Buck 110 folding knife

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KyleTuck

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Apr 22, 2006
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108
I had a Buck 110 folding knife that was purchased about 2 years ago. It was a piece of shit. The lock was weak and it wouldn't hold an edge worth a damn. Have any of you had any of these problems with Buck Knifes. And also, does Buck knifes offer any other good knifes.
 
Man, I'm gonna get crucified for saying this, but Buck 110s are a knife whose time has come and gone. The blade is 420HC and has those ol' fingernail slits, but the lockup should be good. The knife is made with different blade types and people who like 'em are like the owners of .45 automatics (they kind of overrate the product), but it's all subjective. I'm not a hunter or an outdoorsman, but I don't see buying a 420HC blade when I can get much better for the same $$$.

Back in its time it was a probably a pretty decent knife -- way ahead of its time, in fact -- but now the debate is how gracefully its aging.
 
I have a Buck 110 that I purchased new sometime around 1971-74, can't remember for sure. I don't use it these days but it still has a bank vault lockup with no blade play. Don't know what the steel is, Buck 110 USA is the only thing on the tang.
 
Blame the buying preferences (and the resultant need for a low price) for that negative experience.

There has been plenty of good experiences with Buck knives of late, just not usually the "economy" models. But, then again, look what a 110 will set you back in $.

Look at the custom order page at the Buck website. BG42, S30V, optional scale materials, etc. Also, the TNT ain't nothin' to sneeze at.
 
The blade steel leaves a lot to be desired. If Buck started useing Opinel type steel I think they would sell like hotcakes! Mine is a solid lockup & no blade play at all. Not my favorite knife. My Shrade look alike is 10 times better!:thumbup:
 
Of couse we all want the best blade-steel possible, but there is alot more to cutting performance than just the type of steel used--there is also grind and geometry to consider.

IMO, the Buck 110 has an excellent blade grind and geometry, and it is a very efficient cutter.
The tip is not too strong, but that does not make it inferior since it is very useful for fine tip-work.

And 420HC is not a bad steel and it does most daily tasks with ease.
But just for us knife nuts Buck also has the 110 available in ATS-34 and BG-42.
And Cabela's has an exclusive Buck 110 with S30V for less than $70.00 dollars. And it comes with a very nice belt pouch.

I've never had a Buck 110 with a weak lock, ever.
They have all been every bit as strong as my Spyderco lockbacks.
And since they have a top-notch warranty department, if you did get one with a defective lock, all you need to do is mail it them and they will make it right for you.

I'll also give praise for the simple beauty of the Buck 110.
The brass and wood are simply beautiful, especially compared to black FRN and black G-10.

And speaking of the handle...the 110's handle is one of the most comfortable handles in the knife world.
I've cut for very long periods of time and never developed a hotspot or blister.
The handle does'nt even fatigue my hand very easily.

The only real problems with the 110 are three things IMO:
1. It is very heavy--but not much more heavy than a Spyderco Chinook or Manix.
2. It has no pocket-clip.
3. Although it is easy to open with one hand right now, a thumbstud would make it easier and more safe.

Allen.
 
My 110 is about 15 - 17 years old so I can't really offer an opinion as to the quality of the newer production knives, but the lockup on mine is very solid.

Last week at Gander Mountain I saw regular 110's on sale for $29.00. Styling of course is subjective, but where are you going ot find a knife like that for $29.00?

I'm almost tempted to buy one just to compare the quality of the current knives with my older one.
 
as i've said before every company has a bad knife get out every now and then. If i get one i contact the company to give them a chance to fix the problem before i publicly state that their product sucks. I've use the 110 for over 30 years and have had many, no problems with lockup or sharpness. as far as the steel goes the 420hc is not the hookey dookey steel of the moment but is a good choice both from a price point and use point of view. I really wonder how many people could tell the difference between 420hc and a higher grade steel in a blind test. I agree with a couple of the points made above primarily that the dang thing ways 25 lbs and doesn't have a clip, but for a pattern that is getting a little long in the tooth i still think it fills the folding hunter role very well. later, ahgar
 
Buck 110's have solid lock up (unless you get a defective one) and the 420hc is cryo treated and holds an excellent edge while being easy to sharpen. All the crap about ats steels and all the other steels is just crap! my personal preference is carbon steel and i can and do cut anything with them that you can cut with ats except i dont have to worry about my blades being brittle like ats and most other stainless steels. By the way i have knives made from about every kind of stainless i can think of so im not speaking from inexperiance. If you have a problem with a Buck knife not holding an edge just send it back for replacement Bucks knives are top quality.
 
Well, not to turn this thread in to another "stainless vs carbon" debate, I do think that there are much better steels than 420HC (ATS-34 being one of them)--but 420HC is fine when combined with the proper heat-treatment AND excellent blade grind and geometry.

As for "carbon vs stainless"....in a knife this size, I can see no advantage that carbon has over a nice quality stainless like S30V, ATS-34, 154CM, VG-10, 440C, or even AUS-8.
And I've never had a brittleness problem with any of them.
 
Most of my hunting knives are stainless steel like you said brittleness is not a problem with smaller knives because you cant do heavy work with them anyway. I like 420 better than ats34 because it can be sharpened much quicker. I am very well practiced in sharpening and can obtain a razor sharp edge in a couple of minutes with some carbons and stainless steels like aus8a 420 or 440a but ats 34 or 55 or 154cm takes several minutes to get it to shave facial hair. I touch my knives up after every use when i can so my knives are always shaving sharp and the harder steels really are not that much more of a burden when you keep them touched up regulary but sometimes i cant touch them up untill i have dulled it considerably.
 
Great lock up, thin edge sliced like a champ, held its edge okay/easy touch ups, looked good. I traded it because of the weight. I'm a suburbanite office worker and the belt pouch didn't work for me. Good knife though.

Frank
 
Steel quality is going down these days and 420HC is about the same as AUS 4 from what I can determine. And though good heat treatment will mitigate it somewhat, a good AUS 8 will beat it every time. And AUS 8 is commonly found in CRKT and Cold Steel folders for roughly the same price. Buck may have great blade grind and geometry, but so does the Cold Steel Voyager, which is what I like.

I'm not a blade snob by any means, but as I see Gerber, Columbia River and other companies go to 420j2 and 420, the more convinced I am that it's just not a great choice for day-in and day-out cutting jobs. People were complaining here lately that their AUS 6 blades wouldn't stay sharp. But again, the bottom line is that some people find the Buck 110's tough blades to be great; others will pay for greater edge retention.

If Buck would use 440C, I think they'd be great.
 
I've only handled one 110 and that is my own 1995 model which I bought when I was in the Army. I have never had any problems with lock up. I'm not a sharpening expert by any means but a few minutes with a Lansky or Sharpmaker was all I needed to produce a very sharp edge on my 110.
 
KyleTuck,

You say you got the knife two years ago and you just now decided to vent about the problems? Did you ever contact Buck?

What led you to pronounce the lock as being weak?

thanks
 
I used the knife very little and it got dull. I believe it was the worst edge holding steel you could possibly buy in a knife. I did a knife whack test to it and it failed every time. I tell you it was a piece of crap. I am looking for a knife that I can really abuse and have it still hold up fairly good.
 
I find the steel in the Buck 110 severly lacking & agree with you but, mine is a solid lockup & passed the spine whack test without failure. I think you got a defective one & I would send it back to Buck for repair/replacement.:thumbup:
 
KyleTuck, send it back to Buck and I'm sure that they will take care of the problem.
 
KT,

You should post this on the BUck KNives forum. They have a representative there, whom I believe would like to hear your issue.

For all you spine whackers out there...could someone explain to me why you would do that?
 
IMO buy the 110 or it's brother (if you can find one) the 560 XTI and send it to Buck for the BG42 upgrade for $35 bucks. An outstanding knife in this configuration. Great for the outdoors and hunting where a sheath knife is commonly used. Some have even nicknamed this upgrade the "Buckbenza" after the Sebenza. My $.02 worth. :D
 
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