Hunting knife recommendation for nephew

Why not give him yours since it's one you know is good and use that as an excuse to buy yourself a new one

 

Get him a Buck 110.

 

Yup. A Buck 110 would be excellent. Or a 119 if he prefers a fixed blade.

 

The Spyderco Moran drop point is a great hunting, camping knife. It is not a heavy bowie type of knife, can comes with a good sheath. It has been my field knife since first released. Bill Moran is an icon in the knife making business.

 

Buck 110 vote here too. Right at your price point and a classic can’t go wrong. My first hunting knife was a 119 that coincidentally my uncle gave me. Lost it about 25 years ago and that still stings especially now as I am more into knives and have my own kids that are starting to hunt. But I will never forget that knife and how cool my uncle was!

 

Buck 102 woodsman , they're readily available for about $55.

They're a legendary classic and have been a popular choice for a young man's first hunting knife for decades.

 

Buck 538, Open Season Small Game model. Only a little over your $50 cap, and a very useful all-around pattern.

 

When I was that age, 11-12, I got a Case Sodbuster Jr as my first real knife. (I cut myself on it before we even made it to the car)

A Buck 110 is great, but it’s a lead weight in your pocket too.
Try the Sodbuster Jr, it’s a good start.

 

Definitely something from Buck. Plenty of excellent options, and don't overlook the ~$25 Buck 685, it's surprisingly nice. Steel snobs here would rather take their own lives than use a knife in 420HC, but it performs just fine. There are plenty of styles to choose from, with the 118/119/etc. knives jumping to mind.

 

Another vote for the Buck 102. Great knife and in my experience a far better choice than the Buck 110/112 folders. They’re great knives, but you won’t be wasting time cleaning out a folding knife.

 

Buck Pathfinder or Woodsman and you could get it engraved, I believe the Buck site or DLT will do that.

 

For fixed blades, a Mora seems like an obvious choice. The Mora 2000 or Kansbol would be the way I’d go.

 

Highly recommend the good old Buck 119, then!

 

The BuckLite Max II Small fixed blade hunter. Best $20 I ever spent on a knife.

https://www.bladehq.com/item--Buck-BuckLite-Max-II-Small-Fixed--79561

Very light, nice and ergonomic, and Buck's 420HC is so easy to maintain for a youngster.

For just under your budget, Buck's Small Selkirk is pretty nice as well.

https://www.bladehq.com/item--Buck-Small-Selkirk-Fixed-Blade--66594

Couple of fine knives from a great company. Either one will serve you admirably.

 

As a non-hunter, I feel fully qualified in recommending a Buck 119. There are obviously a lot of knives that will work, and for my own use I would probably be drawn to a Mora or a Marttiini, but this is a symbolic as well as a practical choice, and a rite of passage for your nephew.

The 119is unequivocally a “big boy’s” knife, and it is a knife he will want to own anyway, even if he should come around to something else in the future.

 

Another vote for the Buck 110.
Don't fret about it being a "pocket brick".
When carried on a belt the way it is supposed to be, you don't even notice it.
The 110 was never intended to be carried in the pocket.
If 7.4 ounces is "too heavy" there is always the 110LT, at 3.2 ounces.

For fixed blade it is hard to beat the Mora.
I'd go with the classic/venerable Number 1 or 2, or if you want a guard, the 611, with the red painted birch handle though.

As an alternative to the Mora, there is always the Schrade Old Timer 'Sharp Finger', either vintage US manufacture on the second hand market, or offshore new manufacture.

 

My first thought was a basic Mora too. Inexpensive, light, and still a great knife for the price.

If he is anything like my nephew (now 19), he will lose it ..

I'd maybe save a nice Buck for 16th b day or Xmas gift.

 

I like the two stage process mentioned here, let him have either a Mora, Buck Lite, or even a 102 and then after a few years, the 16th birthday would be nice for a Buck 105, 119, or even the smaller version 117.