Buck Imports

[will62]

Over Christmas last year I ended up with a couple of the Buck traditional models. One was the canoe and the other was a stockman.

Out of the clamshell both were pretty sharp and just a few strokes on the old Crocksticks made them scary sharp. Fit and finish were good. Overall very good bargains for the $20 each.

After six months I carry the canoe nearly every day. I never did develop a real liking for the stockman. The clip blade just did not seem to be very well suited heavy cutting.

The canoe's spearpoint seems to be more suited to heavy cutting.

I have to admit I was skeptical about these imports but I am impressed with the canoe and would buy another one. I never warmed up to the stockman, which now belongs to my son.

Any opinions on the overall quality of these blades? Has anyone had to use the warranty aand how was the service? They seem to be a good value for the money.

 

[knarfeng]

I've heard nothing but praise for the quality of Buck's import line.
Course I don't hear many complaints about their domestic line, either.

 

[Cold Kill]

Don't judge a knife by the country of origin, judge them by the quality of their products. My Spyderco was made in China, and it is a GREAT knife. My new CS Pendleton Lite Hunter was made in China, and it is also great. My Blackjack folder was also made in China, and I have made that one one of my EDC knives. Base it all on your company of choice, because most imported knives are made to the standards set by the company (except for defects).

 

[will62]

They are some really good knives overall, these were the first ones I encountered. I would buy another canoe model for sure.

Nothing is really wrong with the stockman except it just did not feel right in my hand and the clip blade seems to be too long for its width. Just my observation.

I would like to see a couple more models put out like a scout knife and a barlow.

Bottom line I was impressed.

 

[WvHiker]

I've been wanting a canoe for quite a while now. I generally like Buck better than Case (just my opinion) and was a little disappointed that Buck didn't offer a canoe made in the US, but between the price and what I've heard about them I may just buy one. I'd buy a Buck scout knife in a second, and probably a barlow too.

 

[ArfinGreebly]

I have a couple of old Buck classic folders from their old El Cajon factory days.

One is a 301 Stockman. Very nicely made. Two springs instead of today's 3 springs. The biggest difference, however is the grind. The old ones are flat ground, while the new ones are hollow ground. The flat ground blades are a thing of beauty. My only complaint with the 301 design is the space separating the end of the handle from the start of the cutting edge. Otherwise, it's one of my favorites and sees a lot of pocket time.

The other is a 313 Muskrat. Gorgeous. Easily one of my favorite classic patterns ever. Buck, instead of putting twin "toothpick" blades on a folder, put a toothpick blade at one end and a full-sized spey blade at the other. Mine looks just like this:

Well, the Muskrat, unlike the Stockman, is not currently being made in USA, so if you like the pattern, you have to go with the import:

I'll probably pick up a couple, just to have as reserves.

The Buck imports I've tried so far have been well QC'd products.

It's worth noting that Buck does not use a different steel for their imports. The steel, construction, and product finish are subject to top drawer QA, and the resulting knives are still a good buy.

My prejudices, of course, incline me to buy from the factory that's only fifteen miles from my home.

Hey, you never know, maybe we can talk them into doing a special custom run of the classics here in Idaho. Sure, they would costs substantially more, but I know for sure that I would wind up with my share of them.