What is the difference between old and new buck 110?

L

lowks

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Sep 14, 2013
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About few days ago I acquired my first buck 110. I would like to know besides aesthetics are there any differences between the old style and new buck 110?
 
Please clarify the question.
Define "new style Buck 110"
Define "old style Buck 110"
 
Mine wasn't new when I got it in '79,so I don't know how old it is. It doesn't have rounded grip edges though.

 
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If you talk to an expert on blade steels (there are several here) you can discuss the finer points into the wee hours of the morning and come up with a firm maybe. If you whip out your Buck 110, skin, cut up, and package your venison - the answer is no. OH
 
I got great service out of my 440c and 425 110's. I prefer the 440c. As to the 420HC, I have this in smaller knives and it is better, by far, than the 425's. I do not have a 110 in 420HC, though, so I cannot comment directly on this knife, only the steel. (I am not a fan of 425).
 
Old Hunter, "Data in the real world beats lab data any day." From Jeff Hubbard, a long term Buck Knives employee.
I have really liked the 440C and 425M steel plus some of the features of the handle of the 1980 3 dot and later knives. i.e. solid macassar ebony. Look, feel & performance.
Today I carry mostly 2nd generation Bucklites. They have the washer with a rivet in the blade pivot with a lanyard hole at butt. The 1st Selector was a 2 blade model 428. Because of it's features I carry these a lot. Liking the blade grind as well. Hey, I even carry a Buck Workman with a 93 stamp and like the way it sharpens. Great for digging out splinters. So, I like them all; steel, design and features. The only time you'll notice some difference is with long hours of cutting and not many do that. DM
 
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425 is the least performer, generally, in 440A class steels. However, it does have its uses. When I was in Alaska, living in the bush for a month at a time, the knife I had with me was a Buck Skinner, which I had ground the hump off of. It was strong and though I occasionally had some chipping (it chipped a little rather than than rolled) it held up to some serious use in all kinds of weather. I passed it down to another generation.

The same was true for my 110's. My 440C knife was used hard but kept an edge for a long time. The 425 did "okay" but tended to chip slightly, but still held up better than other knives of the day. Keep in mind, Buck was a premium knife to most of us and had better performance than its competitors, regardless of steel. Today, we have even better choices. I would love to see Buck make 154CM their basic steel as it is 440C on steroids, so to speak.
 
In my tests of cutting sisal rope, 425M made 50% more cuts than 420HC. Sharpened in the same manner. I've not had 425M chip or 420HC but I don't slam them in to stuff either. And 154cm and 440C are mostly identical in cutting. DM
 
Buck has always done a good job with heat treatment and edge geometry has more to do with performance than steel, if all are properly heat treated for best performance. I have not used the 420HC in bigger knives like the 110, only in small knives like the 301, 302, etc. The 425 was great for a wilderness knife steel. I "prefer" the 440C and even more the 154CM (not only for edge holding). There was nothing wrong with 425 as a low end steel, but I was glad when they moved on. My 110 in 425 "took a lickin' and kept on tickin'" as the jingle went. I have a photo of this one somewhere and it shows the use. My 440C I passed to my nephew. It was from the 1965-1967 time frame (I cannot remember exactly when I got it but '67 is the latest possible date). It is amazing how these knives can be used pretty hard (not abused) and still be passed down through generations. Bucks are a treasure.

I remember as a boy, I was looked at in awe because I was the first one to get a real Buck Folding Hunter. It was so sharp from the factory that a boy admiring it cut his hands in many small places without realizing it while looking at the knife. (Duh!). I took that knife camping and opened metal food cans with it, dug out roots, cut down small trees (the proper way by cutting and not chopping) building shelters. We prided ourselves on not using tents, but rather, building our own shelters in the wild. That knife skinned deer, fox, rabbits, ducks, catfish, and snakes. It whittled, and helped me wile away the time sitting on my grandparents front porch whittling on a large limb. It cut sugar cane (tough stuff) and carved pumpkins. I have a lot of fine memories in that knife and it stayed sharp, too.

Later, on our farm, as I was older, I used it for farm chores. I finally replaced it with a newer one in 425 (why I cannot remember) but kept it as my camping knife. It was funny, I would carry a fixed blade but that 110 was always in my back pocket. It never left my back pocket as a teenager roaming with my friends. When I joined the Army, a 110 was always with me. Great knife and no other knife I have (many) has as much value to me, nor memories.
 
I have similar memories, Doc. I'm not terribly old, early 30s, but I recall using my dads old Buck 121 out camping all the time. Whittling wood, processing camp food, you name it. He's passed on now, and I have that Buck 121 in its original (like new) black leather sheath. Buck knives are certainly heirloom quality.

Funny you should mention the boy admiring the 110 cutting his hands.. after my brother gave me my first 110 last week, first thing I did after opening it is cut my thumb. Good too. It cut so cleanly that it did not hurt. Scalpel like in the way it sliced through.
 
David Martin said:
The only time you'll notice some difference is with long hours of cutting and not many do that. DM
Click to expand...

very well said. I think for the average hunter or fisherman any 110 will serve them well. I think too many people concern themselves with 'super steels' and need to have the latest greatest thing only because they can.

I could spend $40.00 on a 110 or $300.00 on a 'Benchmade cold steel alpha tango elite' and get better results gutting a deer with the 110.
 
Doug, I thought you said it 'Very Well.' They have to have what's in vogue with all the bells & whistles and latest whiz-bang features. I do cutting tests because I'm curious and want to know. As a benchmark. Folks today are all information oriented and then don't like it when they find it doesn't play out the way They thought it should. But anyone rarely ask, 'How did it cut?' They just want to know 'how much it cut?' To me the former question is far more compelling than the latter. DM
 
Too many changes to list without forgetting some, you can be sure a 1967 110 isn't the same at all if compared to a new one, or even a 110 made in 1976.
George God bless
 
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Boy Howdy, we have been talking steel and cutting power in several threads in the whole Buck forum. To be honest with you folks, with my "carry" knives, I look at a knife, I hold a knife, I open and close a knife. Then I look at what the blade is. If I like it and the steel is any of the 'good' stuff you have talked about, I call it a good knife and might buy it. I have been generally carrying Buck 'Swedish' steel, and likely will continue with it into the new year. That's just me, the old 300 series collector. Collecting and carrying can be two completely different actions. Hunting is the third category........ 300Bucks
 
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