buck vantage pro, avid, and kershaw skyline. which should i go with?

C

clockworkfish

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Dec 1, 2010
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i have been looking around to try and figure out which knife would be the most ideal for what i do which is industrial design and some sculpture (im currently a student) but in both of these feilds i do a lot of cutting of heavy material like canvas and cardboard and plaster, i would idealy love to have a knife that could keep a razor sharp edge as i have never been able to literally shave with my own knife. also i love flipper knives hence why i am debating between the kershaw skyline the buck vantage pro and avid.

i hear that 13c26 is the typical razor blade steel and will get an insane edge very easily, but the s30v would hold a good edge for longer (not as sharp but sharp enough for most tasks) but with a paul bos heat treat i wasnt sure if the buck vantage avid would out perform the skyline and hold its razor edge longer or not. as of right now i am drifting towards the buck vantage avid but i want to hear some opinions on the matter.

also does anyone know if its still possible to order a kershaw skyline in damascus? ive looked everywhere to no avail!

Thank you very much!
 
I would personally go with the skyline, just becuase it is going to be easier to resharpen. the S30V will be a bit of a pain, but it you get together a strop and keep the skyline maintained, then you will be able to have VERY sharp knife. 14C28N is scary.
 
I don't own a Skyline(yet), so I cannot comment on it. I have been EDCing a large Vantage Avid, which uses 13c26, for nearly 2 years however. I really like it. It does get dang sharp, I maintain it on leather belt hanging in my bathroom loaded with 6k rouge. I took mine apart and mirror polished the liners and blade around the pivot area, as well as the bronze washers. It flips pretty nicely now; but from what I know about Kershaws, I have no doubt that the Skyline would be a better flipper.

I really like how thin and discreet the whole knife is. Scales are real smooth, so it glides out of my pocket, and the deep pocket clip is great. The only bad I have noticed with mine is that the lock is already 100% against the liner, which is irritating; but it really doesn't affect the performance of the knife. Lock up is as solid as it was on day 1.
 
If you like G-10 grippy handles.............I have the skyline and it's sweeeeet. But I do here those buck vantage series are good as well, as are all the mainline buck knives.
 
Hey, I have both the Buck Vantage Pro and the Kershaw Skyline and I would have to recommend the Kershaw Skyline over the Buck knives.

The main thing is that if you are relatively new to knives, the Skyline will be much easier to sharpen as a beginner. When I started off using knives, I could get the Skyline razor sharp using both a Lansky guided system and the Sharpmaker with relative ease, while S30V still takes me longer and more work to get done. Also, even though the blade might not stay as sharp for as long, the Skyline gets extremely sharp pretty easily and is pretty simple to maintain. The most rough cutting I've done is on cardboard and boxes but it works great for that.

The second thing I noticed is that the Vantage has really late lock up for me compared to the Skyline. The Buck will lock up at 90 percent or so consistently, and it is kind of a factor as to why I don't carry mine as much. The Skyline has stayed at 50 percent almost the whole time I have had mine. Your experience might vary, but the lock on the Vantage is a bit worrying for me.

Finally, as a flipper knife the Kershaw wins hands down for me. The Vantage can be flipped too, but the flipper is extremely small for me and I can't seem to get the knife to flip out without having to flick my wrist. Hopefully this helped you out.
 
i'm a big fan of buck's vantage line. because you're cutting abrasive materials like canvas, cardboard and plaster, i recommend getting the vantage pro.

p.s. what will you be using to sharpen your knife?
 
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The Skyline is thinner in the pocket, for ease of pocket carry. But the Bucks fill the hand a little more, for ease of cutting. So its very subjective, and pretty much comes down to whatever floats your boat. The canvas, cardboard and plaster will not know the difference. :thumbup:
 
They (meaning the two knife models) have their own advantages. The Vantage gets sharper (in my experience), but the Skyline has a much thicker edge for a working knife. If you just need sharpness, the Vantage is the winner. If you just need blade strength, I would take the Skyline.
 
I have both and I preffer the Skyline for it's lighter weight and ease of carry. The Avid is great, but it feels like a brick in my pocket compared to the Kershaw.
 
I have purchased Buck Vantage (regular, with 420 steel) recently and based on my impressions of the knife itself I would not consider buying Vantage Pro or Avid. I do not think steel is an issue and that it would improve the knife significantly. Go for something else. Kershaw would be a good choice I think - since you would like to buy a flipper.
 
Poez said:
I have purchased Buck Vantage (regular, with 420 steel) recently and based on my impressions of the knife itself I would not consider buying Vantage Pro or Avid.
Click to expand...

why, whats wrong with your knife?
 
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Some very good comments/suggestions above. I own both, and I like each for separate reasons. The Skyline is slimmer and lighter and I love using it around the house. The Vantage is bigger, thicker, heavier, and IMO makes for a better heavier use knife. I can't speak for anyone else, but I have no problem getting either one scary sharp.
 
jimnolimit said:
why, whats wrong with your knife?
Click to expand...
We are talking about Buck Vantage. So, it is not too bad - it just does not make me to want Buck Vantage Pro. Somehow it does not make me think anything like: "oh I wish it just had a better steel on the blade....". Nope.
First of all the edge - it sucks. I do not have a habit of re-sharpening a knife as soon as I take it out of the box. But this time I had to do it. And I still do not like the fool-proof point - way too thick. Can not fix it without re-grinding the blade. I suspect Vantage Pro has got the same edge...
Washers are quite small and pivot looks thin. So there is a choice: either no horizontal bladeplay, or no flipping - can not have both. You may say I did not try hard enough. That is probably true. For Buck Vantage it is OK - it is not a super knife with super steel, right?
The liner lock was more than halfway through from new.
The blade has clear traces of the stamp. So F&F are just not quite there. From some reviews I have got an impression that Vantage Pro is about the same.
I do not regret paying 26 dollars for that knife - it is quite OK for the money. But as I have said: I just really do not see any point paying more for it, with better steel or not. All things considered, 420 steel is just right here - in balance with the rest of the knife and for the optimal price.
If I wanted a better knife - I would just pay a bit extra and get Endura. Or Kershaw JYD - if talking about flippers.
 
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I have the small Buck Vantage Pro, the large Vantage Force Pro and Force Avid and the Kershaw Skyline and wouldn't want to be without any of these excellent folders.
 
Poez said:
We are talking about Buck Vantage. So, it is not too bad - it just does not make me to want Buck Vantage Pro. Somehow it does not make me think anything like: "oh I wish it just had a better steel on the blade....". Nope.
First of all the edge - it sucks. I do not have a habit of re-sharpening a knife as soon as I take it out of the box. But this time I had to do it. And I still do not like the fool-proof point - way too thick. Can not fix it without re-grinding the blade. I suspect Vantage Pro has got the same edge...
Washers are quite small and pivot looks thin. So there is a choice: either no horizontal bladeplay, or no flipping - can not have both. You may say I did not try hard enough. That is probably true. For Buck Vantage it is OK - it is not a super knife with super steel, right?
The liner lock was more than halfway through from new.
The blade has clear traces of the stamp. So F&F are just not quite there. From some reviews I have got an impression that Vantage Pro is about the same.
I do not regret paying 26 dollars for that knife - it is quite OK for the money. But as I have said: I just really do not see any point paying more for it, with better steel or not. All things considered, 420 steel is just right here - in balance with the rest of the knife and for the optimal price.
If I wanted a better knife - I would just pay a bit extra and get Endura. Or Kershaw JYD - if talking about flippers.
Click to expand...
I have exactly the opposite. The tip is fine, and not thin and weak like it is on my Leek. The out of box sharpness was razor, and a little refinement turned it to Mora sharp. The action on mine was a little rough at first, but all it took was some oil on the pivot. Now my blade is perfectly centered with action nearly as smooth as the CRKT Ripple. The lock on mine is solid and excellent. the F&F on mine was great. I paid $30 for it, and while I felt a little ripped off at first, I now have no regrets. When you can get it for nearly $20, it is worth every penny. You just seem to have gotten a bad one.
 
I have the Ripple too, the Wal-Mart model and it's a mean slicer. The liner lock is thinner/weaker looking compared to the Buck and Kershaw.
 
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