New 301's, not so happy

Plumberdv

Plumberdv

Joined
Sep 26, 2008
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8,160
Yesterday I received the two new Rosewood and Brass 301's that I ordered. Inspection revealed the reason that all the pictures I'd seen of them showed what appeared to be poor fitting of the shield inlay.

The shield fits the inlet just fine, the issue is that it's recessed into the inlet and not flush like all my other models that use that same shield.

It's a minor detail, but one that has me a bit disappointed with the knife overall. I'm usually not so picky, I like the wood and brass, but the shield being recessed like that, just doesn't do it for me. :grumpy: :thumbdn:



 
Other than the shield, what's your impression of the knife? As for the shield, maybe beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
 
What if you filled the gap with a clear epoxy and then sanded it flush? Not sure how it would look, but would give you a smooth surface.
 
bertl said:
Other than the shield, what's your impression of the knife? As for the shield, maybe beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
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Not a lot to say about it. It's nice to have the wood handle option and the brass liner and bolsters are different. I don't know if I really like them better than the others or not, but it's nice to have a variety.
Other than the recessed shield, there's not anything really that much different from any of the other Comfort Craft models.
 
bunghole said:
What if you filled the gap with a clear epoxy and then sanded it flush? Not sure how it would look, but would give you a smooth surface.
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I don't think it's worth the effort. I don't like it, but I can live with it. It will be one of about six 301's that I rotate as my EDC so it won't bug me that often.;)
 
Yep.. I'm still ordering one, been waiting for a 301 like this for a while. Although... Those bolsters don't look very brassy in the pictures. Hopefully its just the light, correct me if im wrong.
 
OzarkCreekWalker said:
Yep.. I'm still ordering one, been waiting for a 301 like this for a while. Although... Those bolsters don't look very brassy in the pictures. Hopefully its just the light, correct me if im wrong.
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They are just about the same as those on a 110 or 112.
 
I tend to agree with you about the appearance of the deep inlay. But, it is probably an intentional design. I just lookd at my vantage which appears to have the same shield and it is also recessed though not as obvious because its a larger handle, if it were not it would scratch up and look like heck in no time, so the recess protects it. Therefore i'd say its one of those catch 20 things or damned if ya do, damned if ya don't. Seems there's always got to be compromises.
 
st8yd said:
I tend to agree with you about the appearance of the deep inlay. But, it is probably an intentional design. I just lookd at my vantage which appears to have the same shield and it is also recessed though not as obvious because its a larger handle, if it were not it would scratch up and look like heck in no time, so the recess protects it. Therefore i'd say its one of those catch 20 things or damned if ya do, damned if ya don't. Seems there's always got to be compromises.
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Well, I have quite a few knives with that same shield and none of them are recessed. Those include other 301's and the single blade 302's. If Buck is concerned with the shields getting scratched up, why not do it on all of them?
 
Plumb,, I will have discussion on this with Joe H. at Blade show and get back with you........In the perfect world I would have put a brass knife,bolt and hammer shield on it......300
 
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Plumberdv said:
Well, I have quite a few knives with that same shield and none of them are recessed. Those include other 301's and the single blade 302's. If Buck is concerned with the shields getting scratched up, why not do it on all of them?
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Well it sounded like a logical answer anyway. LOL I only got one with that shield, the vantage. Speaking of shields, I like the pewter or cast looking anvil shield the best.
 
300Bucks said:
Plumb,, I will have discussion on this with Joe H. at Blade show and get back with you........In the perfect world I would have put a brass knife,bolt and hammer shield on it......300
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Same here.

As an aside, I bought a yellow 301 with that shield when they first came out and right away the shield fell out in my pocket. It appeared to have been held in by a thick black "pad" of some sticky stuff. I tried to just push it back in and reuse the original adhesive, but it fell out again. I then used a dab of epoxy to glue it in and it's stayed ever since, but it's now recessed just like the new rosewood model.

Perhaps they've changed to a thin type adhesive.
 
I sorta like this also.......



PS Was trying to pull KBH shield from old one and turn it brass colored and put it on yours but gave up. Need to go to Photoshop college, wood is OK...Maybe some day the custom shop will offer laser etching our initials in the scales.....Leesa Martin etched me on the back of my ivory 303. 300

 
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Thanks, 300. A few years back I purchased a few 301's from the Signature Series when they first came out to be given as gifts. On these knives the shield was not recessed but flush and the cut out very close around the emblem. Very good fit and finish. DM
 
That does seem to be a deeper recess than on my faithful ole yeller 301.I still like the old N/S models the best.
 
I agree that the shield on Plumberdv's is shoddy. I would not be happy with that. I would hope that a replacement would be offered. Other than that flaw, it looks great.
 
I too prefer the KBH shield to the more contemporary one, but I don't feel like it's a total deal breaker, I still would like to get one. It's good to see Buck paying a bit of attention to the 300s, and trying to add some variety.
 
I have been holding off on my judgment of these but I just cant make myself like them. I love the Red wood Chairman series but this Rosewood and Brass just doesn't suit me at all. But I guess if everyone liked the same thing Buck would only make one knife. It reminds of the old Sears Craftsman knives that had the brass bolsters.
 
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