Budgie 417

AZbuckNM said:
It intrigued me so I purchased one. Who else ordered and what are your thoughts??
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In a weak moment, I made an impulsive decision and ordered one too. It arrived today! What sold me was the combination of small size and s35vn steel. I will carry it in the jeans 5th pocket. I've carried, 425's, 505's, 503's and 55's for many years and have suggested (begged really...) to Buck to put a premium steel on a small folder. Finally they did it with the Budgie! This knife is quite small but offers a 3 finger grip. The blade is just shy of 2 inches, with a closed length of 3 1/4 inches. It tips the scale at 1.95 ounces. My example has a very nice, even edge grind and arrived very sharp, of course. The G-10 handle has a perfect texture for just the right grip. It's easy to one hand open and close. The clip works well, but can be removed and would make a nice pocket dropper.





Size comparison with the 418 Vertex


With the Vertex, Alumni and 110.
 
I ordered one of each. Hope to get them next week. Planning to use them as a money clip, and retire/sell the Spyderco Cricket that has filled that role for years.
 
at first announcement I wasn't digging on them. prefer large blade folder. as time goes on still don't want one, but starting to like the design more for what it is. congrats and enjoy 'er.
 
I know the blade won't swap to a 112 but because it is S35VN I'll get one. I really like that steel!
 
I did not like the look of it when I first saw the new knives announcement. But, after staring at it for a while, I have decided that I really like it! I have to get one. I like a small folder and especially this one with a large belly.
 
Daniel said:
I did not like the look of it when I first saw the new knives announcement. But, after staring at it for a while, I have decided that I really like it! I have to get one. I like a small folder and especially this one with a large belly.
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Order Up!
 
Has anyone ordered the green natural G-10 version? Let's see photos if you have. As far as I can tell, this is Buck's first foray into translucent jade G-10 handle material. It's pretty popular with those who like to mod their knives. I'm looking forward to seeing some interestingly dyed colors in the future.
 
Moonlight Lilacs said:
I feel like the light color will show dirt and grime... so I prefer the black one.
Every customer that comes into the store here thinks its a glow-in-the-dark handle.
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Those were my initial thoughts exactly.

I like it. I don't think I prefer it over the black tho.
 
Moonlight Lilacs said:
I feel like the light color will show dirt and grime... so I prefer the black one.
Every customer that comes into the store here thinks its a glow-in-the-dark handle.
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its g10 though. should clean up fine.

yeah I could see that it looks like it should glow.
 
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I made a couple changes to my Budgie. First, I removed the pocket clip and it now slips in and out of the pocket quite a bit easier. It doesn't effect the grip for one hand opening and closing and seems to be a more comfortable working grip without the clip.

Second, like so many framelocks, the detent ball was hitting pretty abruptly against the lock face when closing. I've added many detent ball ramps, especially on Vantages to smooth out the closing. Yes, I probably voided the warranty, but went ahead and disassembled the knife and filed in a ramp. Closure is much smoother/seamless now. I'm not sure why more knife makers don't put these in from the start. Anyway, I discovered the Budgie is running on what appears to be nylon (Nylatron) washers. I've seen similar washers on the Vantage Force models. I'm hoping they get silky smooth with time and use.

Detent ball ramp - view of lock face


Detent ball ramp - view of tang
 
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plb said:
I made a couple changes to my Budgie. First, I removed the pocket clip and it now slips in and out of the pocket quiet a bit easier. It doesn't effect the grip for one hand opening and closing. It's seems to be a more comfortable working grip without the clip.

Second, like so many framelocks, the detent ball was hitting pretty abruptly against the lock face when closing. I've added many detent ball ramps, especially on Vantages to smooth out the closing. Yes, I probably voided the warranty, but went ahead and disassembled the knife and filed in a ramp. Closure is much smoother/seamless now. I'm not sure why more knife makers don't put these in from the start. Anyway, I discovered that the Budgie is running on what appears to be nylon (Nylatron) washers. I've seen similar washers on the Vantage Force models. I'm hoping that they get silky smooth with time and use.

Detent ball ramp - view of lock face


Detent ball ramp - view of tang
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Detent pressure makes or breaks a knives ability to flip. On a non flippers I guess it isn't as important but functional.
 
I thought that it would be fun to give this little knife a try, my initial impressions are positive. The Budgie’s 2 inch long, 0.085” thick S35V blade was razor sharp out of the box easily push cutting paper. The ergonomics for the small knife is good, it’s overall length open is approximately 5.25” and it facilitates a comfortable 3 finger grip for whittling. The stainless steel framelock solidly locks the blade open and is relatively easy to disengage. Out of the box the knife does not drop shut when the framelock is disengaged but it does easily close. The short 1.5” clip seems to hold the knife well in my pocket. I’ll give it some EDC time and check it out further, if it performs like my Slim Pros I expect that it will find a place in my standard carry rotation. Good job Buck team!

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I just received my Budgie today and its not bad for a frame lock knife (I had lowered my expectations on the knife beforehand). After removing the pocket clip, it could be a decent drop in the pocket knife. It would be easy to attach to my keys as well. I think I'll order the green G10 knife for my wife to use as a box cutter at work and see if I can get my 898 back from her. ;)
 
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