703 Colt Bolsters

Ace Rimmer · Sep 17, 2018

I just bought a 503 Prince and, just out of curiosity, was comparing it with my 1989 703 Colt. The bolsters on the 503 are highly polished and, in fact, I worked on them with some Flitz to bring the shine up even more. The bolsters on my 703 were pretty dull (haven't carried it in a while), and even after a quick polishing they still have what I would call a satin finish.

Since it's been almost 30 years I don't recall what they looked like new. I'm wondering if the original finish was "satin" or if they are just showing wear from years of pocket carry. I've seen other bolsters get scratched up, of course, but never seen this uniform dulling effect before.

I would appreciate an observations you might have on the original appearance of the 703.

bertl · Sep 17, 2018

The early 703s had stainless steel bolsters, which later were switched to nickel silver. If your knife has stainless bolsters that might explain the difference.

Bert

DeSotoSky · Sep 17, 2018

I dawdled and Bert snuck in there. My same thought, stainless won't polish by hand.

Ace Rimmer · Sep 17, 2018

bertl and

DeSotoSky thanks for your thoughts on this. You inspired me to take a closer (as in magnified) look at this. I do believe these bolsters are nickel silver based on the color (a slight yellow cast similar to the ones on the 503, and definitely different in color from the stainless steel liners and the pins) and the amount of scratching and gouging that they are showing. (Notice that the pin shows very little if any damage.) Looking at them under a bit of magnification reveals what appears to be stippling that I think must be original and not the result of wear. In fact, the stippling (if that's the proper term) shows signs of being diminished in the higher wear areas such as along the edges.

Sometimes you can answer your own question, it just takes a little push from others to get started!

mnblade · Sep 17, 2018

I used to have a 709. The bolsters were quite dull and dinged up badly. I sent it to Buck for a sharpening and "spa" service and went I got it back the bolsters looked like new!

Ace Rimmer · Sep 17, 2018

mnblade said:
I used to have a 709. The bolsters were quite dull and dinged up badly. I sent it to Buck for a sharpening and "spa" service and went I got it back the bolsters looked like new!

I'll have to consider that. When I look at pictures on Teh Interwebz most of them look shiny. Last week the local knife shop had a 1988 703 in stock. I need to go back and compare it with my 1989.

How long did it take to get your 709 back from Buck?

Joe58 · Sep 18, 2018

Ace Rimmer said:
bertl and DeSotoSky thanks for your thoughts on this. You inspired me to take a closer (as in magnified) look at this. Looking at them under a bit of magnification reveals what appears to be stippling that I think must be original and not the result of wear. In fact, the stippling (if that's the proper term) shows signs of being diminished in the higher wear areas such as along the edges.

Not trying to hijack your thread, but I was surprised when I was looking at your 703 bolster photos.

I just obtained a 1991 303, with red sawcut delrin scales, that has exactly the same type of stippling on it. It appears to have been intentionally done as it is very evenly applied all over the knife, except on the blade springs and pivot pins. It is in areas where pocket wear isn’t normally as readily apparent. The Buck shield has it evenly applied too, but no wear to the corners of the delrin oval it rests in.

The scale corners are still nicely squared, not worn, and the blades didn’t look as though they’d ever been sharpened. The sawcut portion of the scales are still nicely raised and without wear. The blade spines have nice square sharp corners without wear. It’s obviously been carried and used a little bit, but not enough to explain the evenly distributed stippling effect like you have on your 703 as well.

I found it kind of puzzling as I did not think Buck done this type of work on any of their knives. Least not on their issues that are meant as everyday users and aren’t special in some way.

Ace Rimmer · Sep 18, 2018

Joe58 thanks very much for your input! It certainly sounds as if Buck did apply this type of treatment to some of their knives back in the late 80s - early 90s time frame. I hope we will hear from others who have seen this. Well, I woke up this morning with the thought that I might give the Buck "spa" treatment a try. After all this time, and especially after my less than skilled sharpening work in the early days, I'd like to have this knife back to a factory edge. If the surface of these bolsters is original, though, I don't want to lose that. (The edge on my new 703 is fantastic and I think now I have at least the basic skill to keep it that way.)

DeSotoSky · Sep 19, 2018

Would you show an overall picture of the knife please.

Ace Rimmer · Sep 19, 2018

DeSotoSky said:
Would you show an overall picture of the knife please.

Yes, be glad to. This one was taken about a month ago. I'm posting it full size so you can zoom in and see the detail including the color of be bolsters and the "satin" finish and distress marks.

Also of note: I stopped by the local knife store yesterday and he still had the 1988 703. It has shiny bolsters.

I think I'm going to write to history@buckknives.com and see what they can tell me about this!

BuckShack · Sep 19, 2018

From the catalogs, the 1988 and 1989 700 series had nickel-silver bolsters and liners.

Ace Rimmer · Sep 23, 2018

Well, I just sent a request off to Buck History, along with several high resolution photos of the bolsters and photos of the box, asking if any Buck Knives were ever produced with this type of finish. We'll see what they have to say.

I'm thinking of sending this knife in for a SPA treatment and I wouldn't want them polished smooth if this is historically correct.

gedlicks · Sep 23, 2018

My guess is that they are supposed to be smooth and polished. That stippling may be some type of corrosion and pocket wear would be my guess.

Ace Rimmer · Sep 23, 2018

gedlicks said:
My guess is that they are supposed to be smooth and polished. That stippling may be some type of corrosion and pocket wear would be my guess.

The more I study this the more I think the same thing. Perhaps even some impurities in the nickel silver that caused it.

I once had a small sailboat, and the backstays were stainless steel -- at least they were supposed to be. One of the several strands rusted! Just a manufacturing error that resulted in one strand of non-stainless being wound into the cable with all the stainless ones. I can believe that some unintended impurities might have ended up in a batch of NS alloy.

Ace Rimmer · Sep 27, 2018

Here's the response from Buck History:

"To my knowledge, some of the nickel silver bolsters had some pitting issues which left them with a satin finished look. It was not intentional. These pits may or may not be able to be buffed out. The standard finish of the bolsters of the 700 series were polished nickel silver. So feel free to send it in for a spa treatment and we can see if we would be able to get the pits out."

Well, that satisfies my curiosity. I may send it in, but whether it polishes out or not it is a knife that I will always treasure and enjoy using.

Joe58 · Sep 28, 2018

I don’t think I would. Makes it kind of unique and doesn’t effect function or anything like that. If it’s going to be carried in your pocket, it won’t stay polished up nice anyway.

Ace Rimmer · Sep 28, 2018

Joe58 said:
I don’t think I would. Makes it kind of unique and doesn’t effect function or anything like that. If it’s going to be carried in your pocket, it won’t stay polished up nice anyway.

I'm glad you wrote that. There's something to be said for honest wear, scratches and dents that add to the character and "personalization" of a knife. I probably should leave it alone. Makes for an interesting tall tale, anyway: "Yes, this is one of the rare 'satin finish' 700-series knives. Highly collectible, you know..."