Buck 105 Special Order?

TAH

TAH

Joined
Jul 3, 2001
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Saw this knife on eBay and was wondering if Buck would have done this type of "custom" work in the early 70s. Thoughts?

Auction description:

"Customer Special Order model 105 Pathfinder knife. This knife was made sometime between 1970 and 1972. The pommel beak and guard were removed--per Joe Houser, likely from a special order request from a customer."


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I saw that listing and also wondered to myself about the problem with provenance of the knife. If I ground down a standard 105 in my basement workshop it would not look any different. Clearly Joe Houser thinks it is possible that this type of work could have been done at the factory and that alone should answer your question to whatever extent possible. Spending money without proof is another matter entirely as to my eye the knife has no other unique features other than shape.

If the knife were truly a custom order, there is no exact dating. If I were to apply standard construction dating criteria, a 2-line fiber spacer knife would have been in the 1967 to 1969 time frame. I would date the sheath as being newer and belonging to the 1970's 3-line knife era.

Speculation is fun but all that aside, it is a neat and unique knife.
 
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Are those fiber spacers or micarta? Look like fiber to me. I can't see Buck doing that to a knife but I doubt someone would bring Joe's name up if it wasn't true.
 
Yea, I saw Joe's name, but thought it could be part of the sales pitch. I'm not interested in the knife. Just wondering if Buck did special orders back then.
 
I saw it too and thought I could do it in 30 seconds on my belt sander in the foundry.
I need to learn more about flappy sheaths.
 
Guys, this is bogus. Buck's Custom didn't get up and running until Jan. 1981. I know those guys. A few models were made prior to that date but they wouldn't turn out anything like that (it's ugly). They did far better work that this. DM
 
The spacers are gasket material. I wonder about bringing up someones name in assoication with this knife. I wouldn't want my name associated with those knives. DM
 
David Martin said:
Guys, this is bogus. Buck's Custom didn't get up and running until Jan. 1981. I know those guys. A few models were made prior to that date but they wouldn't turn out anything like that (it's ugly). They did far better work that this. DM
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David,

I'm not defending the seller, but I don't think he is suggesting that this knife is a Buck Custom, as we think of a Buck Custom today. The description suggests that the original owner asked Buck to reduce the hilt and pommel on a standard 105 and Buck obliged. It is my understanding that Buck would not modify a knife like this today, but would they have agreed to this type of request back then?
 
A good question. Buck agreeing to do this I doubt. Especially, the parts of the knife in question being aluminum would be easy to modify to this order with merely 2-3 sheets of sandpaper. Besides the modification being distasteful, I would like to see something in writing authenticating it as Buck's work. Plus, this being the only time I've seen a modification like this. DM
 
I agree with Badhammer. If the seller hadn't mentioned Joe's name, I would have immediately thought it was a home modification. Distasteful or not, makes me wonder if, back then, Buck did it to satisfy the customer and didn't think anything of it. Different era, for sure.
 
Another telling fact about this. I'm mostly certain Joe H. was not working at Buck at the time of this 105's mfg.. About 1969 or 70. Just look at pictures of him.That would put him graduating from high school in 1971 at the latest. I know he hasn't been working for Buck 45 years...? Come on! The last I recall him saying he has in the neighborhood of 28 years with Buck. Do the math. That customer would have had to purchased this model and waited 20 years and had Buck modify it, in order for Joe H. to have touched it. DM
 
Assume that the target 105 was made in the 1960's, at the Federal Street facility in San Diego, California, Ivan "Buck" Bryant might have an educated opinion about this (ready to be slipped into a cane knife) adulterated 105. He is displaying his collection of Buck Knives first factory manufactured knives (late 1950s -1960s) this weekend in Eugene, OR along with our good friend James. I've sent Ivan email but no ping back, unfortunately. Ivan is a BCCI member. Ivan, are you reading this? I know that he posts to the BCCI chat which I find impossible, unfortunately. James is there already and both will be displaying thru Sunday. I think that means that I gotta go, ambulatory or not (my son can drive and I have crutches). Larry O should also be able to chime in on this topic as well (Larry are you reading this). Larry's collection hits on this end of Buck factory production.

Interesting topic: What would the factory do for you back when they first started production? Would they turn one of their knives into a torpedo if you asked...
 
Good question. Which is my take on this. Of course I could be wrong on this. So, I'll let it go. DM
 
I am certainly no expert...far, far, from it. I leave that to you guys. But, my 2 cents is that I doubt Joe Houser said anything of the kind. How would be be able to know? The only scenario I could see this knife ever being modded in the Buck factory is if an employee back then did a favor for a friend on the QT.
 
DocT said:
But, my 2 cents is that I doubt Joe Houser said anything of the kind. How would be be able to know?
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I have always been and continue to be a runt among giants in this forum. However, I do have some direct personal knowledge.

You could ping/ask Joe Houser for his opinion and see what he says. The vendor in this case could have shown the target knife to Joe at a show perhaps.

Joe Houser, Buck historian (among other hats he wears as the hardest working Son-In-Law) has demonstrated his encyclopedic and lightning fast recall knowledge of Buck historic minutia before my very eyes on several occasions during my annual visits to OKCA (sad that he no longer attends there). I would walk around looking for specimens of knives I collect and sometimes find a weird ancient Buck. I'd ask the table holder about it and sometimes they wouldn't know saying that they wanted to discuss it with Joe and would actually entrust it to me to present it to Joe (they couldn't leave their table, so I was errand boy oregon) Joe would know immediately what it was, where it fit into the evolution of which model, age, value, issues and such. I'd return it to the vendor and disgorge what Joe had said and the price would increase substantially over what I was when I first clapped eyes on it (I don't collect the oldies)!

Or I'd be standing at the Buck Knives table attended by Joe Houser and people would bring Joe all kinds of Buck knives, pieces of knives, questions of knives like he was an oracle. You stand near Joe and it wouldn't be long before you were elbowed clean out of the area by a crowd of interested Joe fans. I would save up my questions all year for him, my spa knives and my look what I found knives that I wanted to show him (he would fawn over them as I would).

A fellow Buck forum member, Desert Chris, and I put together a few small things that Joe voiced desire for over the years and these were given to him at the show as tokens of gratitude from the Buck forum for all that he has done for the Buck forum: Buck padlocks, British Buck Knife & such. He couldn't have been more tickled and said that they were things that he had wanted for ten years.

UPDATE: I heard back from fellow BCCI member Ivan Bryant, who is currently showing his Federal Street collection at OKCA and who I am enthusiastically hoping to meet Sunday. He says, "I have a Large collection of 110's,( 5) V1-V1." He goes by the name Buck and says that he is on the mend, improving every day, after having his 8 day old p/u truck run over with him in it by a FedEx tractor double trailer truck. I'll be taking a BCCI black hat for his survivor's head. Congratulations on your show Buck and my prayers will have you back to 110% in no time. Yes they will. :thumbup: :thumbup:
 
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Ivan "Buck" Bryant did not attend OKCA and his collection was not on display there, unfortunately. I look forward to meeting him and seeing his collection at another time. He has my best wishes and prayers for a speedy recovery.

The photos from the auction were shown to your friend and mine, Leroy, who said that the factory would adulterate the knife but that the 105 was not the model it was done to with the most frequency rather one in the teens (sorry about vague model number but RRR table, as usual, was very busy & noisy).
 
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