Buck 110s are icons for a reason - great looks, decent users, solid warranty, decent value. But yeah, they're heavy, and have some weaknesses - the tip, lock, and pivot can develop issues. If you carry one, that's cool, but I would think it's for the looks and reputation rather than for its great utility, since there's obviously better choices for that.
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Buck 110 vs Modern Folders
- Thread starter raja
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i've carried a 110 on and off for some time. i put a benchmade clip on mine and it carries quite nicely. as to the utility, it's one of the most all-around useful blades i own. i'd rank it right up there with my paramilitary and my 710 for being a great utility blade. the BG-42 is no slouch and i don't mind the weight. others do and i can see that being a big turn-off. it is not rock solid and does have some side to side wiggle but so does my para. the lock has never failed me and i do not suspect it ever will. i wouldn't pry open a paint can with this knife but i usually use a screwdriver for that anyway
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Threaded pivots are all hollow tubes? I don't think that's true and in my experience, threaded pivots hold up much better than, smaller pins peened into metal bolsters.
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A lot of people still carry a Buck 110, and it's one of the few USA made knives that you could easily find at local stores.
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I brought my first 110 in 82. I saw it in a bike breakers window in Reading. The owner had been to the USA and had brought two back. In 82 the only place you saw 110s was in Easy Rider Magazine and no one shipped them to England so they were rare. I went to Texas in 85 and stayed with bike orientated buddies. I took the 110 with me. One of the guys named Buffalo a Nam Vet RIP. showed me how to tap the back spring with a hammer and screwdriver to make it open really quickly one handed. He then showed me how to sharpen it really well. I had that knife probably 15 years and left it by mistake in a hire van. Of course when I asked the van company for it back, no one had seen it. All this time later I still mourn the loss of that knife. It was the first real quality knife I had owned. Back then we had Sheffield crap made production knives.
They changed the law in the UK so we can't carry lockers in public so having one is pointless as I used it a lot and still would. It was and still is a great knife. As for the guy who found it and didn't hand it in. Well It was a sharp booger and I hope every time he cut himself it hurt like crazy bled for a week and went septic. I'll accept the karma on that one willingly.
They changed the law in the UK so we can't carry lockers in public so having one is pointless as I used it a lot and still would. It was and still is a great knife. As for the guy who found it and didn't hand it in. Well It was a sharp booger and I hope every time he cut himself it hurt like crazy bled for a week and went septic. I'll accept the karma on that one willingly.
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The old ones bring back nostalgia for folks but the newer ones in BG42 and later CPM 154 or S30V sure are better cutters. I still have a couple BG42 custom shop knives and they are things of beauty. The CPM 154 110's made for Cabellas maybe came very sharp. 440C is probably the only steel I really dislike and that came from trying to sharpen too thick 70's knives with Arkansas medium stones. They were fine for finish work but not much for thinning down too thick edges. The new Buck knives don't need thinning anymore though.
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Thinking about this yes most threaded pivots, do have two threaded sections and part of the female section indeed is hollow. But, it's filled with the male section, so it's not really hollow in use. Plus the amount of tension this design can use to pull the knife together is far greater than peening a simple threadless pin into a metal bolster. That is where the advantage is, either design is certainly strong enough, as far as just snapping into. After all nobody complained about the pin breaking into, just loosening up.
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I'm assuming two things:
1. You got a bad knife. I've had knives with the same problems. I threw them in the trash.
2. The 110 just isn't a knife you care for. We all have those.
I don't think it is a big deal when someone else likes a knife I don't care for and I don't expect to understand why they like it, but I respect their right to do so. One of the great things about the knife community is that there is such a broad range of tastes.
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It's not a big deal if people like the 110 to me, the question was 110 vs. modern folders. I merely state my opinion, as do the ones that think they are as desirable as modern folders.
Sounds good to me. When I typed my first post in this thread, I was carrying a small Sebenza 21. Today I'm trying to decide between a Hogue EX01 and a Spyderco PM2, so I like to think that I'm not too heavily biased toward the old Buck. I hope you enjoy whatever you are carrying.
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Old school vs. new school.
I bet he cooks in cast iron too!
I bet he cooks in cast iron too!
There is a special edition, at least $255 as I remember, with a pocket clip, thumb studs, G10, and S30V.
This knife has stood the test of time. It is tough and I have never seen the lock to fail and working on my father's farm, we saw many "modern" folders that would not take the work. It is still a great knife, albeit a bit heavy. This was the knife that convinced hunters they did not need a fixed blade. My first 110 (1966 or so) is still has tight as the day it was given to me. My other one (1980 or so) is also still tight, but very dinged up from use on the farm.
This knife has stood the test of time. It is tough and I have never seen the lock to fail and working on my father's farm, we saw many "modern" folders that would not take the work. It is still a great knife, albeit a bit heavy. This was the knife that convinced hunters they did not need a fixed blade. My first 110 (1966 or so) is still has tight as the day it was given to me. My other one (1980 or so) is also still tight, but very dinged up from use on the farm.
IMO, the 110 works fine, but is just too big and heavy. On a lesser note, I bought myself a Buck 55 ( mini version of the 110) and I am in love with it. Carries easily in the pocket and looks great. When I was younger it seems everyone had a cheap, small, chinese made ,wood handled, brass bolstered buck lockback knockoff. Totally generic and uber common. After owning a quality version of this knife (Buck 55), I have to say that it is actually a great design for a pocketknife. Pure and simple utility. Anyone who likes the buck 110 should check out the 55. It is slowly becoming one of my favorite edc knives.
Isn't this the classic way to screw up your knife? Especially one with a boat anchor handle? The fact that your pivot loosened does not surprise me one bit. The knife wasn't designed to be opened this way, so by all means, look elsewhere.
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It loosened within fifteen minutes, on a short hike from cutting thin green thorns off a hiking trail. I never said I opened it like that, in fact my post was an answer to how to open a 110 one handed. You are jumping to conclusions. But, if that would damage a knife it's pretty delicate.
I've never had one loosen on me from my normal use(farming, hiking, hunting). I did buy one at a flea market for $5.00 that had been abused and was loose. You could tell the brass had been used for a hammer and the blade had been sharpened down and reshaped to a drop point but it had some nice scales on it so I bought it.
I had read about "the phone book method" of fixing a loose pivot and it worked. Sandwich the pivot area between the pages of a phone book so you don't damage the knife and whack the cover with a hammer. Tightened the pivot right up and I used it around the garden all summer and it hasn't loosened at all.
I had read about "the phone book method" of fixing a loose pivot and it worked. Sandwich the pivot area between the pages of a phone book so you don't damage the knife and whack the cover with a hammer. Tightened the pivot right up and I used it around the garden all summer and it hasn't loosened at all.
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I have tried a 110 twice. I bought a standard model at Walmart probably 6 or 7 years ago and didn't care for the steel, so I gave it away. Later, I ordered a custom 110 in BG-42 and Koa with silver hardware. It was gorgeous, but it was heavy, clumsy to operate and I didn't like belt carry, so I sold it here. The buyer was very happy with it.
I'm young and grew up on smooth one handed opening and closing, lightweight materials, slicer grinds and such. Something like a 110 feels archaic, to me.
I'm young and grew up on smooth one handed opening and closing, lightweight materials, slicer grinds and such. Something like a 110 feels archaic, to me.
Locking knives like Buck's 110 where the forerunners to all modern self locking folding knife designs.
They are as functional today as when they where introduced.
The simple design is still favored by many, especially those who value ease of sharpening over ultimate edge retention when headed out into the wilderness.
Big Mike
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