After the turn of the century, I saw them on ebay, all nice and perfect with papers and box, for anywhere from $100 to $200, and it still seems a little too pricey. Some even have the yellow tinted pearl, which I consider substandard in value.
So I finally found a good deal on a used one with no box or papers for a decent price. The negatives - It has normal pocket wear & one small ding on the edge of the pearl scale. The mirror polished blade has some scratches from use that I think I can sand out.
On the positive side, it's an early one with the old Buck logo. The blade seems to have been sharpened very little and is all there. The MOP scales have great color. One is all nice white, and the other has very slight pink and green rainbow effects at the edges near the bolsters, and no yellow or ugly grain lines.
Here are a few pics, for the Buck fans. The blade scratches didn't show up so much in the pics, but they're there. I'm not sure if they'll sand completely out or not, but I'll get more pics after I polish her up. I think the bolsters will polish up nicely also. Either way, I love it, and will use it for occasional carry in the dress pants, etc.
Please post pics of your Ultima if you have one.
JT
