Dating question on pre-code date 501's

CSG

CSG

Joined
Dec 15, 2007
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Hi all, first visit (that I can recall) into the Buck forum. Longtime fan of the traditional models and have a 119 (1992), 110 (2008), and two 501's. Somewhere in this house I have my 110 from about 1973/4 that I bought as a recommendation from fellow deputies in my department in those days. I've misplaced it but it's here somewhere. I bought a replacement many years ago just to be sure one was at hand.

My real question in my original 501. I'd misplaced that one too and bought a replacement around 2000 and the date code on the newer 501 confirms it. My original turned up (buried in a pack) and I cannot for the life of me remember where or when I got it but it seems like I've had it as long as I can remember. I carried it for years and when I was dating it was always my picnic knife. The blade has the old English "Buck", 501, USA. The scales are what appear to be a resin impregnated brown/burgundy micarta. Other than those features, there are no dots or other indicators as to its age. I saw on the excellent date charts replicated here that it seems the best I can hope to find is a date range of something like 1973 to 1985. I just wondered if the micarta scales could help narrow it down a little more. I either bought this knife around '73 or 1980-1.

It's in used but wonderful shape and the blade takes and holds an edge. BTW, it's still my picnic knife and resides in our picnic daypack.
 
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The 501 changed from the script type lettering to block type in '84/'85, but they changed from the maroon micarta to birch in Sept. of 1980 according to Joe Houser's article on the 500 series.

The first blueprints for the 501 are dated Dec. 1973 but the first one's didn't ship out until May of '75 and had an exposed rocker rivet. The exposed rocker rivet went away about '78/'79.

If your 501 is micarta, with the script lettering and has only two rivets showing on the handle, it would be from as early as 1978 and up until late 1980.
 
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Yes, two rivets and that date era sounds more like what I remembered. It didn't seem to me like I had this as early as 1973 and must have carried something else in my college days. As I think about it, for a few years I carried the 110 but it was larger and heavier than I needed. The 501 was like a miniature 110 and that's what prompted me to buy it. Late '79-early 1980 sounds about right.

That's terrific info, plumberdv, thank you very much!!
 
Sounds good. I wonder about that Sept. 1980 date of the switch to birch but I'm away from my notes so it will stand for now. DM
 
Boy, that's a gem of an article! Thanks for posting it.

Other than the knives I got from my granddad (the VP of Utica Cutlery back in the 60's-70's) and the Dick Tracy knife my dad passed on to me from his own childhood in the 30's, the Buck 501 I asked about has a lot of sentimental value to me as it was my EDC for over 20 years and another 10 with the replacement 501 I bought when I thought I'd lost my original. I switched to a Mini-Griptilian a few years back. I also carry a SAK. For about as long as I pocket carried the 501 I also had in the same pocket a Victorinox Classic. Now, with the Mini-Grip clipped to my pocket, I stepped up a size on the SAK to a Victorinox Ambassador.

I ended up putting my original 501 back in the safe and put the 2000 era one in my picnic daypack instead.

It's really far and away my favorite Buck knife of the few I own.
 
I'm sure it was that date of the Duke I was thinking of, 1981. That's the model I would tend to lock into more. DM
 
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