The battle of the pens (Case 109 vs Buck 309)

D

dogstar

Joined
Jan 23, 2011
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4,399
...It's a friendly battle.

My Case pen knife in yellow CV showed up today. It's my first Case. I already own the Buck 309 in 420HC. At heart, I'm a carbon steel guy, and I like compact, light knives, so the Case 32087 was difficult to resist. My intent is to carry both knives.
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Cosmetics
Buck 309: Basic black plastic with nicely polished bolsters and back springs. Handsome handle shape and badge.
Case 109: Nicely mirror polished all around, handsome serpentine shape, and friendly yellow handles. Brass liners are pretty.
Winner: Case 109
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Fit and Finish
Buck 309: a very strong, tightly made knife. The backsprings have no gaps, plastic/metal transitions are smooth; bolsters and liners are one solid piece of steel. When opened, the blade spine blends smoothly with the springs. There were a few blemishes like rough liner edges, and a proud center pin.
Case 109: All edges are nicely rounded, surfaces are flush, and pins are flush. When opened, the blade and springs have an awkward transition. There is a gap between the backspring and one liner. I can see light through it. The oddest thing is the heel of both blades has been coarsely ground, leaving burrs that had to be filed off.
Winner: Buck 309
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Walk and talk
Buck 309: Nice smooth deployment and good snap. No blade play.
Case 109: The master blade is gritty to open. Snap on both blades is passable, but weak. A little play on the clip blade.
Winner: Buck 309
pensopen.jpg

Blades:
Buck 309:Hollow ground 420HC with good edge holding. Blades are beefy and unpolished. Grind was uneven on the pen blade, and both blades were not sharp enough to push cut paper.
Case 109: Chrome Vanadium, full flat grind (actually very subtle hollow grind), which I am excited about. Evenly ground, sharp enough to cut paper, but could be better. After a little sharpening, I can tell the CV has good hardness. The master blade is around 3/8 inch longer than the 309's.
Winner: Case 109
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Ergonomics
Buck 309: At 3" long and 1.2oz, the 309 is an easy rider in any pocket. The handle is just long enough for a good grip if I need to bear down.
Case 109: The Case is 3/8" longer, and 0.2 oz heavier (1.4oz, not 1.7 as listed). I sense it in the pocket more, but it's still an easy carry. The longer handle is actually thinner than the Buck's, but feels good.
Winner: Tie
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About the blade layout, notice how the Buck has blades rooted on opposite sides. On the Case pen, both blades are rooted on the same side, with the extra liner running full length on the opposite side. This layout seems counter-intuitive, requiring more bend in the blades to fit together.

Conclusion
Based on first impressions, I'd say the Buck wins overall, but I recall it took me some time to warm up to the Buck. I'm not going to rule on the Case until I've had it a while. The Buck was $10 cheaper, making it an excellent value. I'm really looking forward to watching the CV age with time. I thought the Case would be a bit of pocket jewelry, but it's really a working knife at heart. I'm going to give it a little TLC and enjoy it.
 
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The Case definitely looks better, particularly the blade, rounded ends, and more slender handle scales. Too bad about the build quality.

The grittiness you noted may clear out over time. Have you tried opening and closing it under running water?
 
Bob W said:
The Case definitely looks better, particularly the blade, rounded ends, and more slender handle scales. Too bad about the build quality.

The grittiness you noted may clear out over time. Have you tried opening and closing it under running water?
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Bob, I applied some mineral oil to both joints and it cleaned out some more gunk. Walk and talk is better now.
 
I don't have a Case pen, but I've always thought it would be the perfect compliment to my Peanut for small blade carry. I'd like to try one someday.

Thanks for the comparison. :)
 
Good write up.:thumbup:

Of course, there's one more category that only time will tell. Toughness. Those Buck 300 series pocket knives are a lot like the old 1911's made by Colt, Remington Rand, Union switch and signal. Not the prettiest things around, but when the going gets tough, they work.

Not saying the Case won't, Lord knows I've put a peanut through it's paces now and then. But I've got a lot of respect for the Buck. After seeing my friend Wayne use his little 309 continuous for over 20 years, I gained a lot of respect for the 309. He wasn't gentle with it, but it kept on going.

It will be interesting to see time to time updates on this.

Carl.
 
Excellent post. I've taken a shine to the Buck 300 series. I don't own a case pen. Yours looks good.
 
Great comparison review. I have never owned a buck folder, but love my Case pen. I may have to give the Buck a try.

Looks like the Buck is slightly thicker, is that true? One of the reasons I like the Case is its thin profile, slips so easily in the pocket when I am wearing a suit or dress pants.
 
I enjoyed this review very much, very entertaining.
I'll probably never buy either one, but I love seeing how they compare to someone who is actually going to use them.
 
Thanks for your comments, everyone!

Doug, the Buck, with 2 back springs, is 1/16" thicker.

Carl, the Buck definitely feels more sturdy, like a solid chuck of steel. I have a feeling the Case will hold up fine for EDC jobs.
 
Thank you for the nice comaparison (or competition). It´s nice seeing both of these classics side by side. I have some Bucks and Cases. I don´t know, which one I like better.

Kind regards
Andi
 
Thanks for the review/comparison. If Buck would make a Carbon blade, I'd be all over it!

I've been carrying the Case pen in one pocket and a peanut in the other, If you can be "over-knifed" with small knives, I'm there...
Tough decision which to use when needed, but I'm enjoying the pen knife a lot since I got it back. I definitely like the CV blades better than the SS.
 
mnblade said:
Agreed. Man do I wish Case would sell the pen with some nice bone handles.

-- Mark
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That's a fact! Amber Bone, Chestnut Bone or some type of green....I'd really like to see this as the CASE Pen is an elegant useful knife.

I've got some Buck knives, including 309s and I enjoy all of them, trustworthy workers without question. The sawcut delrin is very grippy stuff, the yellow comfortcraft models ,more slippery. I like the stainless liners but I'm less struck on Buck's sabre ground blades-they're OK on larger knives but not so much on the smaller ones I find. Fine W&T on all the 309/303 and CASE Pens I have, this is important.
 
Kind of a Ford/Chevy thing, huh?
Both great, but I'm partial to the Buck. I actually prefer the less rounded off bolsters. Just my personal esthetics. I also like the way Buck gives you a spring for every blade. I have the three bladed whittler version of the 309, and when I'm doing fine detail work, it's nice to have a straight non crimped blade.
 
Dogstar, superb write up and analysis, I enjoyed reading it.

I've got both, and prefer the Buck 309. Bought it new in the mid-80s, and still in great condition. Tough little knife, not too big but big enough.
 
iahunter3 said:
If Buck would make a Carbon blade, I'd be all over it!
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I posted such a notion in the Buck forum. Some people were offended by the very idea, saying that Buck built its reputation by pioneering the use of SS in mass production knives. I guess this is true, but I'm also glad there are other companies that sell knives in carbon steel who are happy to take my money.

One more thing: as nice as these knives are, they still don't beat a Victorinox in terms of fit and finish. I don't know how the Swiss do it.
 
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Very impressive review. I've gotta say I'm a bit partial toward the old 309. I love the aesthetics of carbon steel but for a working steel Buck's 420HC is good stuff. Also Bucks have a style all their own. I've really enjoyed my 309 all in all and plan to keep it in my EDC rotation indefinitely. Still want a Case pen knife however. Who says you can't have both?
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Hey, gentlemen. Do you guys have the ugly coarse grind at the ricasso? It can't only be my knife...
 
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