Knives you wanted as a kid ?

Buck 110 was my grail knife in Jr. High and later.
I "made due" with Schrade 6OT, 7OT, and LB7 until I hit 60 and bought my first 110, an Anniversary edition I found at Wally World.
I think I have three Buck 110's now.
The only other knife I can think of off hand that I've "lusted" over since it came out (or I first saw it in a magazine, sometime in the 1970's, not sure which) is the Buck 103.
Maybe I'll get one in 2018.
 
upnorth said:
I remember lusting for a Puma 'White Hunter' as a kid. I ended up collecting war surplus bayonets instead because they were dirt cheap in mil surp catalogues.
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I bought a couple of bayonets myself, and like you, found them dirt cheap at the surplus store. All gone but one!

But how I wanted that Puma White Hunter. They had them one at a time at a nearby sporting goods store display that would sit in the case for months on end because no one could afford it! I thought it was everything a knife should be for the hunter, camper and general outdoors man.

Flash forward from 1968 to the 80s. Had a chance to use on during a hunting trip and absolutely couldn't believe it. The handle gave a strange grip that allowed it to be held only one way. The handle was thin in handle dimension and uncomfortable to use. The handle was really rough too, with the deep divots from the stag and large rivets. The little saw didn't cut anything! Worse, it was awful as a skinning/gutting/butchering knife. Even properly sharpened, it was a poor cutter.

Such a disappointment. I had imagined myself exploring the Amazon, hunting in the Alaska, hiking the mountains of Colorado and on an on with that knife strapped to my side. I was honestly crushed after trying to use that knife in person, and remember looking at it over and over in the hunting camp wondering how such a great design... art, really... could be so bad in actual use.

So realizing I would never own one, I bought a Buck 119 when I was about 13. It has been on too many hikes, hunts, canoe trips, etc., to count. I got lucky! Still have that one almost 50 years later. I have more useful knives with better designs and better steels, but NOT with better stories!

Robert
 
midnight flyer said:
I bought a couple of bayonets myself, and like you, found them dirt cheap at the surplus store. All gone but one!

But how I wanted that Puma White Hunter. They had them one at a time at a nearby sporting goods store display that would sit in the case for months on end because no one could afford it! I thought it was everything a knife should be for the hunter, camper and general outdoors man.

Flash forward from 1968 to the 80s. Had a chance to use on during a hunting trip and absolutely couldn't believe it. The handle gave a strange grip that allowed it to be held only one way. The handle was thin in handle dimension and uncomfortable to use. The handle was really rough too, with the deep divots from the stag and large rivets. The little saw didn't cut anything! Worse, it was awful as a skinning/gutting/butchering knife. Even properly sharpened, it was a poor cutter.

Such a disappointment. I had imagined myself exploring the Amazon, hunting in the Alaska, hiking the mountains of Colorado and on an on with that knife strapped to my side. I was honestly crushed after trying to use that knife in person, and remember looking at it over and over in the hunting camp wondering how such a great design... art, really... could be so bad in actual use.

So realizing I would never own one, I bought a Buck 119 when I was about 13. It has been on too many hikes, hunts, canoe trips, etc., to count. I got lucky! Still have that one almost 50 years later. I have more useful knives with better designs and better steels, but NOT with better stories!

Robert
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Awesome story, my 119 arrived at the post office today and can't wait till I get the notification in my pocket box.
 
Shoot, my first knife came to me when I was about ten, which was the youngest that my dad would let me own a knife. It was a Leatherman Squirt P4 and was easily the best knife I have ever owned in terms of portability and general usage. I have since upgraded to a Leatherman OHT, but I miss that knife (I lost it). I remember I had a friend who had knives since he was super, super young, and I always envied him. But I got my dream knife in the Squirt P4...
 
redcanoe said:
I think you are going to really like that 119.
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Couldn't agree more. Outside of a couple of Case traditionals, no other knife I own has seen the amount of actual service as the 119. It could easily fill all of my current requirements, and probably do so for another 50+ years.
 
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