I want to keep using the inventory control feature but for those products that I am backordered on, I do not want "on backorder" to show to my customers.
Response:
When creating or editing a product, you have the option to "Do Not Define Inventory' for that specific item, making it inexhaustible. This can be seen toward the bottom-right of the product's detail page. Also, you are able to change the wording from 'On Backorder' to something else or leave blank, in Layout/Labels/Backorderd (Product) and Backordered (Checkout).