Black Bear Classic - preferred versions?

T

TC

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Over at the Southwest USA dealer site I see a dozen or so BBCs varying wildly in price, the later Japanese-made San Mai III being offered for appreciably more than the earlier Taiwan-made specimen. Are the early mid-'90s "400 Series" knives that much less desireable in quality or collectability?



 
TC said:
Over at the Southwest USA dealer site I see a dozen or so BBCs varying wildly in price, the later Japanese-made San Mai III being offered for appreciably more than the earlier Taiwan-made specimen. Are the early mid-'90s "400 Series" knives that much less desireable in quality or collectability?



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Yes.the San Mai III BBCs were made by Ichiro Hattori in Seki starting from 2007 and ending in 2015.
There is a value premium on these compared to the older ones made in Taiwan.
See here:

 
I don't know the specific years, but the older models featured Micarta handle scales, and then it was switched to g10 at some point.

I have a Made in Tiawan San Mai III with g10 scales that was manufactured within the last few years. It's an excellent knife. The older Japanese models with lesser steel and handle materials do seem to be fetching a high price on Ebay. I would never pay what they are asking, but I understand a collections willingness to do so.

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DayofReckoning said:
I don't know the specific years, but the older models featured Micarta handle scales, and then it was switched to g10 at some point.

I have a Made in Tiawan San Mai III with g10 scales that was manufactured within the last few years. It's an excellent knife. The older Japanese models with lesser steel and handle materials do seem to be fetching a high price on Ebay. I would never pay what they are asking, but I understand a collections willingness to do so.

NBeZ95e.jpg
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Thanks, I'll never be able to own an original Loveless and was looking at one of these instead, just for the basic aesthetics. But I'm not a specific CS collector, and if the one I was looking at is generally in the same class as a Taiwan VG-10 Tai Pan I happen to own, it's probably way overpriced. Well below 300 - OK, way over 400 - no way!
 
Didn't realize the Taiwan version came first. Thought the Japan version was already available and then they did a run in Taiwan, maybe to check their production capabilities. I got my Taiwan one for $100 directly from a Cold Steel sale flyer, and the Japan one was also available at the time, but twice the price. Later I got one of the Japan AUS 8A ones, and the Taiwan one was just as good in terms of fit and finish. Only differences I remember were that the handle scale pins were slightly different diameters between the two, and one of them had a more pronounced "corner" on the spine where the "clip" began...but don't remember which was which (I ended up selling the Taiwan one).
 
Pretty early on, the BBC and I "think" the R1 military as well were the only two fixed blades CS was having made in Taiwan with the "400 Series" steel. Both of these eventualy went to Aus8 and Japan manufacture, then San Mai III in 2007. The BBC was Micarta until 2015 when Japan production ended ended, and when the Taiwan version appeared it was G10.
 
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