Buck 188 Phrobis III

Makael

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Oct 17, 2015
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Can i get some info on this knife? Its listed for more than i thought they would sell for. Buck 188 USA X, M9 Phrobis III USA, pat pend.
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I saw that one in your estate treasures and thought about it but those go for what a 124 does. It is the real deal. Built like a tank and a 1/4"
thick blade. There should be some additional items inside the handle. That is a real treasure and find. DM
 
There shouldn't be anything in the handle...The problem is it has been sharpened...The scabbard is great, there should be a sharpening stone on the backside, hopefully unused...
 
There shouldn't be anything in the handle...The problem is it has been sharpened...The scabbard is great, there should be a sharpening stone on the backside, hopefully unused...
Stone appears unused. :thumbsup:
 
Nice bayonet, beefier and much better built than the M7 it partiality replaced, but I always thought they were too heavy (along with all your other gear). OH
 
It was the last year for the 4 line stamping also the Dolphin logo was removed from the crossguard. There were some made with the 1989 crossguard which makes it rarer. It's estimated that 2,689 were made of this model were made in 1990. It has 425M steel and Zytel handle and scabbard...
 
It was the last year for the 4 line stamping also the Dolphin logo was removed from the crossguard. There were some made with the 1989 crossguard which makes it rarer. It's estimated that 2,689 were made of this model were made in 1990. It has 425M steel and Zytel handle and scabbard...
thank you. good info.:thumbsup:
 
There shouldn't be anything in the handle...The problem is it has been sharpened...The scabbard is great, there should be a sharpening stone on the backside, hopefully unused...

Looks like it was sharpened on a curb. Jeezzz. Is that something a spa treatment could take care of or are the scratches to deep?
 
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Could it by any chance a issued knife? I know some that were actually used are worth far more..
 
I dont know how to tell but it looks used for sure. not sure the time frame it was used.
 
Looks like it was sharpened on a curb. Jeezzz. Is that something a spa treatment could take care of or are the scratches to deep?

I'm not sure they can do a SPA on those, the blade was bead blasted. I'm not sure they can repeat that process...
 
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I'm not sure they can do a SPA on those, the blade was bead blasted. I'm not sure they can repeat that process...

I would be shocked if they couldn't. It's a pretty simple process and equipment, just takes a lot of air. Heck, even I have 3 cabinets and I'm just a simple homeowner.... 1 medium and 2 smallish though admittedly none are hooked up at the moment.
 
I would be shocked if they couldn't. It's a pretty simple process and equipment, just takes a lot of air. Heck, even I have 3 cabinets and I'm just a simple homeowner.... 1 medium and 2 smallish though admittedly none are hooked up at the moment.

Since they don't offer anything bead-blasted any longer I figure they just don't do it....
 
Since they don't offer anything bead-blasted any longer I figure they just don't do it....

Being what it is I wasn't sure if they could do it for a fee and what not. With Mak being so close and in tight with those guys they might be able to clean it up for him.
 
I was told that their system now won't match what they did back in the day. It's probably safe to assume that because of the volume they were doing between the 188s and 184s (among others) that the blades were tumbled rather than media blasted.

As of a couple of years ago (and I presume still now) they can bead/media blast. I sent them an old 560 where about 70% of the black coating had been worn off and asked that they blast the rest of it, which they did.

As to the question about whether this knife was ever "issued"; I believe I read that very few if any, and most likely none with Buck branding were issued to military. Only after the initial military contract expired did Buck stamp their info on them for the civilian market, shortly thereafter taking the Phrobis branding off of the civilian model.

Even if they could restore the finish, the wear on the blade from the poor sharpening (so it appears) and the use of the wire cutter will probably still be evident and kill the price. Only Phrobis and Buck collectors will pay up for these and they have to be in pristine condition to get decent money. You can buy a used / issued version for about $100.

I sold a NIB civilian model last year I think for about $500 IIRC.






As usual... my insights come with the disclaimer that: there's probably a good chance I don't know what I'm talking about. :)
 
I sent in 4 188's to have sand blasted and they told me they only bead-blast because the sand puts pits in the blade. I got them back and they look beautiful. This was about 3 years ago. I also have some black 188's. I also have Lancay and Ontario.
 
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