Buck 110 in Bos 5160

[pinnah]

Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong, but the knives in question here, the 110 (and also the 119, btw) in 5160 are a special run for an on-line retailer, no?

That is to say, I believe that Buck is *not* offering these knives as a part of their regular product line and is simply fulfilling an order from a retailer who thinks they can sell that number of units of this variant. Buck, like many large manufacturers, sells special runs of their products to retailers. What's available to the retailer is influenced by what the manufacturer has or is willing to work with. For example, Buck did a run of knives for Cabelas with 12C27 and that didn't cause a forum-storm on the comparative virtues of 12C27 vs 420HC.

It's well understood in the knife collecting world that there are collectors of brands and models who are committed to owning as many variants of that brand or model that they can find. For collectors of this kind, the actual performance is not the primary driver. They're more interested in the aesthetics and the history of the variants. That's not my cup of tea. Strikes me as the knife equivalent of stamp or butterfly collecting, but I'm not about to dis another person's hobby. Honestly. There are people who are going to buy these knives and who will love owning them for no other reason as it adds variety to their 110 or 119 collections and that really should be OK with people.

As for Buck's choice or using 5160 vs other alternatives like 52100 or whatever, that ship sailed when they choose 5160 for the Ron Hood collaborations on the Hoodlum and Punk, right?

Personally, as a person who would consider using the 110 for more EDC type uses, my issue isn't with Buck's steels but their grind. I would much rather see them add full flat grinds as an option. Infinitely more interesting to me.

 

[mael333ca]

Hmm... so because 5160 performs adequately in a large fixed blade, its great for a folder? Ok

The buck 110 folder is NOT a hard use folder, its pinned together and would develop play if used to pry, or otherwise put through tasks more modern folders could shrug off.

The 110 is a fine folder, and has served many folks well for many years, those folks usually cut and peeled and sliced with it.

What is 5160's major attribute or claim to fame? Edge retention? No sir, its toughness.

What exactly do you do with your 110 that needs a truck leaf spring steel, over a more suitable steel that caters to the 110's main purpose i.e cutting, slicing, peeling, skinning.

I actually have two buck 110s...let me tell you this: it is a shitty folder indeed! clunky, heavy yet not suited for any kind of real cutting shores...It has been great in it's days...long gone now lol

 

[shinyedges]

I too like a ffg blade, the spyderco Delica in vg10 with a ffg is a MEAN cutter.

I actually like that buck uses different steels, what I dont get is when people come up with delusions that what ever steel buck is using is best because if a better knife could be made from a different steel, then buck would be using it.

And the other dude rolling his eyes at people who use their buck 110's for cutting slicing and peeling, apparently he hard uses is 110 and feels 5160 will help hold the knife together for more hard use.

Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong, but the knives in question here, the 110 (and also the 119, btw) in 5160 are a special run for an on-line retailer, no?

That is to say, I believe that Buck is *not* offering these knives as a part of their regular product line and is simply fulfilling an order from a retailer who thinks they can sell that number of units of this variant. Buck, like many large manufacturers, sells special runs of their products to retailers. What's available to the retailer is influenced by what the manufacturer has or is willing to work with. For example, Buck did a run of knives for Cabelas with 12C27 and that didn't cause a forum-storm on the comparative virtues of 12C27 vs 420HC.

It's well understood in the knife collecting world that there are collectors of brands and models who are committed to owning as many variants of that brand or model that they can find. For collectors of this kind, the actual performance is not the primary driver. They're more interested in the aesthetics and the history of the variants. That's not my cup of tea. Strikes me as the knife equivalent of stamp or butterfly collecting, but I'm not about to dis another person's hobby. Honestly. There are people who are going to buy these knives and who will love owning them for no other reason as it adds variety to their 110 or 119 collections and that really should be OK with people.

As for Buck's choice or using 5160 vs other alternatives like 52100 or whatever, that ship sailed when they choose 5160 for the Ron Hood collaborations on the Hoodlum and Punk, right?

Personally, as a person who would consider using the 110 for more EDC type uses, my issue isn't with Buck's steels but their grind. I would much rather see them add full flat grinds as an option. Infinitely more interesting to me.

 

[shinyedges]

Whoops I mistook your other post for you implying that you hard use your buck110 and that 5160 would be a great addition so you could hard use it even harder lol

I actually have two buck 110s...let me tell you this: it is a shitty folder indeed! clunky, heavy yet not suited for any kind of real cutting shores...It has been great in it's days...long gone now lol

 

[pinnah]

Hmm... so because 5160 performs adequately in a large fixed blade, its great for a folder? Ok

The buck 110 folder is NOT a hard use folder, its pinned together and would develop play if used to pry, or otherwise put through tasks more modern folders could shrug off.

The 110 is a fine folder, and has served many folks well for many years, those folks usually cut and peeled and sliced with it.

What is 5160's major attribute or claim to fame? Edge retention? No sir, its toughness.

What exactly do you do with your 110 that needs a truck leaf spring steel, over a more suitable steel that caters to the 110's main purpose i.e cutting, slicing, peeling, skinning.

Couple of things....

In the US, it's hard to point to a "hard use folder" prior to the Buck 110. One can obviously point to the large slip joint folding hunters (Ulster, Schrade and many others made them in the late 1800s and early 1900s) and one can dig around and point to the so-called pocket axes (aka elephant toe nail) slip joint knives that were made to be battoned through rope and used on ships and on early oil rigs. But really, the idea of a locking "hard use folder" didn't really exist until the Buck 110 popularized it. I'm in my mid-50s and am on the young side of the Buck 110 wave. Bunches of guys older than me, many of them Vietnam vets, who used the 110 to do ridiculous things long before Spyderco or any of the modern knives even existed. Head over to the Buck forum and I'll introduce you to a commercial fisherman who uses the 110 on commercial boats and an industrial electrician who uses an old 112 to scrape down electrical lines.

I fundamentally don't disagree with you. Modern construction techniques and improvements in lock design have long since surpassed the 110 and only flaming 110 zealots would argue that point. But the 110 was the toughest knife on the block for a considerable period of time and capable of standing up to a good amount of abuse, albeit with some play developing along the way (and probably losing the tip!).

In terms of slicing, no. Like most deep hollow grind knives, the Bucks are good at cutting but not so good at slicing. Somebody posted a picture of an apple. Pretty much any full flat ground knife will out-do the 110 when it comes time to slice it.

What the 110 was originally designed for and what it remains still quite good at is hunting. The hollow grind works wonderfully for cutting meat and while many people prefer a drop point for skinning and gutting, the clip point remains popular too.

I agree that the 5160 blades confuse me. Bucks normal production steels of 420HC and S30V both make perfect sense too me.

 

[shinyedges]

The buck 110 hard use folder thing has been hashed before,

Yes it has withstood the test of time an many guys got many years of use out of them, I agree.

Has modern folders surpassed them in what they will withstand as far as non knife tasks, misuse, and overall durability.. yes absolutely.

Couple of things....

In the US, it's hard to point to a "hard use folder" prior to the Buck 110. One can obviously point to the large slip joint folding hunters (Ulster, Schrade and many others made them in the late 1800s and early 1900s) and one can dig around and point to the so-called pocket axes (aka elephant toe nail) slip joint knives that were made to be battoned through rope and used on ships and on early oil rigs. But really, the idea of a locking "hard use folder" didn't really exist until the Buck 110 popularized it. I'm in my mid-50s and am on the young side of the Buck 110 wave. Bunches of guys older than me, many of them Vietnam vets, who used the 110 to do ridiculous things long before Spyderco or any of the modern knives even existed. Head over to the Buck forum and I'll introduce you to a commercial fisherman who uses the 110 on commercial boats and an industrial electrician who uses an old 112 to scrape down electrical lines.

I fundamentally don't disagree with you. Modern construction techniques and improvements in lock design have long since surpassed the 110 and only flaming 110 zealots would argue that point. But the 110 was the toughest knife on the block for a considerable period of time and capable of standing up to a good amount of abuse, albeit with some play developing along the way (and probably losing the tip!).

In terms of slicing, no. Like most deep hollow grind knives, the Bucks are good at cutting but not so good at slicing. Somebody posted a picture of an apple. Pretty much any full flat ground knife will out-do the 110 when it comes time to slice it.

What the 110 was originally designed for and what it remains still quite good at is hunting. The hollow grind works wonderfully for cutting meat and while many people prefer a drop point for skinning and gutting, the clip point remains popular too.

I agree that the 5160 blades confuse me. Bucks normal production steels of 420HC and S30V both make perfect sense too me.

 

[SadSappySucker]

I for one am just happy Buck is using carbon. I love my 110 and I love a good patina. For what it's worth, we are getting a great folder with alternate handles, an alternate steel heat treated by the best in the business, in a pretty limited run for a very low up charge. I think this knife is an amazing value. Are there any better carbon steels for this model? Surely, but unless you are willing to convince and fund buck to make a run in something else, than who cares? Many people have asked for a carbon steel 110 for quite a while, and they finally gave it to us.

 

[mael333ca]

I for one am just happy Buck is using carbon. I love my 110 and I love a good patina. For what it's worth, we are getting a great folder with alternate handles, an alternate steel heat treated by the best in the business, in a pretty limited run for a very low up charge. I think this knife is an amazing value. Are there any better carbon steels for this model? Surely, but unless you are willing to convince and fund buck to make a run in something else, than who cares? Many people have asked for a carbon steel 110 for quite a while, and they finally gave it to us.

it is cool a folder with a carbon steel, the only real down side, is that your edge been so fine, could dull real quick by corrosion in some circumstances. yet I live in a moderately humid area and have had no such issue, except that one time, but I was too careless.

 

[Duane Sanders]

Your snarky responses are not really furthering the discussion.

this is surely what it feels like in this thread.

That is a snarky response right there.

If I have given any snarky responses please point them out so they can be put in the trash can and not used again. I'm not going to go back and try to figure out what was seen as snarky. In today's world everything a person says will be offensive or snarky to a lot of people.

 

[shinyedges]

I think what rev was talking about is how you avoid direct questions and answer with a response that does NOT pertain to the question asked. I could go back and reference every time you do this but it wouldn't do anything.

Why don't you take rev devils advice and answer the questions.

That is a snarky response right there.

If I have given any snarky responses please point them out so they can be put in the trash can and not used again. I'm not going to go back and try to figure out what was seen as snarky. In today's world everything a person says will be offensive or snarky to a lot of people.

 

[Eric@DLT]

Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong, but the knives in question here, the 110 (and also the 119, btw) in 5160 are a special run for an on-line retailer, no?

That is to say, I believe that Buck is *not* offering these knives as a part of their regular product line and is simply fulfilling an order from a retailer who thinks they can sell that number of units of this variant. Buck, like many large manufacturers, sells special runs of their products to retailers. What's available to the retailer is influenced by what the manufacturer has or is willing to work with. For example, Buck did a run of knives for Cabelas with 12C27 and that didn't cause a forum-storm on the comparative virtues of 12C27 vs 420HC.

It's well understood in the knife collecting world that there are collectors of brands and models who are committed to owning as many variants of that brand or model that they can find. For collectors of this kind, the actual performance is not the primary driver. They're more interested in the aesthetics and the history of the variants. That's not my cup of tea. Strikes me as the knife equivalent of stamp or butterfly collecting, but I'm not about to dis another person's hobby. Honestly. There are people who are going to buy these knives and who will love owning them for no other reason as it adds variety to their 110 or 119 collections and that really should be OK with people.

As for Buck's choice or using 5160 vs other alternatives like 52100 or whatever, that ship sailed when they choose 5160 for the Ron Hood collaborations on the Hoodlum and Punk, right?

Personally, as a person who would consider using the 110 for more EDC type uses, my issue isn't with Buck's steels but their grind. I would much rather see them add full flat grinds as an option. Infinitely more interesting to me.

It is a special run for an online retailer. We had Buck make us a 110 is s30v. We felt there was a market for it, this retailer thinks there is a market for a 5160. If I wanted a more traditional folding knife I would consider the 110 with our drop point blade, the clip point on most 110s is a turn off for me.

 

[RevDevil]

That is a snarky response right there.

If I have given any snarky responses please point them out so they can be put in the trash can and not used again. I'm not going to go back and try to figure out what was seen as snarky. In today's world everything a person says will be offensive or snarky to a lot of people.

I did not say you were the only one, but reading through this thread it seems no one is really interested in taking the high road here. You did report a post though, so when I came to see what was really happening, I saw your replies in their context. Not much can be done aside from closing the thread before the real insults start happening. I'm not going to point out your mistakes, as a grown man you should be able to figure that out.

 

[pinnah]

It is a special run for an online retailer. We had Buck make us a 110 is s30v. We felt there was a market for it, this retailer thinks there is a market for a 5160. If I wanted a more traditional folding knife I would consider the 110 with our drop point blade, the clip point on most 110s is a turn off for me.

Eric,

I think your drop-point 110 is stellar looking. I've been a long standing proponent of more drop point options from Buck so was thrilled in seeing it.

My thinking has evolved over the past few years though. I got my first 110 in the 70s and have a ton of hollow grind knives but over the past 10 years or so, have been using more and more flat (or convex) blades: Schrade-Walden H-15, Opinel, Schrade 51OT, Opinel, Case Sodbuster, Opinl, Schrade 5OT, another Opinel, Ulster BSA knife (since I was 8) and I think a few more Opinels.

I've also figured out how to flatten hollow grind knives and I can rally my gumption to flatten an easy to work with 420HC 110, and have and it slices so much better now because of it but I just can't gather up the gumption to flatten that S30V drop point on your otherwise beautiful 110, which is why I passed on it.

I also, frankly, can't pocket carry the 110 and if I can't pocket carry it, the 110 becomes under utilized for me.

If you guys at DLT ever decide to do another short run of 110s, IMO the knife you should compete against is the GEC 42 Missouri Trader. It's thinner. Somewhere in the Case Sodbuster or Buck 500 thin range. Thin enough that pocket carry is a realistic possibility. And it's flat ground. Flat as in full flat, not flat like the recent BCCI knife which is more like a high scandi.

Here's a thought for you.... See if you could work out a Buck/Bark River collaboration. Use a thinned down Buck 110 frame and Buck's S30V and give Bark River full control over the blade shape and most importantly, the grind.

Now that would be an ultimate 110.

 

[Duane Sanders]

Couple of things....

In the US, it's hard to point to a "hard use folder" prior to the Buck 110.***One can obviously point to the large slip joint folding hunters (Ulster, Schrade and many others made them**in the late 1800s and early 1900s) and one can dig around and point to the so-called pocket axes (aka elephant toe nail) slip joint knives that were made to be battoned through rope and used on ships and on early oil rigs.**But really, the idea of a locking "hard use folder" didn't really exist until the Buck 110 popularized it.***I'm in my mid-50s and am on the young side of the Buck 110 wave.**Bunches of guys older than me, many of them Vietnam vets, who used the 110 to do ridiculous things long before Spyderco or any of the modern knives even existed.****Head over to the Buck forum and I'll introduce you to a commercial fisherman who uses the 110 on commercial boats and an industrial electrician who uses an old 112 to scrape down electrical lines.**

I fundamentally don't disagree with you.**Modern construction techniques and improvements in lock design have long since surpassed the 110 and only flaming 110 zealots would argue that point.**But the 110 was the toughest knife on the block for a considerable period of time and capable of standing up to a good amount of abuse, albeit with some play developing along the way (and probably losing the tip!).

In terms of slicing, no.****Like most deep hollow grind knives, the Bucks are good at cutting but not so good at slicing.**Somebody posted a picture of an apple.**Pretty much any full flat ground knife will out-do the 110 when it comes time to slice it.***

What the 110 was originally designed for and what it remains still quite good at is hunting.**The hollow grind works wonderfully for cutting meat and while many people prefer a drop point for skinning and gutting, the clip point remains popular too.

I agree that the 5160 blades confuse me.**Bucks normal production steels of 420HC and S30V both make perfect sense too me.

He said he's in school so I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess he is not old enough to even buy beer yet. I don't know how old you are but when I was growing up the Buck 110 was a second place knife compared to the Schrade folders. The buck was more of a kit knife. It had a blade but was nowhere near sharp and the steel they used was hard and regular stones took forever to finish the blade grind and sharpen it. The carbon Schrades were much more desirable. They use better steel today with the edge 2K grind now and the Schrade is Chinese made.

We can not blame him for not being around to see what the 110 and similar knives have been through. If anything in today's world there is less demand for very tough folders and even though they may be structurally stronger in design you will see fewer being used as hard as knives were used back when hard labor was a normal thing at work and at home. He doesn't understand how a tough steel that is used to pry out nails from wood, heavy staples from wood, or other jobs where the thin edge will come in contact with hard damaging materials is needed for some. It will not be what steel holds an edge the longest cutting cardboard or rope. For me and many people like me it's about what steel will protect the integrity of the edge itself so when it is sharpened again you have an edge without chips, breaks or cracks. Such characteristics can not be displayed over the Internet.

Tough isn't about flexing the knife in a pinned together design. The toughness is needed to keep the edge in tact so you have one tomorrow after you maintain your work tools. Edge retention will always have a trade off and that is usually damaged edges by chipping, cracking or breaking.

I'd rather have a dull in tact edge at the end of the day than a chipped, cracked or broken one.

 

[shinyedges]

Or I'm a recently departed army veteran atteng college for a criminal Justice degree. Looks like once again your wrong.

You must be getting used to it, by now. Being wrong that is.

He said he's in school so I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess he is not old enough to even buy beer yet. I don't know how old you are but when I was growing up the Buck 110 was a second place knife compared to the Schrade folders. The buck was more of a kit knife. It had a blade but was nowhere near sharp and the steel they used was hard and regular stones took forever to finish the blade grind and sharpen it. The carbon Schrades were much more desirable. They use better steel today with the edge 2K grind now and the Schrade is Chinese made.

We can not blame him for not being around to see what the 110 and similar knives have been through. If anything in today's world there is less demand for very tough folders and even though they may be structurally stronger in design you will see fewer being used as hard as knives were used back when hard labor was a normal thing at work and at home. He doesn't understand how a tough steel that is used to pry out nails from wood, heavy staples from wood, or other jobs where the thin edge will come in contact with hard damaging materials is needed for some. It will not be what steel holds an edge the longest cutting cardboard or rope. For me and many people like me it's about what steel will protect the integrity of the edge itself so when it is sharpened again you have an edge without chips, breaks or cracks. Such characteristics can not be displayed over the Internet.

Tough isn't about flexing the knife in a pinned together design. The toughness is needed to keep the edge in tact so you have one tomorrow after you maintain your work tools. Edge retention will always have a trade off and that is usually damaged edges by chipping, cracking or breaking.

I'd rather have a dull in tact edge at the end of the day than a chipped, cracked or broken one.

 

[Duane Sanders]

Or I'm a recently departed army veteran atteng college for a criminal Justice degree. Looks like once again your wrong.

You must be getting used to it, by now. Being wrong that is.

I am a recently retired (few years ago) army vet. I sure hope you were Airborne

Anyways. When I was a kid you had a buck or a schrade in a leather pouch, there were no nylon pouches back then and a stockman of some brand. Your fixed blade was one of them Kabar style knives with leather handles. Choices were simple back then. Stockman for light work, heavy folder in pouch for tougher jobs and a still stuck on WWII style designs fixed blades for real work. Nothing like Spyderco back in them days. No super steels by today's standards.

The steels you mentioned might hold an edge better but I've learned over time better edge retention often means you give up toughness. When I say things like 5160 is better because it is tougher I am not talking about bending prying and twisting. I am talking about an intact edge at the end of the day free from chips cracks or breaks, and trust me I've experienced them issues. A dull but intact edge can be sharpened. A chipped or broken edge can not. You can sharpen it but you still have the chips unless you work them out removing a large amount of steel.

Most people who buy knives to use want the same kind of edge. They know how to sharpen and 5160 sharpens to a smooth polished edge quick and you can be hard on it all day without damaging it. Yes it will get dull, and all knives get dull. The difference is a tougher steel still has a no damage edge to sharpen.

It was like that before pocket clip knives and super steels. It still stands true today. If your not being hard on your edge then by all means get a high edge retaining steel. It will be best for you. I need a knife with a edge that will be there to sharpen when the day is over

Thin edge super steels may be today's trend but the old system works great. I recently upgraded from 119s and 110s to a Reaper and a Vantage. The stockman is still a PAL cutlery grandpa carried in Korea.

I don't buy knives just because so I won't be buying a 110 in 5160. I don't lust after knives like that. If I get one as a gift like most the knives I have then I will use it. I kind of like the more modern vantage and how it carries over a pouched 110.

 

[pinnah]

He said he's in school so I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess he is not old enough to even buy beer yet. I don't know how old you are but when I was growing up the Buck 110 was a second place knife compared to the Schrade folders. The buck was more of a kit knife. It had a blade but was nowhere near sharp and the steel they used was hard and regular stones took forever to finish the blade grind and sharpen it. The carbon Schrades were much more desirable. They use better steel today with the edge 2K grind now and the Schrade is Chinese made.

We can not blame him for not being around to see what the 110 and similar knives have been through. If anything in today's world there is less demand for very tough folders and even though they may be structurally stronger in design you will see fewer being used as hard as knives were used back when hard labor was a normal thing at work and at home. He doesn't understand how a tough steel that is used to pry out nails from wood, heavy staples from wood, or other jobs where the thin edge will come in contact with hard damaging materials is needed for some. It will not be what steel holds an edge the longest cutting cardboard or rope. For me and many people like me it's about what steel will protect the integrity of the edge itself so when it is sharpened again you have an edge without chips, breaks or cracks. Such characteristics can not be displayed over the Internet.

Tough isn't about flexing the knife in a pinned together design. The toughness is needed to keep the edge in tact so you have one tomorrow after you maintain your work tools. Edge retention will always have a trade off and that is usually damaged edges by chipping, cracking or breaking.

I'd rather have a dull in tact edge at the end of the day than a chipped, cracked or broken one.

Duane,

Two things...

From a standpoint of utility, I don't understand the use of either 5160 or 52100 in either the 110 or 119. They're both hunting knives and really should be thought of as hunting knives first and foremost.

Second, the complaints about Bucks or Schrades or any traditional pinned pivot lockback developing lateral and vertical play are well founded. I've use more Buck and Schrade lockbacks than I can count and hard cutting use will croak 'em in about a year's time. Yes... I could send a knife back to Buck but that get's old. I just keep my lock backs for collecting or for hunting these days. Or for easy EDC use.

Just for old time's sake, here's a vintage Schrade and vintage Buck 110 and 500. The latter 2 in (harder to sharpen) 440C.
Big folders by Pinnah, on Flickr

And just for the point of honesty and stirring the pot... the toughest knife in the lot is that Opinel #9. I hammer on those Opinels like nobody's business and the never, ever develop blade play. And they out cut the Bucks for just about every application other than hunting.

As for toughness in the blade steels... I personally find Buck's current 420HC, Opinel's 12C27 and pretty much anybody's 1095 to be plenty tough for a folder.

 

[shinyedges]

Duane, I sincerely want you to give some of these newer steels a try.

3v for example will blow your mind if your used to regular carbon steels. It is tougher than 5160 even at higher hardness like 58rc , has superior edge stability, that means when 5160 rolls there is a very high chance 3v will show no damage or wear at all. And it has an edge retention that you'll simply be shocked at if your comparing it with steel like 10xx or any of the leaf spring steels.

I'm not blowing smoke up your ass, advanced metallurgy is amazing. Give it a shot.

I'm at school again today but I'll give you a more complete reply later.

I am a recently retired (few years ago) army vet. I sure hope you were Airborne

Anyways. When I was a kid you had a buck or a schrade in a leather pouch, there were no nylon pouches back then and a stockman of some brand. Your fixed blade was one of them Kabar style knives with leather handles. Choices were simple back then. Stockman for light work, heavy folder in pouch for tougher jobs and a still stuck on WWII style designs fixed blades for real work. Nothing like Spyderco back in them days. No super steels by today's standards.

The steels you mentioned might hold an edge better but I've learned over time better edge retention often means you give up toughness. When I say things like 5160 is better because it is tougher I am not talking about bending prying and twisting. I am talking about an intact edge at the end of the day free from chips cracks or breaks, and trust me I've experienced them issues. A dull but intact edge can be sharpened. A chipped or broken edge can not. You can sharpen it but you still have the chips unless you work them out removing a large amount of steel.

Most people who buy knives to use want the same kind of edge. They know how to sharpen and 5160 sharpens to a smooth polished edge quick and you can be hard on it all day without damaging it. Yes it will get dull, and all knives get dull. The difference is a tougher steel still has a no damage edge to sharpen.

It was like that before pocket clip knives and super steels. It still stands true today. If your not being hard on your edge then by all means get a high edge retaining steel. It will be best for you. I need a knife with a edge that will be there to sharpen when the day is over

Thin edge super steels may be today's trend but the old system works great. I recently upgraded from 119s and 110s to a Reaper and a Vantage. The stockman is still a PAL cutlery grandpa carried in Korea.

I don't buy knives just because so I won't be buying a 110 in 5160. I don't lust after knives like that. If I get one as a gift like most the knives I have then I will use it. I kind of like the more modern vantage and how it carries over a pouched 110.

 

[Duane Sanders]

Duane, I sincerely want you to give some of these newer steels a try.

3v for example will blow your mind if your used to regular carbon steels. It is tougher than 5160 even at higher hardness like 58rc , has superior edge stability, that means when 5160 rolls there is a very high chance 3v will show no damage or wear at all. And it has an edge retention that you'll simply be shocked at if your comparing it with steel like 10xx or any of the leaf spring steels.

I'm not blowing smoke up your ass, advanced metallurgy is amazing. Give it a shot.

I'm at school again today but I'll give you a more complete reply later.

I will take your advice under advisement. When you get back from class I would love to hear about some manufacturers with a solid reputation with 3V. I would have no clue who does and does not make a good one. I bet you know more about 3V than I do so I will be all ears when you get back.

Even though I don't trust google I might see what she has to say about 5160 vs 3V. I will have to see if I will need to break out the waders.

 

[shinyedges]

Definitely research it, you will like what you find.

I'm a knife nut , so steels came with the territory. I'm always reading and learning more about them. Its a double day so I won't get out till 9 but I'll pop on here and tell you more when I'm out.

Try the search function on bladeforums as well many hours of reading on here lol

I will take your advice under advisement. When you get back from class I would love to hear about some manufacturers with a solid reputation with 3V. I would have no clue who does and does not make a good one. I bet you know more about 3V than I do so I will be all ears when you get back.

Even though I don't trust google I might see what she has to say about 5160 vs 3V. I will have to see if I will need to break out the waders.