Getting Very Frustrated with Buck Knives!

Those chamfers might not be a problem or flaw to you but it is to me. I build things to the thousandths and that's the first thing I noticed looking at the knives. My old bucks aren't like that.
 
Odd.......I kind of like the look of the chamfers you mention. :) As long as they match up and the fit is perfect.....they add another dimension to the contours of the knives.
As for the final inspections on knives (quality control) all companies that want to stay in business will cheat on this as much as they can get away with......they know most of the small defects will never be sent back and even some large defects are overlooked by some customers.
It's just the way business is done these days. I expect more of Buck and I wish we'd get it, but I doubt we will.
Ruger is another company that was once GREAT and has gone downhill in the last 20 years. Now the Ruger quality control is at historically bad levels. Same reasons as Buck, I figure.
I guess we just have to put up with it.
 
Two of the BEST companies to deal with if you ever have a problem are Buck and Ruger. Customer service really is their saving grace! And I believe it does allow them to produce at volume, maintain and reinvent existing products and continue to bring new exiting products to the market. All this from within the United States, not an easy task.

For the record, I've had a very, VERY low percentage of problems. I know if I bought only one or two knives a year from a local store I wouldn't see a single defect. But I do buy a lot of knives and I have had some defects and yes, they do drive me wildly insane until I do something about it. Packaging a knife back up, driving it to a shipping store, paying hard earned money to ship it, and missing it the whole time it's gone is THE most worst thing I can think of doing. But, I do know it is par for the course. And I do know Buck will make it right. And I do know when they do, I will love it forever and ever.
 
BuckShack said:
Two of the BEST companies to deal with if you ever have a problem are Buck and Ruger.
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Right.
But the problem is......TOO MANY problems. Great customer service when you have a problem is not a big help if you have to pack up and send back the product because you have a problem too often.

See.......quality control and customer service are two different things. If the first is crappy the second can be great, but it still causes pain to the customer because he has to ship the product back and wait for it to be fixed.

Tell me about it.......I've done it often with Ruger and Buck lately. Ruger's MKIV has been a disaster beyond words.

The point is, with competent quality control......you wouldn't NEED that excellent customer service and you wouldn't be inconvenienced.

Doing it that way is REALLY caring about the customer.
 
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We have no way to know what the ratio is on bad knives to say there is too many. I've had nothing but luck with Buck and Ruger. I've only had one Vantage that needed warranty work. So if that is the ratio, I don't consider that excessive. With all of the charity work and donations but makes I can guarantee Buck cares about the customer. One visit to their location or a phone call and you would know that. They are apologetic if there is a problem. They usually go overboard at all levels..

A Ruger mark 4 is one of the best guns they have ever produced. They made a huge improvement with how easy it can be disassembled now.
 
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VorpalRain said:
Right.
But the problem is......TOO MANY problems. Great customer service when you have a problem is not a big help if you have to pack up and send back the product because you have a problem too often.

See.......quality control and customer service are two different things. If the first is crappy the second can be great, but it still causes pain to the customer because he has to ship the product back and wait for it to be fixed.

Tell me about it.......I've done it often with Ruger and Buck lately. Ruger's MKIV has been a disaster beyond words.

The point is, with competent quality control......you wouldn't NEED that excellent customer service and you wouldn't be inconvenienced.

Doing it that way is REALLY caring about the customer.
Click to expand...

As I said, For the record, I've had a very, VERY low percentage of problems. Those are my numbers and they are real. For me. Same applies to both companies who I buy from frequently.

But yes, ONE is too many when it's mine! I do understand what you are saying. I do feel your pain. There is no room for error. And my next purchase too, may be determined by what I've received in the past. I certainly don't recommend a management strategy that doesn't invest enough time in QC and relies too much on CS. But, I'm also aware of the way business run and perhaps must run these days, to stay competitive. When you have to minimize defects, that means you have them. Sad but true.
 
Makael said:
They are apologetic if there is a problem. They usually go overboard at all levels..

A Ruger mark 4 is one of the best guns they have ever produced. They made a huge improvement with how easy it can be disassembled now.
Click to expand...

My point is, judging from all the complaints and my own experience--they have to apologize TOO OFTEN. Now, if your experience is different, fine for you.

You obviously haven't heard what a disaster the Ruger MKIV has turned out to be. Sales totally stopped and under recall as unsafe right now. Problems too numerous to mention.
 
BuckShack said:
As I said, For the record, I've had a very, VERY low percentage of problems. Those are my numbers and they are real. For me. Same applies to both companies who I buy from frequently.

But yes, ONE is too many when it's mine! I do understand what you are saying. I do feel your pain. There is no room for error. And my next purchase too, may be determined by what I've received in the past. I certainly don't recommend a management strategy that doesn't invest enough time in QC and relies too much on CS. But, I'm also aware of the way business run and perhaps must run these days, to stay competitive. When you have to minimize defects, that means you have them. Sad but true.
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Agreed. I'm hoping Buck will just work a little harder at final checks. I'm sure those guys are in a hurry doing final inspections, but they need to do better--not so much on the regular runs--but definitely on the more expensive knives.
 
My experiences mirror others here. All of my Bucks have factory flaws.. Every one. My 110 AG has miss matched slabs and a bad grind, my drop point 5160 110 had a damaged edge and a bad grind, my Walmart special 110 has play in all directions etc etc....I own a lot of Buck knives, and will buy more but they are far from "good" on QC right now
 
Like everyone else here, I love Buck knives. Unfortunately, in recent years, what they've come to view as acceptable quality has been a disappointment. I love the 500 series, the 503 in particular, but the last few years have been a struggle to find any that are of acceptable quality. I guess I kind of gave up after I sent one in a couple of years ago for warranty work. The knife was given to me as a gift, so I really couldn't take it back to the seller. The backspring wasn't even close to being flush with the scales, so I thought I would send it in to Buck. Unfortunately, I got a call from the folks in warranty, and they said there was nothing for them to fix because it was within spec already and the backspring being out that much was within their tolerances. I was really disappointed. They were very kind, but in my search for nice 503s, I've found that it's actually an anomaly to find a good one, and that poor build quality is the new company norm ☹️.
 
VorpalRain said:
My point is, judging from all the complaints and my own experience--they have to apologize TOO OFTEN. Now, if your experience is different, fine for you.

You obviously haven't heard what a disaster the Ruger MKIV has turned out to be. Sales totally stopped and under recall as unsafe right now. Problems too numerous to mention.
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The recall is for the safety. When not engaged fully or no engaged fully, in between is the issue.. I wouldn't call that a disaster.
 
Makael said:
The recall is for the safety. When not engaged fully or no engaged fully, in between is the issue.. I wouldn't call that a disaster.
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Oh, it's a disaster, all right. You left out a few things. All sales have been stopped. It's a horrible mess for Ruger that has put every buyer of the MKIV in danger because the design flaw allows the trigger to be pulled with just a "click" and then the gun will fire just from moving the safety to the firing position.
This has (thankfully) not yet resulted in any deaths but it's costing millions of dollars (which will, of course, come from future Ruger buyers as it's factored into the cost of new guns).

The new MKIV design has been plagued with problems: malfunctions, loosening of parts, early wear at the pivot point where the newly redesigned barrel pivots for removal from the frame, interior barrel sleeve coming off when front barrel nut is removed to install optional suppressors and other goodies, sights falling off, barrels that wiggle, magazines that require constant tweaking to work, (check Youtube) ejectors that fall off repeatedly--many of these pistols have already made two and three trips back to Ruger and now they're all recalled and Ruger has stated that none are to be used until Ruger has worked on the safety......and it could take months to get them all done. Thousands of owners now have to wait for Ruger to send them a box......and most are still waiting.

Buck should count their lucky stars that knives are not as complicated as guns.

If you want to discuss Ruger's problems you'd better start a new thread in an appropriate forum.
 
I was responding to your Ruger input earlier. Wasnt sure what Ruger had to do with this thread but what the heck.. I responded and was curious.
QUOTE_Now the Ruger quality control is at historically bad levels. Same reasons as Buck, I figure.
I guess we just have to put up with it.


Are you a doomsday-er?

Manufacturers have mistakes. They aren't perfect. I work for a manufacturer of the largest Vinyl window manufacturer in North America. We are experiencing record sales and with that comes errors in manufacturing. This cannot be helped. Quality is everyone's job but they still manage to get out the door. If there is a design issue that might not be felt until months later after release when the product is in full use. Its not on purpose, It just happens.

I know I have been called a Buck Boy etc. I dont care about any of that. I do care though that this knife company located in Post Falls ID get a fair shake. They have issues no different than any other knife maker out there.

We enthusiasts have way more knives than the average consumer. We will experience more warranty issues than the average customer. Some guy buys a buck knife or two once a year will probably never have an issue. From what I can tell every-time one of these types of threads starts is that there is typically one knife being discussed. The owner may have 150 knives but there is a couple that have had an issue out of the 150.

Just my two bits. Over 200 knives and one warranty. My luck I guess.
 
Rather than posting your displeasures here about QC.. Call BUCK and voice your displeasure there.. Just sayin!! ;) John
 
I'd say do both.

The more exposure of bad knives, the more likely Buck will take a new look at Quality Control.
 
Well, it's not slowing me down one bit. In fact, I may need to start working nights and weekends to keep up with all the knives I want.
 
I finally just gave-up. After receiving four out of my last six knives (three of them from the Custom Shop) with very obvious mechanical as well as cosmetic issues, I stopped my collection short, and have focused my attention elsewhere. I understand that any manufacturing process can spit-out a bad one from time to time, although it's not nearly as excusable when it's a custom. What I don't understand is how it can continue happening with knives that have been in production for decades. After so many years of producing essentially the same knife (in the case of the classics), the entire process should be perfected.
 
Hi All,
I am watching this thread and we do take our Quality seriously. One of the benefits of me assuming the leadership of the Warranty department is that I am getting much more information on our failures. We do react and try to correct things. We also have initiatives at the design and shop level to prevent things.
I am always open to hearing from you directly. Jhubbard@buckknives.com or 208.262.0500 ext 137.

If I can answer any direct questions, please put them in this thread. Keep in mind I will not discuss proprietary business info.

Jeff Hubbard
Quality Manager
 
Just give the guy that does the final inspect on the really expensive knives a little more time
Tell him to take a breath and really look them over real good. Tell him it's ok to send one back once in a while.
One of my Red Widows had a small scratch on the blade. Just a small thing......but it shouldn't be there.
My 121 Guide was perfect. I ordered another. Please, please let it be unmarked and pristine.
I don't care so much if the user-type 110s and 119s are perfect.
It's the better stuff I worry about......we had a complaint here on one from the Custom Shoppe.
That should never happen.
Cheers.
 
VorpalRain said:
Oh, it's a disaster, all right. You left out a few things. All sales have been stopped. It's a horrible mess for Ruger that has put every buyer of the MKIV in danger because the design flaw allows the trigger to be pulled with just a "click" and then the gun will fire just from moving the safety to the firing position.
This has (thankfully) not yet resulted in any deaths but it's costing millions of dollars (which will, of course, come from future Ruger buyers as it's factored into the cost of new guns).

The new MKIV design has been plagued with problems: malfunctions, loosening of parts, early wear at the pivot point where the newly redesigned barrel pivots for removal from the frame, interior barrel sleeve coming off when front barrel nut is removed to install optional suppressors and other goodies, sights falling off, barrels that wiggle, magazines that require constant tweaking to work, (check Youtube) ejectors that fall off repeatedly--many of these pistols have already made two and three trips back to Ruger and now they're all recalled and Ruger has stated that none are to be used until Ruger has worked on the safety......and it could take months to get them all done. Thousands of owners now have to wait for Ruger to send them a box......and most are still waiting.

Buck should count their lucky stars that knives are not as complicated as guns.

If you want to discuss Ruger's problems you'd better start a new thread in an appropriate forum.
Click to expand...

Just for fun,



Holster for Ruger 4.

 
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