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any opinions/feedback on Buck's 420HC?
- Thread starter trout #2
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- Apr 20, 2001
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Yes it holds up great, their heat treat is overseen by Paul Bose, Buck's 420HC will do anything you ask of it.
Grateful
Gold Member
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I like it. It is tuff and it takes a razor like edge fairly easy tho it needs to be touched up frequenly to keep it. Once the razor like edge goes it holds a good working edge for a good long time. All in all BUCK's 420hc is a fine user steel in my opinion.
I think what Grateful was getting at, is that if you are a knifenut, razor edges are "in" 
I'm the same way - I prefer to keep razor edges as well. Hence the touch ups. Depending on what you cut, a razor edge can go away pretty quick - corrugated cardboard :grumpy: , BUT, more important it doesn't go dull quickly. Case in point - I have a Maxam (Emerson knockoff) - probably 420J2 - I can get it to a razor edge, but it quits cutting at about 10 linear feet, give or take. You almost have to "saw" to get it to keep cutting. Saving grace for this "thing"? It scrapes epoxy and give me really good practice at learning re-profiling edges and sharpening - in one sense, it's actually paid for itself for the whole $15.00 CDN I paid for it 
I normally put the cardboard on the floor edge up, and push the edge straight down at a about a 30 to 40 deg angle. My Buck 112, at about 60 or 70 linear feet (I ran out of Dell boxes that day ), it wouldn't quite shave without a bit of pressure, but it sure wasn't dull That's probably as hard as I normally would push a folder. We are expecting a bunch of new replacement machines before Xmas in our test centre, so I'm hoping to try out a few larger folders when we do the box knockdown thing. For me- 420HC is just fine. With the folders that I have, I probably have a bit of just about everything in steels, and with the exception of a couple of junkers like the Maxam, they work fine.
Hope this helps - gord
I'm the same way - I prefer to keep razor edges as well. Hence the touch ups. Depending on what you cut, a razor edge can go away pretty quick - corrugated cardboard :grumpy: , BUT, more important it doesn't go dull quickly. Case in point - I have a Maxam (Emerson knockoff) - probably 420J2 - I can get it to a razor edge, but it quits cutting at about 10 linear feet, give or take. You almost have to "saw" to get it to keep cutting. Saving grace for this "thing"? It scrapes epoxy and give me really good practice at learning re-profiling edges and sharpening - in one sense, it's actually paid for itself for the whole $15.00 CDN I paid for it I normally put the cardboard on the floor edge up, and push the edge straight down at a about a 30 to 40 deg angle. My Buck 112, at about 60 or 70 linear feet (I ran out of Dell boxes that day ), it wouldn't quite shave without a bit of pressure, but it sure wasn't dull That's probably as hard as I normally would push a folder. We are expecting a bunch of new replacement machines before Xmas in our test centre, so I'm hoping to try out a few larger folders when we do the box knockdown thing. For me- 420HC is just fine. With the folders that I have, I probably have a bit of just about everything in steels, and with the exception of a couple of junkers like the Maxam, they work fine.Hope this helps - gord
hi gord,
oh i see, that makes sense then.
I have a 112 also, love that thing.
Keep us posted on your box knockdown test. Which folder will you try?
-Gary
oh i see, that makes sense then.
I have a 112 also, love that thing.
Keep us posted on your box knockdown test.
Which folder will you try?-Gary
gordonk said:I think what Grateful was getting at, is that if you are a knifenut, razor edges are "in"
Hope this helps - gord
Gary007 - Actually folder(s) would be probably be closer. On the big assumption that our equipment actually does show up (it still might not, if the budget doesn't get finalized/approved). I'm expecting 10 Dell Servers and 9 Desktops with 3 or 4 being dual headed LCD panel displays (I think that's what's on the requisition). That's going to be a lot of cardboard My test team actually thought of this - they know I own a lot of knives, and thought it might be fun for me to bring a few in so they could "try" them.
Soooo.....the initial plan is BM550 Griptillian, Camillus Heat, Spyderco Paramilitary, Spyderco FRN Endura, CRKT/Crawford Falcon (large one), Buck 110, Buck Alpha Folding Hunter (rubberized handle/420HC) and whatever larger folder I acquire between now and then. I have a Buck 887SBT Police Advocate, but it will not be part of this excercise - it's not that it can't - it just doesn't do that well with that combo edge. All of these are PE. Now that I look at this list, I take it back about me not owning very many large folders
What we are kinda planning, is that my co-workers would use one or more for opening and cutting up the cardboard into recycleable (is this a word?) pieces about 24 inches wide by whatever. Each person would rotate thru and try as many as they can and then just give an opinion on handling, cutting power, etc. Now, for the most part, they have all borrowed a blade from me at one time or another, so they do have a bit of knife savy. I'm trying to talk one of them, who recently bought a Bryd Cara Cara to toss his into the fray, but I think he likes it too much to part with it It's around $40 CDN or so up here, so I may just get one anyway For me, the most interesting piece of this, is not so much the edge retention part, because I don't think I am going to see that much edge loss, but more in seeing the reaction of people cutting cardboard with something that can actually cut cardboard easily Actually, it should be very interesting to hear the comments. For the most part, I think they think I'm nuts spending more than about $20.00 on a knife!!! There will probably be a fair amount of ziptie cutting as we will have to re-arrange the test centre to accomodate some racks to put these things and re-arrange the network cables, etc. If the equipment does indeed show up, it's going to be fun in one sense. It may not be so fun if the stuff shows up right in the middle of a release schedule - we will have to stage and install the software and just toss the boxes and let shipper/receiver do the fun stuff and actually work (testing). It won't be so fun for him, though - he won't be using any of my blades For me, the proof is in the pudding - my supervisor has been talking about ordering our new hardware for a couple of months now, and it still hasn't shown up.
- gord
My test team actually thought of this - they know I own a lot of knives, and thought it might be fun for me to bring a few in so they could "try" them. Soooo.....the initial plan is BM550 Griptillian, Camillus Heat, Spyderco Paramilitary, Spyderco FRN Endura, CRKT/Crawford Falcon (large one), Buck 110, Buck Alpha Folding Hunter (rubberized handle/420HC) and whatever larger folder I acquire between now and then. I have a Buck 887SBT Police Advocate, but it will not be part of this excercise - it's not that it can't - it just doesn't do that well with that combo edge. All of these are PE. Now that I look at this list, I take it back about me not owning very many large folders
What we are kinda planning, is that my co-workers would use one or more for opening and cutting up the cardboard into recycleable (is this a word?) pieces about 24 inches wide by whatever. Each person would rotate thru and try as many as they can and then just give an opinion on handling, cutting power, etc. Now, for the most part, they have all borrowed a blade from me at one time or another, so they do have a bit of knife savy. I'm trying to talk one of them, who recently bought a Bryd Cara Cara to toss his into the fray, but I think he likes it too much to part with it
It's around $40 CDN or so up here, so I may just get one anyway For me, the most interesting piece of this, is not so much the edge retention part, because I don't think I am going to see that much edge loss, but more in seeing the reaction of people cutting cardboard with something that can actually cut cardboard easily Actually, it should be very interesting to hear the comments. For the most part, I think they think I'm nuts spending more than about $20.00 on a knife!!! There will probably be a fair amount of ziptie cutting as we will have to re-arrange the test centre to accomodate some racks to put these things and re-arrange the network cables, etc. If the equipment does indeed show up, it's going to be fun in one sense. It may not be so fun if the stuff shows up right in the middle of a release schedule - we will have to stage and install the software and just toss the boxes and let shipper/receiver do the fun stuff and actually work (testing). It won't be so fun for him, though - he won't be using any of my blades For me, the proof is in the pudding - my supervisor has been talking about ordering our new hardware for a couple of months now, and it still hasn't shown up.- gord
The cardboard cutting sounds like an interesting game. Perhaps not a pure test of blade material since there are other variables at work than just the steel pedigree, like blade length, width, thickness, edge bevil, blade profile, etc. Any of these might have some bearing on results. Also, i suppose that the perfect setup for winning that test wouldn't necessarily be the best all around user for everyone. (Maybe a boxcutter would be the winner. 
)
Due to all the possible functional uses and tradeoffs (edge retention versus ease of sharpening, hardness versus toughness, performance for slicing, hacking, sawing, chopping, prying, edge performance at all possible bevil angles, brittleness, corrosion resistance, etc.) it seems unlikely that one steel would be the best choice for every knife made even if cost was not a factor.
)Due to all the possible functional uses and tradeoffs (edge retention versus ease of sharpening, hardness versus toughness, performance for slicing, hacking, sawing, chopping, prying, edge performance at all possible bevil angles, brittleness, corrosion resistance, etc.) it seems unlikely that one steel would be the best choice for every knife made even if cost was not a factor.
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trout #2 said:
It's good stuff. In normal circumstances I think twice before buying a knife with 420 blade steel. But not Buck. It takes a razor edge and is easy to resharpen, but most importantly, it's tough. So you have a trade off, less than spectacular edge retention (though Buck's 420HC does a remarkable job) but a harder use working knife.
I like the older 440C that Buck used, but the ease of sharpening with the 420HC is a good compromise.
420 is a very good steel for use in liners and handles as its fairly impact resistant. A lot of higher end knives use 420 liners.