Just Arrived! Polished Aluminum Leightweight 110 Folding Hunters!

some it's been answered a hundred times, but for the sake of the thread as google users come on in and for my lazy self.....what is a paper stone? like a paper micarta? thanks all.
 
PaperStone®, created from recycled paper and a non-petroleum resin, is both durable and easy to install, making it a favorite choice for homes, restaurants, office buildings and premiere U.S. museums. Manufactured in Washington State with 100 percent made-in-the-U.S. raw materials, most PaperStone products are certified recycled by the Rainforest Alliance to the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) standards and certified food safe by NSF International.

http://www.paperstoneproducts.com/
 
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New for 2010 is a line of knives based on Buck's timeless 110 folding lockback hunter series of knives.

The EcoLite 110 and the slightly smaller EcoLite 112 are both available in green or red handles. Buck has the following to say:

""We understand the importance of integrating eco-friendly materials into our products, and we are enthusiastic about our major step forward with the use of PaperStone for our handles. Made from 100% post-consumer recycled products, it's the greenest material you can find. More importantly, it's rugged, withstands heat or cold, and is very durable. First used on handles for our Metro, with positive results, it's now key to the beginning of our line of EcoLite knives, which are very light but extremely durable. Imagine a knife with exactly the same great features as our classic 110, but now with half the weight and without sacrificing any of the features and advantages you want and need on the trail or on the job.""

Features
* Handles are made of eco-friendly PaperStone, the greenest material you can find, made from 100% post-consumer recycled paper and a proprietary petroleum-free resin.
* EcoLite knives are strong and rugged, able to withstand extreme temperatures and moisture, providing a very reliable knife.
* They are ultra lightweight, making them very convenient.

Paperstone is used in a variety of industrial applications including countertops, furniture and siding. From Paperstone's website

""PaperStone Certified is made of 100% FSC-Certified recycled paper, water-based phenolic resin with cashew nut shell binder and pigment. Heat and pressure transform this mixture into a thoroughly impregnated network of cellulose fibers that give PaperStone its hardness, density and strength in span or cantilevered designs.""

Wow! that's CRAZY! recycled paper, water based resin and cashew nut shells?! How Eco-Friendly is that. Way to go Buck Knives. Best of all, like almost all of Buck's current and future product lines, the EcoLite 110 and 112 knives are MADE in the USA! Ever since Buck re-dedicated themselves to USA manufacture, I've seen an immediate jump in overall quality, and it's nice that most of their prices haven't gone up as a result of manufacturing in their new Idaho, USA factory.

Here is a sampling of some of the colors in which Paperstone is available:

I'm willing to bet that Buck's use of Paperstone will be successful, and lead other companies in the same direction. From everything I've read, it's an incredibly durable material. Just think, if it can be used for exterior siding and countertops, it's going to hold up very well on a knife handle. Recycled materials just make sense, and often times companies in manufacturing can earn tax credits for reducing their carbon footprint by employing recycled or less environmentally harmful materials in their processes. Remember how damn heavy the classic Buck 110 folder is? Well, the EcoLite Paperstone series is said to weigh less than half of what its brass and wood cousin does! Hopefully we'll see some more tactical-flavored knives in other paperstone colors, with more aggressive texturing from Buck or others in the future. I'm curious enough about this material that I may just need to order the smaller EcoLite 112 (3" blade, whereas the 110 is 3.75" blade).

I really have to applaud Buck for living up to their reputation as a classic, innovative American sporting knife manufacturer. It seemed for a few years they were taking the almost all-overseas manufacturing route, and not really putting out anything that could compete with the countless other high quality companies that produce reliable factory-made bladeware. I can say from my ownership of Buck's USA made PakLite skeletal fixed blade knife, their USA stuff is far superior to some of the made in Taiwan designs they used to put out. Let's hope their example leads companies like Gerber back toward predominately American craftsmanship!


http://sharptactics.blogspot.com/2010/02/buck-knives-goes-green-with-100.html
 
I received my copy of each yesterday. They are both #002. Great knives. I struggle greatly with whether or not to use knives like these.

Great additions to my stash. I may just one run in a deer soon.
 
MT_Pokt said:
I'm confused? I don't see where this has any relevance to the topic.
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my fault i asked about paper stone.

btw appreciate y'all educating me and anyone who googles into the thread to learn about these aluminums and/or paperstone. thanks.
 
My apologies to Sportingspecialists and JB Monkey. I didn't see where you had asked about Paperstone.

Paperstone is more or less paper Micarta.
 
The handles of the model 111 were made of a soft Aluminum because the "engraving" was actually an embossed surface treatment that was performed in a drop hammer. These scales might lend themselves to anodizing if the Al is quite pure, but the knife would have to be disassembled.
Buck's Ti models (186 and 560) were made of cast Titanium and were fired in a controlled atmosphere furnace. The company that made the castings burned down. Most Ti knives made today use stock removal to fabricate the handles.
The new Al and wood handles probably use cast Aluminum as this process uses the least material. Titanium is about 60% as heavy as brass, and Aluminum is about 1/2 as heavy as Titanium.

Some manufacturers hollow out the undersides of their Titanium handles to help overloaded backpackers.
 
I know aluminum is light but it is kind of soft, too. Perhaps they should take a lesson from Smith and Wesson and add a bit of Scandium to the mix? Then the knife would be light, strong, and tough.

Thanks Tiguy, I did not know some makers hollow out their Ti products. I guess it never occurred to me.
 
DocT said:
I know aluminum is light but it is kind of soft, too. QUOTE]

That's not entirely true. Buck (and others) have quite a few aluminum framed knives. The Marksman, Inertia, Impact, Spitfire, Rush, Vertex, etc... Not to mention the guards and pommels on the 100 series fixed blades are aluminum as well, correct?

The "right" aluminum is just as tough or tougher than brass IMHO.
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They make AR receivers out of aluminum. As noted above. There are different grades of aluminum.
 
Now all they need to do is come out with a brass/copper colored aluminum 110. It would have the look of the traditional brass with the weight reduction of the aluminum.......... One step further, offer it with the exact slimmer dimensions of the original 1964? That would be almost perfect!
 
Scandium is added to Magnum Aluminum revolvers for shock resistance. Anybody need a shock resistant knife handle?
 
Thank You, Makael I really like these Titanium knives. They are all from my fathers collection so I know that they are the real Phrobis take apart and single blade titanium bought around 1986. This was knife of the year in 1987! I have some extra blades that can be switched with the take apart either 186 or 560.
 
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I really like my Aluminum 110, now if Copper & Clad would offer an aluminum frame 110 with finger grooves and a high end steel blade, this would be my grail package in a 112 also.
 
I got the feeling we will see a 112. .I'm really looking forward to it! !!!
 
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