Buck Alpha Folder...liner too thin???

ThorTso

ThorTso

Joined
Jul 8, 2002
Messages
537
I went to my local knife store today to see what I could procure. I saw a post in here of the Buck Alpha Folder and loved the look of it. Lo and behold, it was there!!! I held it, fiddled, inspected, opened-closed MANY times etc. It is as smooth as silk and it is truly a beautiful knife with a solid heft and solid frame. It is quite heavy and very sharp. Here is the kicker.....it has a paper-thin liner. The liner is half as thick as that on my CRKT Ryan 7.

Does anybody own this particular knife, and if so what is your experience? Is the liner strong enough?

Thanks.
 
I guess it depends how hard you're going to be using the knife but most are not too happy with the bladeplay displayed in a few models and that damn thin liner. Bladeplay's not a big deal since you can tighten it but no excuse for the liner.

I don't have one myself but I know someone who does. He doesn't push it hard and doesn't use it as his EDC so it functions well for what he uses it for so far.

Not much help...but thats all the experience I have with that knife...
 
I did the same thing you did. I picked it up, admired it and put it back down.... The liner is almost as thin looking as the liner on the Boker Brend. Cool looking knife though..
Matt
 
Does anyone know the actual thickness of the liner and what its made of? I've been making folders with 410SS liners that are .040" thick. I would have liked to get .050 or .060 but the .040 is what I could find. After a little use they actually seem to do pretty well, and are fairly tough. I wouldn't go any thinner, but I think the length,type of bend, and the engagement with the tang are alot more important now.
If the liner is made of very thin stock, then it should be as wide as possible. Ie. on the knife I just finished, the tab is almost 3/8" wide at the tang and the narrowest spot is 1/4". The more material there the stronger it is.
I also bend them in a gradual curve so there isn't any one point that sees alot of stress.

Thick liners are good, but theres other things that are important also.
Theres alot of good info on it in the shoptalk forum. Somewhere theres a tutorial by Kit Carson (very good), and theres alot of other stuff scattered around different threads.
 
I have had my Buck Alpha Hunter for a couple of months now and really like it. Having experienced none of the problems reported by others with the Alpha Hunter I have only good things to say about it.

It is a sturdy knife with a good ATS-34 blade that exhibits no blade play, centers perfectly when closed and opens and closes exceptionally smoothly with solid lock-up. It seems to be well designed and looks great.

At first I, too, had reservations about the single liner used for lock-up, but have since become comfortable with it. It seems to me that the thinner liner was made possible by Buck's use of stainless steel instead of titanium and did not actually sacrifice any safety. I now don't consider it to be a potential problem.
 
Thanks for all your responses guys. To me looks is very important in a knife. Personality comes third....hehehehehehehe:D

I also loved the Buck Alpha fixed blade. Very unusual yet, highly attractive design. Very solid in the hand.

The folder is quite expensive at R770-00. At 10.5 to 1, it would make it about 73 Dollars US. Is that a good price? The thin liner really worries me. I would have preferred a lock-back for that particular model. Perhaps Buck will make the exact same knife in a lock back. I will definitely buy one then.
 
73 sounds ok but I think it can be had for about 50 elsewhere. I'm able to get it for about that here in Canada.
 
For a company that really know how to make a lockback knife I have to
wonder if buck knows how to make a linerlock. I've looked an several
they make and well......not for me. :(

Just ask yourself this question.........
If all lockbacks have locks as thick as the blade why not apply the
same thickness to a good linerlock. :confused: What's safe one way
is bound to be safe the other. :cool:
 
I had one when they first came out. had really bad blade play so I sent it back. I found it to be too heavy, and the liner lock is a bit thin for the build of the knife. and as far as being thin because its stainless, you can make a stainless liner lock much thicker. with all that said I would like to have one, but I think it looks much better in pictures!!!!
 
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