Buck 110: classic folding camping knife

Where does a regular person get a "camping knife" from? Most likely at a local hardware store. And most likely they would not know much about knives and they would look at a display and try to pick something. It so happens that such a knife is the one readily available in many stores and many people choose to buy it as their first or the only camping or outdoor knife. Let's try to understand why.

Many people looking at the picture above would not realize that the knife there is a clone of a signature "classic" Buck 110 "Hunter" that is being produced for over 50 years and continues to be very popular among all kind of knife users.

Just from looking at it the design seems visually appealing which is a good sign because that is probably the most important factor for a first time knife buyer. Secondly the cost of somewhat around $30 is not prohibiting. And after all speaking from personal experience this knife did its job as a camp knife pretty well for many years and still in good working condition.

Many if not all camping activities require a cutting tool and most often it's a knife. Many experienced campers assemble their camping tool set for permanent use and therefore have their special "camping" or "outdoor" knife. Opposite to that occasional or beginner campers could be just fine with grabbing whatever knife they have in a kitchen or a shop and throwing it in their camping gear.

There are many reasons to have a dedicated camping knife instead of a randomly available one. For example, there are some tasks around a camp site that a kitchen knife is simply not good a tool for, like fire wood processing, rope cutting, can opening, etc. A camper might also want to carry a knife on them for a convenience or for "preparedness" and a kitchen knife is not that easy to carry. Also there could be a "coolness" factor and using a kitchen knife just would not do.

Due to the design popularity many knife makers produce similar knives, for example Kershaw 3140 or Schrade 123OT. Let's talk a bit more about this design.

Good stuff

• Blade shape: great for slicing due to hollow grind and nice belly almost one third of a blade length and also good for piercing because of its Bowie-like tip;
• Blade and handle length: practical on the large side and well suited for many camping or outdoor tasks;
• Strong back-lock;
• Ergonomic handle shape that gives a very natural feeling in a hand;
• Classic look with polished bolsters and wooden inserts that is often a reason for (like in my case) of this knife selection.

Not so good stuff

• All-metal handle is quite heavy for a folder;
• Handle is very slick and good-looking but does not provide much of a traction;
• No one-hand opening due to lack of thumb studs or holes;
• Does not come with a clip which is somewhat unusual for a folding knife but probably makes sense because it's so heavy that a clip would not be convenient to use; instead it often comes with a sheath which some people like even better;
• Not adjustable blade pivot point which over time becomes loose and eventually is a major reason for a knife retirement.

As you may see regardless of all the CONs the knife design continues to be very popular for over half a century and does work well for a long period of time. From another hand regardless of its PROs most likely there are other knife designs around that would suite some particular application much better.