Questions about a classic : the 119 Special

Wolverine666

Wolverine666

Joined
Dec 7, 2009
Messages
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I’m interested in picking up a Buck fixed blade. I like the 119 Special , 124 and Vanguard Heritage. And I have some questions that more knowledgeable people may know about the 119 :

1) Does it have a full tang or more of a rat tail style tang?
2) Will 420HC dull rather quickly with light to moderate use?
3) Why is it so inexpensive? At $55 , it seems like a steal.
 
1). here ya go.

pics not mine borrowed from a poster here who did work to one and posted these pics for us all.....download.jpeg-1.jpg download.jpeg.jpg

noticed radiused cutouts for strength where the guard meets.

2). 420hc does okay. buck harden's it well and better than any other maker that I know of. will do better edge keeping then other brands with 420hc you might have used.

3.) volume, I assume.
 
jbmonkey said:
1). here ya go.

pics not mine borrowed from a poster here who did work to one and posted these pics for us all.....View attachment 1211694 View attachment 1211695

noticed radiused cutouts for strength where the guard meets.

2). 420hc does okay. buck harden's it well and better than any other maker that I know of. will do better edge keeping then other brands with 420hc you might have used.

3.) volume, I assume.
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Excellent. Thanks for the pics and info. I read that the 119 has been around for a long time so I figured it must be a winner if it's still selling well. The $55 price threw me off a little. I just didn't want to invest in a cheap piece of junk. But the 119 looks great. Love the shape of the blade.
 
I believe the 119 Special celebrated it's 75th anniversary in 2018. They must be doing something right with it! $55 is a good price for it, for sure. You can also find current production 119s in S30V and 5160 for reasonable money and maybe even S35VN. You can still find older models in terrific shape for fair money in 440c and 425m. If you really insist on spending a lot of money on one; they did a run in BG42 some years ago and they come up for sale every once in a while. Copper & Clad has one with a flat ground blade in lieu of the standard hollow grind. So... the basic model is pretty good and a bargain at that price but there are other great options as well.

Personally, I prefer the Vanguard over the 119 and 124 for hunting purposes, and there are just as many if not more configurations out there.
 
MT_Pokt said:
I believe the 119 Special celebrated it's 75th anniversary in 2018. They must be doing something right with it! $55 is a good price for it, for sure. You can also find current production 119s in S30V and 5160 for reasonable money and maybe even S35VN. You can still find older models in terrific shape for fair money in 440c and 425m. If you really insist on spending a lot of money on one; they did a run in BG42 some years ago and they come up for sale every once in a while. Copper & Clad has one with a flat ground blade in lieu of the standard hollow grind. So... the basic model is pretty good and a bargain at that price but there are other great options as well.

Personally, I prefer the Vanguard over the 119 and 124 for hunting purposes, and there are just as many if not more configurations out there.
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Thanks for the heads up. I like the red micarta and S30V variant of the 119. I may pull the trigger on this one soon.
 
The standard 119 may be $55 most places but kind the sporting goods department of your local WM they're only $47. Not sure if that means a leather or polyester sheath ( bought mine elsewhere )

If you see an American made knife made by Buck it's a good knife, no butts about it Buck knives does not manufacture junk.
A lemon can escape their Post Falls factory like any manufacturer but quality is their game.
 
Wolverine666 said:
I’m interested in picking up a Buck fixed blade. I like the 119 Special , 124 and Vanguard Heritage. And I have some questions that more knowledgeable people may know about the 119 :

1) Does it have a full tang or more of a rat tail style tang?
2) Will 420HC dull rather quickly with light to moderate use?
3) Why is it so inexpensive? At $55 , it seems like a steal.
Click to expand...

You didn't say if you're going to use it for hunting.

If hunting.......the smaller 118 and 105 are better suited.

If for display or show......the larger 120 is more impressive.

Your questions have already been answered well by the experts, but I'd agree it's a bargain. All the traditional Buck knives are bargains......although if you add features.......fancy steels and handles and such--the price goes up fast.
 
Wolverine666 said:
Excellent. Thanks for the pics and info. I read that the 119 has been around for a long time so I figured it must be a winner if it's still selling well. The $55 price threw me off a little. I just didn't want to invest in a cheap piece of junk. But the 119 looks great. Love the shape of the blade.
Click to expand...
thanks goes to original poster who took pics and bladeforums search.:) I should have included their name...im too lazy to go find it now.....:D

buck makes no junk so you're good there. lifetime warranty wont let them make anything that's junk. your safe under the buck name unless ya get a fake from ebay or such. buy from good dealers or buck etc you're good to go......

the 119s a good general use knife. youre safe in using but I dont chop much with one...but have with a 5160 version and it did fine. kinda small for chopping anyways. you'll be happy with it........ it's an old design...... with minor changes made over the many years to make it better and keep its price point low without giving much up..... that works.
 
In my opinion the 110 and 119 are "entry level" to the high end. Reasonably priced and the hope is you will get one, love it, and buy a lot more. High volume and designs that are unchanged for years means low production costs. They can be reasonably priced and Buck still makes a profit. The cheaper plastic handled imports get the guys who just want a cheap, useable knife. But the real hope is that your 110 from Wally World or Menards leads to more, with custom wood or an upgraded steel. Same with the 119, maybe you decide to get "every" Buck fixed blade from the babies all the way up to the 120. And if Buck makes a smaller but reasonable profit and you wear that one lonely 110 on your belt until you die without wever buying another they still made that small profit. That small profit times all the Buck 110's and 119's sold may still add up to interesting $. (My 110 led to a 55 and a 112. My 119 has led nowhere - yet!)
 
Buck did the "Signature series" back in about 2005. In that series they included the 119. It had a mirror polished blade of S30V,
full tang, checkered walnut handles and up grade sheath. Very striking. DM
 
David Martin said:
Buck did the "Signature series" back in about 2005. In that series they included the 119. It had a mirror polished blade of S30V,
full tang, checkered walnut handles and up grade sheath. Very striking. DM
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Dammit. Sorry I missed that. I’d like a nice mirror polished blade.
 
pondoro said:
In my opinion the 110 and 119 are "entry level" to the high end.
Click to expand...

I see them (along with the other 100 series knives) as the working man's high end knife.

A knife that a man who lives from paycheck to paycheck can afford, can use for a lifetime and of which he can still take pride in owning because it's among the best made.

It might be quite an investment for him.......but worth every penny.
 
I heard an old saying from a knife maker to charge a man a days wage for a good quality knife that will last. Lots of vaiables there and a diffent economy these days, but you get the idea. Apply it however you like.
 
In the cut-out pic above in post #2 , I don't see any rivet holes in the tang. So I assume Buck uses some kind of epoxy (or something similar) to hold the tang tight in the handle. Is this correct?
 
Der Verminator said:
I see them (along with the other 100 series knives) as the working man's high end knife.

A knife that a man who lives from paycheck to paycheck can afford, can use for a lifetime and of which he can still take pride in owning because it's among the best made.

It might be quite an investment for him.......but worth every penny.
Click to expand...

I agree with this 100%, you could buy one and stop. (I am convinced Buck makes some profit but not a huge profit when you spend high $20's or mid $30's for a Buck 110 at Wally's or Menards) and this may be your once in a lifetime purchase. Same with a $50-ish Buck 119. But Buck would prefer that you start collecting! :)
 
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