Buck 300 series

Buck 303 Cadet 3 1/4" in sawcut black delrin (USA)

Well made work knife, nothing fancy.

Has three back springs with each blade with its own spring.
The sheepsfoot is on the opposite side to the main clip, and is longer than other stockman sheepfoot blades.

Because of the three back-springs:
The knife is wider, which gives it a more chunky feel in the hand.
The blades are hollow ground, so the blades retain their full thickness the whole spine of the blade. This makes for a thick blade profile.

The thick blades are hollow ground, so again the blades look chunky from a thick spine going quickly to the hollow grind on the narrower blades.
The blades are also thick to use. The blade profile does not allow for thin slicing of a soft substance.

If you like thin flat ground blades, or something thin in your pocket; this is not the knife for you.

A plain jane, well made, worth the money for hard use.

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Edit:
Honestly, for the price range, I would suggest a Boker in Carbon and bone.
The Bokers have so much more character to them
Although they might not stand to as hard work as a 4" Buck
 
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I think Buck's are great knives and I own several. Their warranty and customer service can't be beat and their prices are fair. The only things that keep Buck's out of my pockets most of the time is that the slippies have too many springs (one for each blade), the blades/grinds are too thick, and they are stainless. I still think the 110/112 are the greatest Buck's out there and I would advise you to judge Buck on those two models first.
 
Three backsprings on a stockman would be a deal killer for me even if I'd have been willing to give the steel a shot.
 
neeman said:
Buck 303 Cadet 3 1/4" in sawcut black delrin (USA)

Well made work knife, nothing fancy.

Has three back springs with each blade with its own spring.
The sheepsfoot is on the opposite side to the main clip, and is longer than other stockman sheepfoot blades.

Because of the three back-springs:
The knife is wider, which gives it a more chunky feel in the hand.
The blades are hollow ground, so the blades retain their full thickness the whole spine of the blade. This makes for a thick blade profile.

The thick blades are hollow ground, so again the blades look chunky from a thick spine going quickly to the hollow grind on the narrower blades.
The blades are also thick to use. The blade profile does not allow for thin slicing of a soft substance.

If you like thin flat ground blades, or something thin in your pocket; this is not the knife for you.

A plain jane, well made, worth the money for hard use.


Edit:
Honestly, for the price range, I would suggest a Boker in Carbon and bone.
The Bokers have so much more character to them
Although they might not stand to as hard work as a 4" Buck
Click to expand...

Neeman, I agree with you.

The Buck 301 does not have the finesse of a Case or a Boker. But for a $28 four-inch stockman it is a good working blade that holds an edge pretty darn good (better than the Case and maybe the Boker.)

I really do carry mine a lot. I have other knives, but there is just something satisfying about having that 301 in my pocket. I'm still trying to figure out exactly what it is.
 
neeman said:
Because of the three back-springs:
The knife is wider, which gives it a more chunky feel in the hand.
The blades are hollow ground, so the blades retain their full thickness the whole spine of the blade. This makes for a thick blade profile.

The thick blades are hollow ground, so again the blades look chunky from a thick spine going quickly to the hollow grind on the narrower blades.
The blades are also thick to use. The blade profile does not allow for thin slicing of a soft substance.

If you like thin flat ground blades, or something thin in your pocket; this is not the knife for you.
Click to expand...

Yep, the width and overall "chunkiness" keep me from pulling the trigger on a Buck 300 series stockman, although I love how they were not afraid to change around the traditional stockman blade layout. I do have a model 055 and can attest that the Bucks coming out of Idaho are top-notch. Still, preferring a thinner profile on my slippies, right now I'm eyeballing a Case CV medium stockman in amber bone or yella.
 
I've had a couple of the 300 series knives and they have been a very good functional knife. Not a lot of pretty on them but they work and stay sharp. If that's what your looking for it should work well for you.
 
Bucks are winners all around. The price is right, and they are good tools for anybody who wnats a hard working knife.
 
The Buck 30x series are US made, as are the 55, 110, 112, & 50x series. The 37x & 38x series are imports. These are the 'basic' folders - many more exist and they indicate US-made on their website and in their catalog. I don't recall seeing the 301 at Wally World, but they do have the 503 Prince and 110 Folding Hunter, both <$25 there. The 503 is a small and beautiful, yet functional, single blader. My useful 301 is ~18 yr old - and it's 420HC is easily re-edged with my Spyderco 'Sharpmaker' - my years of AR stone use making great carving & turning edges, but miserable pocket knife edges. The 'Sharpmaker' is a must have now.

Stainz

PS I love my Bucks - especially the 110s!
 
I have the 301 stockman in my pocket as I type this - own many Buck's and they have always been good, dependable knives. You can't go wrong with one.
 
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