Buck 119 vs 120

Blade on the 119 is 6" and the 120 is 7 1/2". Design is the same just longer blade. Blade thickness is around .175 or almost 3/16 of an inch.
 
I have received my new Buck 120 Today!!!! WOW i Love this Knife more than my 119....the General Rules!
 
Ah, but there are early 120's and late 120's...with subtle differences between the two... :D

There may be more than two types...I've only owned two... :rolleyes:
 
chickentrax, can you explain more? Both mine are older 120's bought on that site most of us get our knives. I haven't seen a new one except on line ads. I know the steel has changed and the ProLine is only at Cabelas. Blade shape and size seems to be the same.
 
Carcajou said:
Mine is a 2007 Buck Pro-Line;)
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420 steel...Then you'll also want an early 120...with the 425 steel... :)

And the slightly different top curve to the point...and the extra spacers... :D

They're like potato chips... :p

Goose has an early and a later...Maybe he'll wake up and post a pic showing them together... ;)
 
119 = Fixed blade sheath knife, used by many, including 'Survivorman' Les Stroud.
120 = Short sword - see 'Troy', etc

Okay, not that bad... I had to have one - the Cabela's 'Pro-Line' version. Neat. Then, I had to have the BR version - like my 102, 103, 105, & 119... WOW! Of course, then I declared my set of BR's as 'Art'... and bought a regular 119 to go with the 120 as users. The 119 gets much more use, especially in the kitchen - great knife for normal sized meats, fish, and veggies. Wanna filet a 'great white' or a watermelon, 120-time!

Stainz
 
I beleive that the 60s & 70s knives used 440c switch to 425 in 1982 and to 420HC in 1992. In an article by Joe Talmadge on the A.G. Russell site, 440c is by far the best on these three knife steels only being outperformed by ATS-34. He also said that the 425 was about the same as 440A which is he says is "just good enough for everyday use, especially with a good heat treat" and 440A is the most rust resistant in the 440 group.

His comments on 420 (which may not apply to 420HC?): "420 is Lower carbon content (Less than.5%) than the 440 series makes this steel extremely soft, and it doesn't hold an edge well. It is used often for diving knives, as it is extremely stain resistant. Also used often for very inexpensive knives. Outside salt water use, it is too soft to be a good choice for a utility knife."

It appears that Buck has steadily moved toward lower cost and quality steel as they have had to compete with low cost imports.

Grab a 70s era knife in good condition and you will be pleased I think.
 
Buck 420HC and regular 420 are not the same thing, apples and oranges really.
Bucks 420HC is better than regular 420 and as good as if not better than most 440C.
I own 6 Bucks in 420HC, they are great knives.
Sometimes people get caught up in the steel "name game".
Its a trendy thing thats often more about fashion than function.

For example a few years ago ats-34 was "THE" steel.
Nowadays some people think its old hat and "not good enough".
I'm sure 10 years from now Bg-42, 154 CM, (insert latest wonder steel here) will be where ATS-34 is now.
So people should try Bucks 420HC before they dismiss it because its 420 series.
The proof is in the pudding, lol.

Sometimes something just works, why discount it or discard it?
For that matter i still love Carbon steel!
:)
 
From what I understand (take that for what its worth), ATS-34 is a Hitachi copy of 154CM which was/is American and developed specifically for making a better SS blade. However, 154CM production had quality issues and ATS-34 became the "IT" knife steel. Fast forward and now BG-42 and Crucible's CMP-S30V seem to hold the title. Crucible seems to also recently introduced CMP154 which is suposed to be better than ATS-34/154CM and easier to finish than BG-42 & S30V.

My earlier post was that for a Buck knife you had 3 steel choices and in my opinion 440c was the better of the three.

It may be the difference between 440c & 420HC is like the choice between a F150 & Chevy 1500...some small difference in price and features but basic functionality is the same.

BTW, I like my 420HC's very much.
 
Flatlander1963 said:
From what I understand (take that for what its worth), ATS-34 is a Hitachi copy of 154CM which was/is American and developed specifically for making a better SS blade. However, 154CM production had quality issues and ATS-34 became the "IT" knife steel. Fast forward and now BG-42 and Crucible's CMP-S30V seem to hold the title. Crucible seems to also recently introduced CMP154 which is supposed to be better than ATS-34/154CM and easier to finish than BG-42 & S30V.
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That pretty much sums up my understanding of these steels, especially the ability to finish CPM154. If you look at my mini review of the CPM154 Alpha Dorado, you will see one of the nicest 'mirror' finishes I have ever seen.

I think that your pickup truck analogy was a good one, Flatlander. In the final analysis, it comes down to what you use the knife for and how you use it. As an example, in my day to day use, I have found that S30V looses it's shaving edge relatively quickly and I find myself 'touching up' the edge with about the same frequency as my 120HC blades. It would probably be a whole other story with prolonged use (no touch up), but for my day to day use, S30V and 120HC blades are very similar. Bottom line, YMMV.
 
Flatlander1963 said:
From what I understand (take that for what its worth), ATS-34 is a Hitachi copy of 154CM which was/is American and developed specifically for making a better SS blade. However, 154CM production had quality issues and ATS-34 became the "IT" knife steel. Fast forward and now BG-42 and Crucible's CMP-S30V seem to hold the title. Crucible seems to also recently introduced CMP154 which is suposed to be better than ATS-34/154CM and easier to finish than BG-42 & S30V.

My earlier post was that for a Buck knife you had 3 steel choices and in my opinion 440c was the better of the three.

It may be the difference between 440c & 420HC is like the choice between a F150 & Chevy 1500...some small difference in price and features but basic functionality is the same.

BTW, I like my 420HC's very much.
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Thats cool! I didn't mean to seem argumentative or anything.

I just don't want any noobies accidentally passing on buying a Buck because they heard 420HC might not be good.
I really like 420HC but i like the higher end steels as well.
I'm getting a Buck 110 custom sometime this year, but that as much for the nickle bolsters and Sambar Stag as it is for the BG-42, lol.

I collect SAKs too and i've seen quite a few threads and posts where people are avoiding buying or reluctant to buy a SAK because it doesn't have the "right" steel.
The steel in Vic SAK's works great and is often as unappreciated as 420HC.
You won't go wrong with a Victorinox or a Buck.
 
APF,

Thanks for the reply. I have a 277 in 154CM and I love it. For my knife needs, I don't think anything would work any better for me than that class of steel. That said, I have not test driven BG-42 yet. I know that I'm prone to "got to have that" on occasion and suspect I'll acquire something in that steel in the future.
 
My most over-rated, and under-used, knife is a BM Grip in 440C. My worst/user Buck 110 is still in fine shape - and can still shave arm hairs - after more use this year alone than that BM Grip has ever gotten. As my Buck users are 420HC, I can only surmise that it holds an edge 'better' than 440C. Of course, we know the Paul Bos heat treating is great - maybe my BM just got a poor heat treating. I like the 'Axis-Lok', of course, although all of my 110 lockbacks have been fine, too. Still, a very poor showing here for my only BM folder (I bought a fb Snody-BM before Christmas - D2 - a better performer, still not what I expected.).

Stainz
 
I have a Buck 120 bought in 1976 so perhaps it has the 440 blade.

This forum has inspired me to get the 110 and it looks and feels great.
 
darylcheshire said:
I have a Buck 120 bought in 1976 so perhaps it has the 440 blade.

This forum has inspired me to get the 110 and it looks and feels great.
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Congratulations on both of your Bucks and welcome to the forum. I'm pretty sure your 120 is 440C.
 
ARISE! Ye, olden topic...
I like the length of the 120 more for many tasks but find the 119 more portable. Yours would have a blade of 440C. DM
 
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