BUCK STOCKMAN 301 WITH SHEATH

[wildjim]

Buck Stockman 301 with Sheath.

Its tight and smooth. It opens easier and smoother than the Rough Riders I have and the springs have less tension.

I don't have anything else to compare it with just now.

[Aimus Moses]

Nice looking Buck knife jim. I don't mean this to be provocative to you jim but are you thinking of trying this Buck knife out in comparison to maybe one of those custom Yellowhorse Rough Riders for a quality -vs- price test? It would be interesting to say the least.

Aimus

[johnnierotten]

She's a nice one.

[wildjim]

Nice looking Buck knife jim. I don't mean this to be provocative to you jim but are you thinking of trying this Buck knife out in comparison to maybe one of those custom Yellowhorse Rough Riders for a quality -vs- price test? It would be interesting to say the least.

Aimus

I wouldn't know how to compare them other than the obvious; which is the springs are a lot lighter in the Buck so the Buck opens much smoother and easier, both the Buck and Rough Rider blades are razor, shaving sharp and sharpen easily. Neither have any blade play and feel solid. I really like the shape of the Buck blades, its a well designed refined knife design. I have and have had a few old Buck folding hunter lockbacks and a Buck 119 so I am fond of Buck knives.

As for price at wholesale the Buck 301 is $23 and the Rough Rider Brian Yellowhorse is $15 I don't feel I went wrong with either and I am equally satisfied.

I may try a Queen and Case soon.

[glenn]

Nice BuCk WJ

[nifenut]

Nice Buck Jim.
Do they come with sheaths now or was that a special package deal?
nifenut

[wildjim]

Nice Buck Jim.
Do they come with sheaths now or was that a special package deal?
nifenut

They come either with or without sheath. The model with sheath also has Dymondwood handles and nickel boltsters while the single uses high impact plastic handles and stainless steel. At retail the price difference is $2

0301GYS-B
Blade Material: Satin Finish 420HC Stainless Steel
Carry System: Brown leather sheath
Handle Material: Charcoal Dymondwood® with Nickel Silver bolsters
Length Closed: 3 7/8" (9.8 cm)
Quantity: Yes
Weight: 2.9 oz. (82.6 g)

0301BKS-B
Blade Material: 420HC Stainless Steel
Handle Material: High-impact plastic with stainless steel bolsters
Length Closed: 3 7/8" (9.8 cm)
Quantity: Yes
Weight: 2.9 oz. (82.6 g)

[nifenut]

Thanks for the info.
nifenut

[Cowboy7130]

I have a Buck 301 stockman that I was given several years ago at a Christmas party. It is a new, or modern, Buck, certainly not vintage, but virtually identical to the 301 pictured here. I know what you mean about the blade shape and design, but I thought it was a bit too narrow, a touch too small. But that is just me ... I carry a Schrade Old Timer 96OT, one of the bigger trappers, so I am used to that size blade, I suppose.

[orvet]

I am a big fan of Buck knives in general.
Paul Bos does their heat-treating. He is a wizard at heat-treating stainless steel.
He is highly sought after by custom makers for specialty steels and super high quality custom heat-treating.
They say there is none better in the business. I would have to agree.
He stopped at my table at the Oregon show this year and we had a real nice visit.
He really stresses quality and consistency by creating redundancy in his manufacturing processes.
He explained that he has built in multiple QC checks throughout the cycle.

I do not believe that you can get a better heat-treated knife than one that has been heat treated by Paul Bos.
Paul heat-treats ALL of the Buck knives made on the USA, so he and Chuck Buck told me.

That being said there are some design features about the 301 that I particularly like:
Notice that the blades are not crinked, even though you have a three-blade stockman pattern.
The knife has 3 backsprings, but still does not feel overly wide in the hand.
With 3 backsprings it is not necessary to use liners, so that helps save some width.
By not crinking the blades, they don't have to add additional stress to the structure of the steel. I think that may lead to fewer broken blades in the long run.
As Jim mentioned they are very smooth and easy to open, a feature which I too appreciate.

I wouldn't know how to compare them other than the obvious; which is the springs are a lot lighter in the Buck so the Buck opens much smoother and easier, both the Buck and Rough Rider blades are razor, shaving sharp and sharpen easily. Neither have any blade play and feel solid. I really like the shape of the Buck blades, its a well designed refined knife design.

May I suggest Jim, a cutting comparison/edge holding test?
Begin with two knives as close in design and blade shape and size as possible.
Get 10 feet of a natural fiber rope from the hardware store, 3/8” or 1/2" rope should be good for the test. Cut the rope into two 5-foot lengths. Beginning at one end of the rope with the Buck, cut the rope into 1-inch lengths with a cutting board for backing. Continue cutting until the blade is beginning to dull noticeably. Count how many cuts you got before the knife began to dull.
Repeat the same procedure with the other knife.

Now compare how many cuts you get with each knife before they become noticeably duller.
This will give you a measure of the comparative edge holding ability of these two knives.

Please let us know what your results are.

Dale

[wildjim]

I am a big fan of Buck knives in general.
Paul Bos does their heat-treating. He is a wizard at heat-treating stainless steel.
He is highly sought after by custom makers for specialty steels and super high quality custom heat-treating.
They say there is none better in the business. I would have to agree.
He stopped at my table at the Oregon show this year and we had a real nice visit.
He really stresses quality and consistency by creating redundancy in his manufacturing processes.
He explained that he has built in multiple QC checks throughout the cycle.

I do not believe that you can get a better heat-treated knife than one that has been heat treated by Paul Bos.
Paul heat-treats ALL of the Buck knives made on the USA, so he and Chuck Buck told me.

That being said there are some design features about the 301 that I particularly like:
Notice that the blades are not crinked, even though you have a three-blade stockman pattern.
The knife has 3 backsprings, but still does not feel overly wide in the hand.
With 3 backsprings it is not necessary to use liners, so that helps save some width.
By not crinking the blades, they don't have to add additional stress to the structure of the steel. I think that may lead to fewer broken blades in the long run.
As Jim mentioned they are very smooth and easy to open, a feature which I too appreciate.

I wouldn't know how to compare them other than the obvious; which is the springs are a lot lighter in the Buck so the Buck opens much smoother and easier, both the Buck and Rough Rider blades are razor, shaving sharp and sharpen easily. Neither have any blade play and feel solid. I really like the shape of the Buck blades, its a well designed refined knife design.

May I suggest Jim, a cutting comparison/edge holding test?
Begin with two knives as close in design and blade shape and size as possible.
Get 10 feet of a natural fiber rope from the hardware store, 3/8” or 1/2" rope should be good for the test. Cut the rope into two 5-foot lengths. Beginning at one end of the rope with the Buck, cut the rope into 1-inch lengths with a cutting board for backing. Continue cutting until the blade is beginning to dull noticeably. Count how many cuts you got before the knife began to dull.
Repeat the same procedure with the other knife.

Now compare how many cuts you get with each knife before they become noticeably duller.
This will give you a measure of the comparative edge holding ability of these two knives.

Please let us know what your results are.

Dale

Dang Dale! That seems like a lot of work testing the edge : )

I'll just whittle sticks for the marshmallows and hotdogs while camping if the edge craps out I'll know to bring a different knife on the next trip : ) But seriously I haven't had a problem during a weekend camping trip with any of my knives.

I read about Paul Bos and he has an excellent reputation. Buck has proved themselves to me with my Buck 110 and 119 models which are four decades old and still perform as new.

Its interesting that Buck uses 420HC steel while there is a lot of hype for super steel blades. I believe the Heat Treating process holds the magic for blade toughness and edge durability. I also read about what the food processing industry uses and they use Victorinox (Forschner) and Dexter knives and no super steel blades.

I wish Buck would make a 10 inch camp knife as i like a big knife that can chop when camping. I use a Browning Competition knife or a 12 inch Cold Steel machete for most camp chores and my tomahawk or wetterlings axe for fire wood. Anyway as you can read I use a knife mostly while wekend camping with my daughters.

The other knife uses are opening boxes that knife shipments come in ; ) and opening DVD wrappers. . .

[fergusontd]

Nice Buck! I'm glad they brought them back to the U.S. to be made! I'd like to see if one of our knife customizers would rehandle my Buck 301 using Stag or some exotic bone or wood with my hammer and knife shield. ftd

[JoeBob441]

Are they actually made by Buck now? I was told that the old ones were made by Camillus before they went under. Whoever I am also glad they are now made in the USA and not China.

[wildjim]

Are they actually made by Buck now? I was told that the old ones were made by Camillus before they went under. Whoever I am also glad they are now made in the USA and not China.

Camillus has been gone and I haven't seen any old stock Buck knives from Camillus at the distributor.

Buck currently makes knives in USA and China.

The knife was shipped from Idaho USA

[philco]

I wish Buck would make a 10 inch camp knife as i like a big knife that can chop when camping.

Jim,
Check out a Buck Nighthawk. They come in two lengths and are made with the same steel. Heavy duty sheath knives. Very well made. When you ain't chopping veggies, you can pretend you're Rambo.

I'm not the only one am I?

Phil

[tongueriver]

You might check out the Buck 120 General and the 124 Frontiersman. They are both discontinued large bowie style, and are really superb quality. They are readily available on ebay.

[glenn]

Guys, I learn something new everytime I read these treads. Thanks for all the useful knowledge. Got some real pros around here.

razor edge, GLENN

[wildjim]

Some other BUCK knives and Saw

[orvet]

OK Guys,
I will try and answer several questions/observations in one post.

Its interesting that Buck uses 420HC steel while there is a lot of hype for super steel blades. I believe the Heat Treating process holds the magic for blade toughness and edge durability.

You are absolutely spot on Jim!
I would rather have a Buck with 420HC heat-treated by Paul Bos than any trick steel heat-treated by someone who is inconsistent in heat-treating. Now, I have a 110 from the Custom Shop with BG-42 steel in it. Imagine BG-42 (Bearing Grade) that Paul has heat-treated! That knife doesn’t cut hair on my arm. The hair sees it coming and jumps off my arm before the blade gets close!

Nice Buck!
I'm glad they brought them back to the U.S. to be made!

The regular Buck slipjoints have always been made in the USA.
The ones at Wal-mart and other places actually have a different numbering system. They are 4-digit numbers as opposed to 3-digit numbers for the USA made knives.

Are they actually made by Buck now? I was told that the old ones were made by Camillus before they went under. Whoever I am also glad they are now made in the USA and not China.

Buck has been making them for some time now. I think they have been made at the Buck factory since they moved to Post Falls Idaho, or shortly thereafter.
Yes, Camillus made them for several years. Schrade actually made 3 or 4 patterns several years ago as well. But Buck did not like the Swinden Key system that Schrade made them with, as they were too hard to repair at the Buck repair shop. Buck asked them to make them without the Swinden system and Schrade refused. Buck stopped using Schrade and moved to Camillus. No biggie to Schrade management, as the same family owned both companies!


Fun thread.
I think I will move it to the Buck Forum so Joe Houser and come in here and correct me if I have made any errors in my facts.

Dale

[useem]

The BUCK 120 is still available in the "Pro Line" series. Great camp knife. EDIT* The 124 will set you back a lot more than the 120. You cant go wrong with either one.

[300Bucks]

Folks,

There are three series of Buck slipjoints currently made, or three variations.
Bucks made in the PRC, Stamped Buck on front, China on a secondary blade. They have numbers that are high digits of 300. Such as 373 and 375. Scales are reddish laminated wood.

The USA made variety come in two versions, Old standard Black Sawcut Poly Scale 301,303,309 and 305s. Also there is a laminted Grey/Black version of the same USA models called Dymondwood versions. They come with three polished SS rivets showing on scale with the new Buck emblem of Blue with and anvil in the center. Coming out soon is a red USA version laminated wood with the company presidents 'Chuck Buck' signature engraved on one side.

USA versions are 420HC Bos heat treatment, PRC versions are 420 with there heat treatment or sometimes maybe even 440a.

Old Black sawcut scale versions were made on contract mostly by Camillus till 1986, Buck took over and 425m was used till 1990 when the three spring, three blade all stainless 420hc version you see today was issued.

Know its confusing just ask questions and I will do my best.
300Bucks

[orvet]

Thanks 300!

[wildjim]

Folks,

There are three series of Buck slipjoints currently made, or three variations.
Bucks made in the PRC, Stamped Buck on front, China on a secondary blade. They have numbers that are high digits of 300. Such as 373 and 375. Scales are reddish laminated wood.

The USA made variety come in two versions, Old standard Black Sawcut Poly Scale 301,303,309 and 305s. Also there is a laminted Grey/Black version of the same USA models called Dymondwood versions. They come with three polished SS rivets showing on scale with the new Buck emblem of Blue with and anvil in the center. Coming out soon is a red USA version laminated wood with the company presidents 'Chuck Buck' signature engraved on one side.

USA versions are 420HC Bos heat treatment, PRC versions are 420 with there heat treatment or sometimes maybe even 440a.

Old Black sawcut scale versions were made on contract mostly by Camillus till 1986, Buck took over and 425m was used till 1990 when the three spring, three blade all stainless 420hc version you see today was issued.

Know its confusing just ask questions and I will do my best.
300Bucks

What month year do you expect the Chuck Buck signature model to be released?

[glenn]

WJ are you gonna try the Round Table?

[wildjim]

WJ are you gonna try the Round Table?

No not for me, I don't like surprises : (

How you feeling? I guess you made it through OK ; )