New flat ground Bucks at C&C

D

Deere Man

Joined
Oct 1, 2008
Messages
190
Just got an email from Copper and Clad featuring their new flat ground 119 and 102. They have a flat grind all the way to the spine with no fuller. Standard 420 and phenolic handles. Looks like a good option for a bushcraft/outdoor blade. The only thing I don't care for is the laser etching on the blade instead of the normal stamp but i can overlook that.
 
yep and yep. that laser makes it looks cheaper somehow. love the flat ground and no fuller, but that laser I dont care for at all. too big on it. should be much smaller.
 
I've been contemplating, I just feel the hollow ground originals would be better suited for cleaning game. Thoughts?
 
troutfisher13111 said:
I've been contemplating, I just feel the hollow ground originals would be better suited for cleaning game. Thoughts?
Click to expand...

I think hollow grinds are slightly better for meat than a full flat grind but not by enough to move my needle.

I find a full flat grind to be vastly different for cutting hard veggies like potatoes and squash. Not even close.

I find convexed sabre-flat grinds best for working with wood, like making feather sticks and splitting wood.

Given a choice between a full flat grind and hollow grind for EDC or general camp use, I'd pick full flat grind every day of the week.

But head and shoulders, no question, not even close, my most useful and versatile fixed blade is a 5" Schrade-Walden H-15. It has a comparatively thin blade with a slightly convexed high flat sabre grind. This knife can make feather sticks, split kindling, cut potatoes and carve up meat, all well enough to make it my undisputed all 'rounder knife.

This picture isn't mine and I've modified my grip and guard a bit, but this is the grind I wish Buck would explore.

Schrade%20Walden%20H-15%20Utility%20Hunter%20and%20Imperial%20Equivalents.%20001.jpg


Kudos to Copper and Clad for taking a step in the right direction.
 
pinnah said:
... It has a comparatively thin blade...
Click to expand...

I think this is the big issue. I've got lots of knives. The thin ones perform the best, regardless of which grind they have. The thick ones? Not good, regardless of the grind. Since I use my knives to cut things and not to turn cinder blocks back into cinders, thick-bladed knives don't make the grade, I have enough paperweights. That said, I know exactly why high-volume knife makers with a lifetime warrantee tend toward thick blades and thick grinds. I would too. A regrind is the way to go if the knife you love has an unfortunately thick blade or a thick grind.
 
Deere Man said:
Just got an email from Copper and Clad featuring their new flat ground 119 and 102. They have a flat grind all the way to the spine with no fuller. Standard 420 and phenolic handles. Looks like a good option for a bushcraft/outdoor blade. The only thing I don't care for is the laser etching on the blade instead of the normal stamp but i can overlook that.
Click to expand...

One problem with both the 119 and 102 is the clip point that isn't well suited for drilling and the false edge that doesn't work well with battoning.

I think the Selkirk's blade shape is better for bushcraft type uses, but then, I'd rather buy a Buck that looks like a traditional Buck (black phenolic) and that has BOS heat treat, like these Copper and Clad knives.

Perhaps Copper and Clad could put these new knives and a couple of Selkirks into a magic burlap bag and give 'em a good shaking about. Maybe my dream Buck fixed blade would pop out.
 
Thanks for the heads up! I'm adding them to my shopping list. Been hoping Buck would come out with some Flat ground models. :D :D
 
gaj999 said:
I think this is the big issue. I've got lots of knives. The thin ones perform the best, regardless of which grind they have. The thick ones? Not good, regardless of the grind. Since I use my knives to cut things and not to turn cinder blocks back into cinders, thick-bladed knives don't make the grade, I have enough paperweights. That said, I know exactly why high-volume knife makers with a lifetime warrantee tend toward thick blades and thick grinds. I would too. A regrind is the way to go if the knife you love has an unfortunately thick blade or a thick grind.
Click to expand...

I think this is the issue as well.
If both knives have the same thickness at the spine I would take the hollow grind.
Most flat grinds I have seen are on thin knives so of course it will seem better than a thick knife with a hollow grind.
But then again I don't get out much.
 
I’m glad they can produce the different grinds and offer them at reasonable prices. I have learned how to use the hollow grind and have come to like it better than flat. So I guess it is a personal preference more than a absolute state. As for cutting veggies I have a fine set of kitchen cuttlery and for bushcraft I use my 110 Alaskan guide s30v hollow grind or Vantage Pro with no problems.
 
The flat grinds on the 300 series were done very good. A lot of hollow grinds were not but you find a thin ground hollow grind and use it & a
light bulb will come on. DM
 
Lesknife said:
I’m glad they can produce the different grinds and offer them at reasonable prices. I have learned how to use the hollow grind and have come to like it better than flat. So I guess it is a personal preference more than a absolute state. As for cutting veggies I have a fine set of kitchen cuttlery and for bushcraft I use my 110 Alaskan guide s30v hollow grind or Vantage Pro with no problems.
Click to expand...

Indeed! Personal uses differ and so do personal preferences.

For pure bushcraft stuff (wood gathering, tinder making, making shavings, general wood working), I definitely prefer more thickness behind the edge as my hand can more reliably make shavings easier. I also find that a convexed saber grind splits would with more power, less friction and less damage to the edge than a comparable hollow grind. We have a Buck Reaper and use it side by side with both full flat knives and convex saber knives. So we get to see the differences. The issue with the Reaper is the sharp shoulder on the transition between the hollow grind and the flat run to the spine. It really concentrates friction in the wood, whereas the convex saber grinds split more more an axe/hatchet. IME, this is very similar to how an Estwing hatchet with its high hollow grind is very good for limbing but really lousy for splitting kindling compared to a traditional convex hatchet.

For camping use, I prefer more versatility than a pure bushcraft knife. We don't like to carry too much stuff, even when car camping. So I want one knife that is able to handle both food prep and kindling prep. I find modern hollow grinds and fat saber grinds both hang up in things like potatoes. I've never developed a good feel for making shavings with a hollow grind. I'm sure that's just my own shortcoming but it's not from a lack of trying. I find a full flat grind to be more versatile. And I find a thin convexed saber grind like that old Schrade even more versatile. Regardless, for camp knife use, I see these new FFG Bucks as a huge step in the right direction. Which is to say, I pretty much agree with Ron Hood's approach to multi-purpose knives in terms of grinds.

For EDC use, I carry a 110 pretty much most days. I've got 2 in current rotation. I've got a standard brass 110 several years old and a newer aluminum framed one from C&C (my favorite frame, by far). On the older standard, I've scrubbed down the shoulder of the blade so the top half is more like a FFG. The newer 110 is still as it came to me, with a very distinct transition line. The flattened 110 does everything better than the stock blade. The difference when cutting potatoes or cardboard is dramatic. The blade moves through the stuff being cut with much less hang up.

I can understand why Buck doesn't do this though. Scrubbing the shoulder down flat makes the blade less visually interesting. It looses the aesthetic of a sharp clear grind line that adds to the 110's visual appeal. And I accept that visual appeal sells more knives than performance does. So I just live with the need to scrub my Buck's down to flatten out the shoulders. Works better for me that way.
 
that flat grind 119 is so cool...... very happy Copper and Clad is doing these forward thinking runs.
 
so got one. I really dislike the large laser logo. prefer they did it smaller, but is what it is. first batch come numbered which c&c seems to love to do. all in all a great design and excellent execution by buck.

I'd like a version that is full tang with micarta scales and between the 119 and 120 sizes. that goes on the wish list......

this one as is.....is a winner....15452658953284380679343517470120.jpg 1545265934369515631206181728008.jpg

lighting in pic washed out the numbering. it's there.......
 
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