119s with BOS 5160 steel

L

Lawrence Helm

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Jul 24, 2014
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In November 2017 I bought a black-phenolic handled 119 with BOS 5060 steel. Just this week I bought one with a red-phenolic handle with 5060 steel.

The black-handled 119 weighed 11 ounces and the red-handle one weighed 8 ounces. Does anyone know why that is?

Lawrence
 
Do they both have aluminum guards and pommels.?. If I remember right the black phenolic with 5160 blade has brass guard and pommel. The red had aluminum,
 
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could be ground a bit different. I noticed on a couple 120 i have with original factory edges.....they are slightly different widths and thicknesses. all within tolerances I'm sure but that extra bit of steel will weight more.

also on a couple 650s I own. one is a bit shorter and less blade width than some older ones I have. an older one is a bit longer than the rest as well.

I doubt 3 ounces worth but maybe that contributes to it?
 
Makael said:
Do they both have aluminum guards and pommels.?. If I remember right the black phenolic with 5160 blade has brass guard and pommel.
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Makael said:
Do they both have aluminum guards and pommels.?. If I remember right the black phenolic with 5160 blade has brass guard and pommel. The red had aluminum,
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You're right about the black-handled 119. It has brass guard and pommel. You are probably right about the red-handled one as well, but I have a lot of Buck knives and the guard and pommel of this one seem better than aluminum. I was wondering if they were nickel or some aluminum alloy. Or I could just be imagining that they aren't aluminum. But assuming that they are, would that difference, if it is the only difference amount to 3 ounces?

Lawrence
 
jbmonkey said:
could be ground a bit different. I noticed on a couple 120 i have with original factory edges.....they are slightly different widths and thicknesses. all within tolerances I'm sure but that extra bit of steel will weight more.

also on a couple 650s I own. one is a bit shorter and less blade width than some older ones I have. an older one is a bit longer than the rest as well.

I doubt 3 ounces worth but maybe that contributes to it?
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In this case the blades and the grind seem exactly the same. The only clear difference that would seem to involve a weight difference is the material of the guard and pommel, but I didn't think those differences would amount to 3 ounces. Maybe I'm wrong.

I'm guessing that the response to the custom offering last year caused Buck to make a production run. I was wondering if the custom knives weighed more than the production run.

Lawrence
 
With the amount of material put into the guard and pommel on these knives there's a pretty considerable difference in the weight of the aluminum and brass trimmed models. 3 ounces seems reasonable.

According to the Buck website, a standard 119 with aluminum trim and phenolic handle weighs in at 7.5 ounces and your brass and phenolic model weighs in at 11. That's a 3.5 ounce difference. I would think the blades weigh about the same.
 
Deere Man said:
With the amount of material put into the guard and pommel on these knives there's a pretty considerable difference in the weight of the aluminum and brass trimmed models. 3 ounces seems reasonable.

According to the Buck website, a standard 119 with aluminum trim and phenolic handle weighs in at 7.5 ounces and your brass and phenolic model weighs in at 11. That's a 3.5 ounce difference. I would think the blades weigh about the same.
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I just weighed a standard model 119 made in 2014 and it does weigh 7.5 ounces. The red handled one with aluminum bolster and pommel (I've given up thinking they are nickel) weighs 8 ounces. The blade on the red-handled knife with aluminum guard and pommel made from 5160 steel weighs 8 ounces. The half ounce difference could mean that the 5160 steel is a bit heavier than the steel in the standard knife.

Now, back to the difference between the two knives, both made with 5160 steel, one with aluminum guard and pommel and the other with brass guard and pommel, I guess I'll have to accept that the weight of the brass over aluminum accounts for the 3 ounces although that surprises me. I thought something else inside the handle might contribute to it, but I guess not.

I was tempted to buy another copy of the knife with the brass guard and pommel to see if the custom-run knife was heavier than the production run knife, but I guess now that I won't. I have two shelves, one for collectable Buck knives and one for Buck knives I will use on hikes. I'll put the heavy Buck on the collectable shelf, and keep the other for use.

Thanks for the help :-)

Lawrence
 
I think I have 3 of the black and 2 of the red with 5160. I like the heavy feel of the black and brass.
 
I know what you mean. The black feels really good, but I usually opt for lighter weight when I'm going on a hike. I was just discussing something like this on Pentax forum. Some people think the latest Pentax lens is too heavy when used with the full-frame K1ii, especially if one hikes and carries other gear. I think I could manage okay despite being 84 this coming October -- being a former Marine who still likes to hike. And I have carried the BK2 on a few hikes without a problem.

I really like the feel of the red one however, and if I'm going to intend one for use that will probably be the one.

Lawrence
 
No, the brass will make the knife much heavier. I am going to get the black handle/brass guard 119 in 5160. And it's going to be heavy.

Awesomeness of this nature isn't for everyone.

I approve of this thread.
 
Deere Man said:
With the amount of material put into the guard and pommel on these knives there's a pretty considerable difference in the weight of the aluminum and brass trimmed models. 3 ounces seems reasonable.

According to the Buck website, a standard 119 with aluminum trim and phenolic handle weighs in at 7.5 ounces and your brass and phenolic model weighs in at 11. That's a 3.5 ounce difference. I would think the blades weigh about the same.
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As a sanity check, I just weighed two versions of the Buck 120, both made in 2014, one in standard black phenolic with aluminum guard and pommel and the other in standard red-wood looking phenolic with brass guard and bolster. The black 120 weighed 8 1/2 ounces and the red-wood 120 weighed 11 ounces.

If we assume there is no difference in the weight of the phenolic handles then the brass guard and pommel on the red-wood 120 weighs 2 1/2 ounces. Assuming the brass guard and pommel on the 120 weigh the same as those on the 119, then, in revisiting the subject 119s, there seems to be 1/2 ounce unaccounted for. Hmmm.

Lawrence
 
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The guard trim and butt are aluminum. The bulk of the weight difference in wood handle vs phenolic

I hope this helps

Jeff
 
J Hubbard said:
The guard trim and butt are aluminum. The bulk of the weight difference in wood handle vs phenolic

I hope this helps

Jeff
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Good to know. The 119 with the BOS 5160, the one with the red handle does feel like wood. It appears to have a scratch-resistant varnish on it, but I'll be inclined to be a bit careful with it anyway. And yes this helps. It accounts for the 1/2 ounce weight difference I was wondering about.

How about the redish handle on the 120 Buck made in 2014? I'm assuming that since there is only 2 1/2 ounces different between the black and the redish-handled 120 that the latter is phenolic.

Lawrence
 
Let me check on this to be sure. I might have missed a red plastic handled one.. I was thinking all we did was wood ones.. also I might be underestimating the brass vs alum difference...

Its been a day lol
 
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