Forged vs. Sintered frames?

TAH

TAH

Joined
Jul 3, 2001
Messages
6,135
A few questions...

What are the pros and cons of each? Why did Buck change? Was the 112 frame ever forged?

Thanks! :)
 
TAH,

For the 110, Buck first used die cast frames, which had some problems, and then tried forged frames for the 4th and 5th Versions. The forged frames needed grinding to make them as flat as possible before use. I don't know the procedure, but I have a vision of some sort of industrial belt sander. Of course that meant extra time and money before assembly of the knives. With the switch to sintered brass frames, because the sintered frames were uniform, Buck found they could eliminate not only the grinding but also the use of adhesive for attaching the inlays. Bill Keys has commented on this. Apparently they quit the grinding soon after starting to use the sintered frames and not long after that quit using adhesive, which saved even more time. George Stinzel has examples of the first sintered frames that show grind lines on the inside of the frame. I have several of these first sintered frame knives, some show adhesive and some don't. I don't have any that show grind lines and my guess is that variety is not common. At any rate, switching to sintered frames saved Buck a lot of time and money.

I don't know about the 112, but I would guess it has a similar story.

Bert
 
Thanks Bert. So, are today's 110 frames sintered just like they were in the 70s?

I'm curious about the frame of my 112. Do you think it was forged or sintered?

IMG_4136_zps0eee107e.jpg
 
The 110s produced today have sintered frames. Once the change was made in the '70s it was kept. I don't know anything about 112s, but my guess is that any 112 made after the mid-70s is sintered.

Bert
 
My 112 is from roughly 1973, so hopefully, someone will be able to provide more information on the 112 frames and confirm if my 112 frame is forged or sintered.

Thanks again Bert.
 
BTTT. Anyone have any information on 112 frames? Were they ever forged? :confused:
 
It is generally accepted that the sintered brass frame with the 110 came at the 2 dot time frame.(late 1974) For the 112 this would be at near the same time. (2 dot stamp) So, 5th version, 4th variation with large brass inlay rivets would have the sintered frame should the model follow the 110. DM
 
Thanks David. So more than likely my 112, pictured above, has a forged frame?
 
For now, I'd say so. Someone may come up with new data that would question this thinking. DM
 
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