I know buying a knife is personal decision...

S

Scottcc

Joined
Jan 5, 2016
Messages
41
But I have a lot of questions;

First, Buck allows a few choices to their 110-112 products. I'm not sure which one I want, most likely the 110. Though that might limit my carry, definitely not in MD where I am employed. I live in WV, As long as it's not concealed, you can carry a sword. The 112 could cause issues in MD too, since their laws are very vague.

Second, Buck offers S30C or 420HC, clueless which I would prefer.

Third, what is Waterbuffalo? I'm not sure if it worth the extra money if the black G10 would give the same appearance.

Last, is the nickel bolsters as durable as the brass? The brass gives a tri-tone contrast that doesn't look as good as the nickel with some of the inlays, especially the black and the elk.

I thought about getting a vintage Buck, but I think I will be happier as the original owner and choosing my own options.
 
I'm not a 110 guy by any means but, I have had several in addition to 112s'. I like the custom shop and like building my knife as much as collecting the vintage knives. As far as your questions, these are my opinions... Not knowing the differences in steel I would go with 420HC based on the fact that the performance differences are really don't out way the cost. Again these are my opinions. I really have never liked S30V. I find it hard to resharpen after it dulls, I don't like the corrosion resistance and I don't find it to maintain its edge substantially longer than 420HC. Water buffalo horn is nice but I would imagine it would wear on your hands if it were to be meant as a working knife. If it's going to be a safe queen, by all means. If its to be a working knife, I would go with the G10. Nickle silver over Brass is a toss up, I prefer NS against a black handled knife. The NS has been discontinued at times, thus making knives with NS more desirable to some. Both are nice, but brass looks good with wood. They wear the same, maybe NS wears a bit better. Scratched in brass are easily removed. My Two centavos...
 
You should spend some time at a Gun Show or Knife store and hold some of these models your considering. Nickle silver is a type of brass but harder. It goes well with black. Water buffalo is the horn of a Water buffalo, a natural material. G10 is a resin pressed with fiber layers. A man made material. Two very different materials. G10 is heavy and very strong. How do you sharpen? Do your needs dictate much cutting? S30V holds a better edge than 420. DM
 
Thanks, that helps. Making it too nice would deter using it. I do like the nickel too. Gun shows I've been too only have China made knife venders. It maybe worth a drive to visit a knife store. I'm not too worried about the harshness on my hands, I've been working with glass for over 20 years. I think I will like the water buffalo, that should look classy but durable. I use a Smith diamond sharpening system, I'm a little disappointed with it. I also have free hand stones.
 
If you have trouble getting an edge on a knife, go with 420HC. It's good enough. S30V holds an edge 2 times over 420. I don't think either one gives roughness to hands. DM
 
Scottcc said:
I use a Smith diamond sharpening system, I'm a little disappointed with it. I also have free hand stones.
Click to expand...

You might consider one of the edgepro sharpeners, I use the apex and get good results with no issues. They have an instructive video on their site that is helpful and informative. A master blacksmith, Bronk (Lyle Brunckhorst), sold me and trained me on the system many years ago now at OKCA.
 
My son has more hands on time with the harder steels and he pushed me to the Vantagel Pro which has s30v. All I can say is that I love it.
So, my 2 centavos would be that since you are going to upgrade this EDC go with the s30v steel (you will learn how to sharpen) and any other upgrades that suits your fancy.
You will be happier down the road and don't worry about any abuse. You are designing a knife for you that you will use and be proud of.
 
I recommend you look at the Buck 500 Duke and consider it for pocket carry. It is the same length as the Buck 112 Ranger but is much easier to pocket carry due to it's thinner profile.

Buck 500 Duke & Micra by Pinnah, on Flickr

Two issues...

First, this is not legal advice. Understand and follow the local knife laws to the fullest extent. The same with speed limits. I don't advocated ever exceeding the posted speed limit ever for any reason. You should also always come to a full stop at stop signs and should never ever do a rolling stop. Ever.

My brother in law puts it this way... Never break more than one law at a time. Boston has stricter local ordinances on blade lengths. Boston cops also have a reputation of asking to see a knife if they spot a pocket clip (or belt holster). My personal experience is that I can carry pretty much any folder I want so long as I use loose pocket carry. A cop may be able to suspect that I'm carrying due to the imprint on my pant leg, but they don't have good justification for asking me, not like if I had a pocket clip showing or a belt holster on.

Second issue, the 110 Hunter and 112 Ranger are bricks. They're heavy, blocky bricks regardless of the bolster material or the scale material. They really beg for holster carry and legal issues asides, holster carry may or may not work for you.

If you're set on trying either the 110 or 112, I would recommend getting an inexpensive one (the *mart stores tend to have them under $40) and give it a try for pocket carry. I actually find the 110 to be about the same as the 112 for pocket carry, if not a bit better (some days) as it stands more upright in my pocket. Alternatively, you can investigate sewing seams in your front right or rear pockets to hold the 110 vertically. But even with seamed pockets, both the 110 and 112 are heavy knives.

I find the 500 to be much, much better for pocket carry and with pocket carry I never ever have a problem with carrying and using it. I course, I try hard not to a jerk in public and try to stay out of focused gaze of my friends in the LEO community. As my BIL Mikies says, "only break one law at a time". Or, putting it another way, if I'm being frisked by a cop or asked what's in my pocket, I screwed up badly in some other way!!
 
Scottcc said:
But I have a lot of questions;

First, Buck allows a few choices to their 110-112 products. I'm not sure which one I want, most likely the 110. Though that might limit my carry, definitely not in MD where I am employed. I live in WV, As long as it's not concealed, you can carry a sword. The 112 could cause issues in MD too, since their laws are very vague.

Second, Buck offers S30C or 420HC, clueless which I would prefer.

Third, what is Waterbuffalo? I'm not sure if it worth the extra money if the black G10 would give the same appearance.

Last, is the nickel bolsters as durable as the brass? The brass gives a tri-tone contrast that doesn't look as good as the nickel with some of the inlays, especially the black and the elk.

I thought about getting a vintage Buck, but I think I will be happier as the original owner and choosing my own options.
Click to expand...

Here is my 2 cents worth: I cannot answer your quandary over which to buy, but I would say the 110 gives you more, and better options. Second, 420HC is a lower end steel (not meaning bad) and is easy to sharpen. It is a one deer steel. S30V is a 4 deer steel or more. The trade off is that it is harder (not impossible) to sharpen. I prefer S30V, though some prefer 420HC. Third, water buffalo horn comes off of the water buffalo and is simply beautiful. It is dressy. But is is not so durable for daily use. G10 is a man made material and is used on high end knives and rough use knives. It can be had in many colors but Buck only offers black. It is only a thin piece on the 110 so is not weighty. It is very, very durable. Some companies make hard use knives with no liners, only G10, it is so tough. It can be polished to a high shine and have a similar appearance to Buffalo Horn (black phase). I love G10. If it is not shiny enough you can buff it up. Nickel is tougher than the brass and I love the looks with black. If I were to get a 110, I would get nickel silver bolsters, pins, S30V, G10. You could use it hard and it will look good. Scratch it and you can buff it.

Now, having said that, you can get the 110 from a certain national outdoor retailer from Nebraska. Called the Alaska Guide series, these have Macassar Ebony scales, and blackened S30V blades for about $100.
 
As the good Doctor mentioned above -

If you have a Cabelas, Bass Pro, Gander Mt., an outdoor sports place like those, they should have a fairly decent stock on hand that will let you actually handle them. Cabelas also offers the exclusive Alaskan Guide Buck series that are quite nice while still being pretty reasonably priced. The Alaskan Guide in S30v with the black coating is just a nice knife. I could not envision a 110 myself pocket carrying a 110 though. It's a chunk. Perhaps the Bucklite version as its a lot lighter. But still tough.

They may not have the exact model you're thinking of, but one in that series, so you'll know how it is in hand.

**I forgot to add welcome to the forum, and should you find one you like, you may give thought to ordering from one of our terrific BF stocking dealers that help support our community here. Great folks.
 
After reading, I think I will need to go to big box sporting store to get my hands on a few Bucks. I looked at the buck Marksman, it perked my interest.
 
I don't have a large selections of knives, just a few. However, I don't find the 112 or even the 110 that bad to carry in my pocket. Since my 112 is an older one with squared off edges it is a little bulky. My 110 is new, and it actually feels like it has a little less of a footprint with the rounded edges. The rounded edges make a noticeable difference. I wouldn't mind picking up a new 112 with rounded edges someday. The 110 or 112 aren't any worse for me to carry in my pocket than my wallet or cellphone.
 
You can look up the Maryland knife laws on their .gov website.

A smaller version of the BUCK 110 is a sweet BUCK '55'.

From the main BUCK KNIFE website:

"Classic, compact, everyday carry. Half the size of the legacy, renowned 110 Folding Hunter™, the 55 fits perfectly in the user’s pocket for everyday use. Easy opening and closing with the nail notch and lockback design. Length 3 3/8" closed. Made in the USA.

Blade Shape:
Clip
Blade Length:
2 3/8" (6 cm)
Weight:
1.9 oz (54.1 g)
Handle:
American Walnut
Carry System:
Pocket
Origin:
Made in the USA "

Take a look at this one if a lockback knife is okay for you to carry. Check the blade length too.

My husband has been carrying 'The 55' almost on a daily basis and it fits great in jeans or in office dress pants.

I gave him my 110s and my 55. He has three 110 knives and two 55 knives now. I wanted him to have a duplicate, back up '55'. (I only own and use fixed blade knives. All but one of them are Buck knives.)

The Buck 500 series looks very nice too! My local stores did not have what we wanted some time ago when we were thinking about some of the 500 series knives. We lucked out finding the '55' knives. We wanted to see the BUCK knives in person and that is why we did not order them directly from Buck (Idaho) or from another company at the time.

My husband said that he could not be happier using those two types of Buck knives even though he still has a couple of older, famous folding/pocket knives. He owns only a FEW of those pocket knives now too.

Take a look at the main BUCK KNIFE website. I found that it helps me plus asking questions HERE.

The Buck Knife people in Idaho are extremely good in answering any of your questions too!

Added more here. My husband told me that he owned a Buck 110 a long time ago too. He passed it on to a good friend of his. He told me that if a person could only own one folding knife - he should choose a BUCK 110 knife.

Best wishes to you.

Cate
 
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Scott, what will be your main use of the knife? I neglected to buy a Buck 110 for years thinking it was too blocky; I finally bought some used ones several years ago (Two-Dot and Four-Dot). The Buck 110 has now become my second favorite deer skinning/cleaning knife (second only to the magnificent Buck 118 for the same task). For EDC purposes I don't like a 110/112 in my pocket; I carry mine in their belt sheath. Pinnah has great advice for a pocket carry lockback - the Buck 500 - nice blade size and very smooth edges along with the thinner frame. I used my Buck 110 Two-Dot (along with my pre-85 Buck 118) to skin and cut-up three deer the week of Christmas - never had to resharpen while working on the deer. OH
 
After reading the knife laws of the two states that I'm concerned with it seems that a 110 will be legal in both. I didn't know MD does not have a blade size limit, they just ban the typical knife types for concealed carry. That's the difference between hear-say and facts. I haven't made up my mind completely, but I'm leaning on a 110 S30V, silver, G10 with serrated blade and finger profile, no rivets. it's quite expensive, so I might consider getting a standard 110 and a smaller knife. If I get the custom 110, it will be an everyday carry to have when I need it.
 
I edc a 110. Everyday. Im in sales and cover three states. 110 is always with me.
 
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