was a time, im sure you know when all ya could really get was SR101- INFI was hard to get.
Not so anymore - its easy to get INFI now. And, man I love that INFI Steel
Its truly remarkable for how tough it is and how easy it is to sharpen
I remember though SR101 was such a great value - a lot of people always said, SR101 was 90% of the performance of INFI at 50% of the cost
I found that to be true but, also that 10% was really the rust factor and that's huge ro be honest- ill take INFI every time now a days

 

[Hawg Rider]

How about this old Cattaraugus pinned stag hunter? This knife was manufactured around 1900, and has been in my family the entire time. It was handed down to my uncle, and then he handed it down to me...and it will be passed down to one of my sons. It's been a working knife for 125 years and there's no sign that it's wearing out. The original sheath was about worn out so a few years ago I had a buddy make a nice sheath for it. (BTW: the Case brothers split from Cattaraugus around 1905 and started their own W.R. Case & Sons Cutlery company). And don't be afraid of some of those Pakistani knives. The damascus bowie in the picture is a great knife...well made and stout and performs great. It should be around for a long time, too! Enjoy!

 

[inspcalahan]

Every proper knife collection includes a Ruana, that's been well used and still going. That's definitely something I've noticed... Most Randall's you come across are new or near new, except for Vietnam era and earlier. There are exceptions and those that actually use them. I've got a Combat Companion that I wear out in the woods and around the cabin all the time, used to clean fish, butcher game and just last weekend it was whittling a few notches on some rough cut lumber for shelves.

With most Ruana's you come across, they have all been used, sometimes pretty dang hard. A mint Ruana blade is either pretty new that someone bought as an "investment" or a rare find if it's an older one.

I still have this one that's been in the family longer than I have. Dad had another one with the brass edge on the top that fell victim to a thief one day. Hopefully they tripped while running with it and bled out slowly.