Buck 119 special

A friend of mine found a 119 without its sheath, lying in the desert near Tucson. I was visiting him and sharpening his kitchen knives when I saw it on a shelf, butter knife dull. I spent a long time with my travel kit bringing back the edge. At the end of the visit he gave it to me. I bought a Buck OEM sheath for it. This is a beautiful, (and affordable) classic. Sadly, I haven't ever really used it, but I love the look and feel of it.

For some reason, many of Buck's designs are beautiful to my eye. This is the only Buck knife I own. The 110 is a righteous classic, but I prefer lighter folders that clip to the pocket and open one handed. The lovely fixed blades I just can't justify buying, but they are gorgeous.
 
I had both the Buck 119 and the Ka-Bar and found I liked the Buck better and got rid of the Ka-Bar. However, it was an older knife.
 
Also interesting, and I may be mistaken, but Buck is bringing out a new model that uses, what appeared to me at the time, a 119 blade and stacked leather handles like the Ka-Bar.
 
Yes, Buck brought this out recently. They did a limited edition run on those back in 2008 as well. DM
 
great knife...well made with good usable steel, and one thing I always liked about the 119 is unlike alotta my other camp/hunting knives, I don't feel the need to have a sheath made for it so I can discard the factory one. its an easy knife to recommend for someone who isn't a knife nut, just send em to the local wally world with a couple 20s.
 
hiwa said:
It's a good camp knife , and been around a long time. I modded mine by taking the top guard off and losing the clip point. It's widely available, so I could always get a stock one again. Almost looks like the blade shape of the Benchmade Contego ( reverse tanto type)

Click to expand...

Very nice. A keeper for sure.
 
One of my favorite knives is the Buck 119 Special. I've got several dozen knives both fixed and folding but this is the one. YMMV. tom. :thumbup:
 
I got mine when I was eleven years old to take camping at Franconia Notch NH. It served me well on that trip and countless times since. It's been sharpened a few times in the twenty three years since but it holds its edge quite well. The handle while covered in scratches is essentially the same as when I bought the knife. There is no rust or corrosion on the blade and the sheath is still in great shape. I actually just reconditioned the leather with some WESCO bee oil. This knife has survived through the tough kid and teen years, where proper usage is a broader realm lol. It's essentially the same as when I bought it. It was a great knife then and It still is now. You can add a ton of fancy upgrades in materials and steels but when all's said and done a knife is a knife and a good one stands the test of time. The special is such a knife
 
Can someone list the steels Buck has used for the 119 or point me towards a source?

I have a Buck 119 I bought on 1981 and wonder what kind of steel it is.
 
David Martin nice work on the stacked leather handle! how was it to take the handle apart? I want to buy a second one just to customize a little bit but I am not sure how the handle comes apart, although I haven't really looked at it yet.
 
explorer, Your model would be 425M steel as that was the year Buck switched to that steel.(State the spacers) The steels for a 119: from 1961-80 were of 440C, 81-91 were of 425M, phasing in 420HC in 92 to present. Limited Edition 119's can be found with many different steels: ATS-34, BG-42, S30V, Titanium & Sandvic steel. There maybe one other as this is not a complete list but is an example for our topic here. DM
 
backwoods, Thanks. They are easy to do and it will take you a weekend with hand tools. Everything is held on by one pin in the pommel. Punch that out and everything slides off the hidden tang. DON'T damage the pommel and your in good shape. So, hold it in a vise and work careful. For the rest, you can email me when you get ready to do it and I'll walk you thru it. DM
 
Great thanks for the quick instruction!

155440, four years ago I bought my girlfriend the smooth bone handle model. She refused to use it until this past August when we got married and she cut the cake with it! I also want the Wood handle model for the collection
 
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