When I think of Buck, I think of 3 knives that for me, define Buck's identity: the 110, the 118 and the 301. There is a strong family resemblance among these knives. There is enough of a similarity among the clip blade shapes to see the connection between them. The 301 and 118 share the distinctive black handles. And of course, the ebony and brass of the 110 defined an entire category for many years.
Today, as I walk the isles of stores that carry knives, I see that most brands have either a flag model or a strong "family resemblance" that makes it clear what the brand is.
The (crappy, falls off too soon) red plastic of the Victorinox and Wegner SAKs is clearly their distinctive look.
Kershaw's Ken Onion line is arugably, "the Kershaw".
Spyderco has their distinctive circle thingie on the blade.
Leatherman (who needs to be considered) has their core flagships that are at the center of every Leatherman display I see.
Even Gerber, a brand I've never understood, is pushing hard on their Bear Grylis line, carrying design themes through a whole line. No mistaking the new Gerbers as being Gerbers.
What is or should be Buck's?
I ask, because I don't see one and what little I see isn't relevant any longer I fear.
My local Walmart and KMart continue to stock the 110 and 118 and while I think that's great, they stick out as old fashioned looking compared to the other knives that sit beside them. In particular, the clip blades seem stuck in a time warp. Yes, it's the traditional Buck profile but I don't think it resonates with this generation.
In most other stores (hardware, fishing, sporting good, backpacking), the Bucks on display are either tactical like the Vantage or Bantam or imported slipjoints in bubble wrap. Taking nothing away from any of these knives, their design is entirely generic. Nothing says, this is a Buck. I were to put the Buck logo on a Kershaw Leek, most knive folks would immediately recognize it as wrong. Would anybody recognize the mistake if you put a Gerber logo on a Vantage or Bantam or Flashpoint or a Paralax or an Xtract or an Alpha or a?
What would you suggest?
Today, as I walk the isles of stores that carry knives, I see that most brands have either a flag model or a strong "family resemblance" that makes it clear what the brand is.
The (crappy, falls off too soon) red plastic of the Victorinox and Wegner SAKs is clearly their distinctive look.
Kershaw's Ken Onion line is arugably, "the Kershaw".
Spyderco has their distinctive circle thingie on the blade.
Leatherman (who needs to be considered) has their core flagships that are at the center of every Leatherman display I see.
Even Gerber, a brand I've never understood, is pushing hard on their Bear Grylis line, carrying design themes through a whole line. No mistaking the new Gerbers as being Gerbers.
What is or should be Buck's?
I ask, because I don't see one and what little I see isn't relevant any longer I fear.
My local Walmart and KMart continue to stock the 110 and 118 and while I think that's great, they stick out as old fashioned looking compared to the other knives that sit beside them. In particular, the clip blades seem stuck in a time warp. Yes, it's the traditional Buck profile but I don't think it resonates with this generation.
In most other stores (hardware, fishing, sporting good, backpacking), the Bucks on display are either tactical like the Vantage or Bantam or imported slipjoints in bubble wrap. Taking nothing away from any of these knives, their design is entirely generic. Nothing says, this is a Buck. I were to put the Buck logo on a Kershaw Leek, most knive folks would immediately recognize it as wrong. Would anybody recognize the mistake if you put a Gerber logo on a Vantage or Bantam or Flashpoint or a Paralax or an Xtract or an Alpha or a?
What would you suggest?
