All About Pocket Knives

Not my newest, but my newest transformation. Its a 501, oak burl and buffalo.

Very nice

Looks good.

You sure do nice work Koss! OH

My two most recent Buck acquisitions. Model 321 bird knife new in the box, and Model 317 folding hunter with belt sheath that has been used some.
Why? Because I did not have either one of these 300 series.

OLDE CUTLER wrote:My two most recent Buck acquisitions. Model 321 bird knife new in the box, and Model 317 folding hunter with belt sheath that has been used some.
Why? Because I did not have either one of these 300 series.
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Great find, those are the two I had the most difficulty finding in good condition, (finally did though), congratulations on finding a #321 NIB.

Two great finds OC Was the bird knife made by Camillus?

garddogg56 wrote:Two great finds OC Was the bird knife made by Camillus?

Both the 317 and 321 have visible steel pins thru the nickle silver bolsters. Must have been the way Buck ordered them from Camillus?

Yes both models were made by Camillus between '72-'86, if the springs are carbon steel most likely pre 1980, (they switched to stainless springs by then).

Thank guys

Garddog, bastler and OH, thanks. More coming soon...

OC, Nice find. I have very few 300's but strangely enough I have both of those. The bird knife was a gift from a friend many years ago. pete

I posted a thread in this forum about my latest Buck addition, but I figured it belongs here too. My latest Buck, a 1990 3-spring 301 stockman with the spey and sheepsfoot reversed. Why? Because it's weird.

Looks like a Monday morning knife! Neat collectible or warranty issue - either way you've got the pictures to prove it. OH

OC, I've used my Buck 321 to gut birds (quail and dove) - works as designed. I've got one of the Case versions as well. OH

My newest additions are a stag 1989 301 and a stag 1989 303. Why? Because they were left to me by my grandfather. Own a lot of bucks but did not know 300’s were made with stag. Rare? I assume

Welcome Bondo your Grandpa had great taste

Bondo. Welcome to AAPK. Glad to have you aboard.

My latest is a 1993 U.S. made 312 black saw cut Delrin Mini-Trapper. Other than a few minor storage scuffs on its outside it looks new. It has good snap and half stops and when closed the blades are centered. Rubbing a finger across the back springs over the tangs it feel smooth with the blades both open and closed. That's not too shabby for $20.

Why? Because I did not know they existed. The only other Buck Mini-Trappers I've noticed are one of two knives in a NKCA collectors' set. They have smooth blue bone sides. I vaguely recall the blue 312s being advertised as the first Buck Mini-Trappers. I'd like to know if my black 312 is uncommon.

I think they're uncommon but not "rare". I have a full-sized 311 trapper in black Delrin that was a bit of a pain to run down but ultimately didn't cost too much. I believe this knife was built by Camillus.
And here is a "BuckBone" 312 mini-trapper from my pile, a little bit pricier on the secondary market. I'm not sure who built it.

I also have a 311 that I bought new in the 1970s. I have no doubt that our 311s and 312s were made by Camillus.

Admittedly my 311 and stag Case Trapper that I bought about the same time are still nearly new. I found my shorter 301 more comfortable in the bottom of a front pants pocket and back in the day 110 size knives were the standard for belt pouches. More recently my pockets have been stuffed with the plastic cards every business wants us to carry so I've shifted to pocket knives that fit the standard Trapper pouch. Unfortunately for Trappers and modern flippers the blade I use the most is a stockman's sheep's foot. Whether they are marked Buck 307, Remington 9501 or Camillus, no other knife is more useful than a really large stockman. I wonder if Camillus made Buck 307s with the brown bone that is on your 312. I'd have to hunt one down if they did.

Modern Slip Joints wrote:I also have a 311 that I bought new in the 1970s. I have no doubt that our 311s and 312s were made by Camillus.
I wonder if Camillus made Buck 307s with the brown bone that is on your 312. I'd have to hunt one down if they did.

311's were made by Camillus but the 312 & 314 Trappers were made in-house at Buck after 300 Series production was taken over by Buck after 1986. The 307 was a Camillus-made knife, so was not made with a "Buck Bone" handle, the 307 was one of the models discontinued when Buck took over production. Models discontinued at that time were 307, 311, 315, 317, 319 & 321.

Modern Slip Joints wrote:More recently my pockets have been stuffed with the plastic cards every business wants us to carry so I've shifted to pocket knives that fit the standard Trapper pouch. Unfortunately for Trappers and modern flippers the blade I use the most is a stockman's sheep's foot.

I've found a Case 6375 fits quite nicely in a trapper shealth (though the top of the clip blade will rub), and IMO the sheepsfoot on that big stockman is far and away the best of any secondary/shorter sheepsfoot out there.

Baykeeper wrote:

Modern Slip Joints wrote:I also have a 311 that I bought new in the 1970s. I have no doubt that our 311s and 312s were made by Camillus.
I wonder if Camillus made Buck 307s with the brown bone that is on your 312. I'd have to hunt one down if they did.

311's were made by Camillus but the 312 & 314 Trappers were made in-house at Buck after 300 Series production was taken over by Buck after 1986. The 307 was a Camillus-made knife, so was not made with a "Buck Bone" handle, the 307 was one of the models discontinued when Buck took over production. Models discontinued at that time were 307, 311, 315, 317, 319 & 321.

The clues I over looked on the 312 I just bought were its year code and the sides of its blades are hollow ground. Thank-you for the correction.

Tsar Bomba wrote:

Modern Slip Joints wrote:More recently my pockets have been stuffed with the plastic cards every business wants us to carry so I've shifted to pocket knives that fit the standard Trapper pouch. Unfortunately for Trappers and modern flippers the blade I use the most is a stockman's sheep's foot.

I've found a Case 6375 fits quite nicely in a trapper shealth (though the top of the clip blade will rub), and IMO the sheepsfoot on that big stockman is far and away the best of any secondary/shorter sheepsfoot out there.

You've inspired me to start using an early 1980s amber brown 6375 CV that I added to my my collection about a year ago. I've kept it shinny bright silver long enough. Queen's 4 1/4" Reverse Gunstock Stockmans have an equivalent broad sheep's foot. However, I always liked Case's version of carbon steel in a daily use knife and Case's sheep's foot does not stick up as high when closed.