Buck VS CRKT

G

Gary007

Joined
May 17, 2002
Messages
1,452
I'm a fairly new knife nut. I found myself starting with a few Bucks, a standard 110, a Cabela's 110, and an Alpha Hunter, oh and I have a Buck/Strider 882 on order. Seems like a great company, great integrity, I like their statement of faith in God, and in general good quality knives.

But I find myself strangely drawn to alot of the CRKT's models, like the M-16's Big Dogs, the M.Walkers, Crawford/Kaspers....

Is CRKT pretty much along the same lines as Buck, as far as overall quality?

I've got some money burning a hole in my PayPal account, not sure if I should just stick with Buck, or expand my collection with other brands.
 
Bucks are great knives and as a brand, I prefer them to CRKT. I have simply had more experiance with CRKT knives having basic problems at the shop. They do have some nice models out there, and you should try some of them out if you like. If you don't like it, well that's what ebay is for.
I would recomend expanding to other lines, though. I think that you would appreciate Kershaws as a next step.
Stop by Merlo's, I'm there noon to 4 today and you can try some out. I'll even knock your tax off. ;)
-KC
Oh crap I'm late. YOU GUYS DO THIS TO ME EVERY DAY!!!!
 
I agree with Knifeclerk and I'll add that the Buck lock is probably stronger from what I've read. I only have two CRKT knives and I got them both as collector pieces so I can't comment on much else. They appear to be very nice for the money but most of their knives are made in Japan or Taiwan I think. I do like the fact that Buck knives are still made here in the good ole USA.
 
Knifeclerk,
Kershaw eh? Hey wait a minute, do you work on commission? ;)

Do you carry the Kershaw Blur? I handled one before and liked the grippy feel.

Also saw on Ebay an Onion Chive Mirror Knife 1600SS.


Knifeclerk said:
Bucks are great knives and as a brand, I prefer them to CRKT. I have simply had more experiance with CRKT knives having basic problems at the shop. They do have some nice models out there, and you should try some of them out if you like. If you don't like it, well that's what ebay is for.
I would recomend expanding to other lines, though. I think that you would appreciate Kershaws as a next step.
Stop by Merlo's, I'm there noon to 4 today and you can try some out. I'll even knock your tax off. ;)
-KC
Oh crap I'm late. YOU GUYS DO THIS TO ME EVERY DAY!!!!
Click to expand...
 
Gary,

You can do a lot better than either brand, but it's up to each person to make their own quality vs. price choices. I bought CRKT knives when I first started to collect knives last year, but not anymore. Some of them are reasonable quality for the price but don't believe the hype in their brochures or on their website. My CRKT Crawford-Kaspar Folder doesn't impress me at all and I'd never trust the *P-O-S* lock. In contrast, my M1 folder is a good deal at its price point ($40) and the lock (same liner lock, much better execution) seems reasonably solid. I'd recommend staying away from the knives with AUS6 blades, which rules out most of the CRKT products right off the bat. Also, most of mine have a semi-chisel edge that's not optimal for most uses and really should be reprofiled to a symmetrical edge.

I'll let others comment on Buck knives and the 420HC steel on most of their knives.

Among production knives, from a quality standpoint and if you can afford them, you're better off in with Benchmade (blue class) or Spyderco (those with better steels such as VG-10), among others. Even my Benchmade red-class (AUS8, made in Taiwan) 10200 Ambush is better than my CRKT folders at a similar price.

As for me, I'm looking forward to the Swamp Rat folder. :-)))

Bill D.
 
If I had to choose between CRKT and Buck, I'd go with Buck.

I own a few CRKT knives made of AUS 6 steel and none of them can keep an edge. Recently I bought a Buck Cadet stockman with 420HC steel and that thing can cut so well for a relatively inexpensive knife.

Paul Bos' heat treated knife steels are pretty damn amazing.
 
CRKT's overall quality is easily on par with Buck's and there easily worth the modest price they ask for their models.
 
Quiet Storm said:
CRKT's overall quality is easily on par with Buck's and there easily worth the modest price they ask for their models.
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I agree, I own from both brands and each has their plus and minus area's but unless you start pushing the dollar mark higher and move onto the better ranges like CF knives or the like then you pretty much get what you pay for. I dont mind paying less, if it does its job and lasts for a good amound of time then it can be retired and replaced. I consider lower end production to be consumables, you dont buy them to have a knife with custom qualities for $30 - $100...

just my 2 cents...
 
CRKT over the Buck in general, but we must take each knife on their own merit. Choose your steel. Then choose your maker. You can't compare the Buck Strider to the CRKT M1, nor can you compare the CRKT M-16 to the Buck 110.

On a side note, I am of the opinion that Kershaws are good only for cutting coupons and ribbon.
 
I'd spend the few, measly extra dollars and get a Camillus EDC or a Benchmade Red Class like the Pika (actually, I wouldn't...I'd spend more and get a Spyderco or higher-class Benchmade or something, but that's not what this thread is about). I don't have any experience with Buck and I stay away from 420. All my experiences with CRKT have been bad (ranging from "this knife sucks" to 3 stitches and nerve damage).

For "cheap" knives you can do better than Buck or CRKT.
 
All my experiences with CRKT have been bad (ranging from "this knife sucks" to 3 stitches and nerve damage).
Click to expand...

Planterz, if 3 stitches weren't caused by a folder then it should be considered as a good experience, eh? ;)
 
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