Buck 119---full tang?

A

Adair

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Feb 29, 2016
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When you watch all the Youtube reviews of the "best" survival knives, it is usually a shootout among KA-BAR, Ontario, Esee, and a few select others. Buck knives never seem to make the cut. When I started buying knives, I thought Bucks were the ultimate American knives. I still treasure the Buck 110 folding knife. I dare anyone to tell me it isn't a sturdy, wonderful pocket tool. I also have the Buck 119. a scary Bowie knife that could hold its own against other brands. Why doesn't it ever make the finals on Youtube videos? It looks and feels so solid. Is it indeed full tang? It is certainly scary sharp, and the Buck sheaths are phenomenal (unlike the Ontario ones!).
 
Those two were my first knives when I became a real knife-knut! They are good knives, especially the 110 folder. The 119 fixed blade has an aluminum handle, not sure if it full tang or not. But you're right, the sheaths are excellent. They even give you a sheath for the folder! and made in usa they're a pretty good bargain.
 
Embarrassed that I don't know about the tang.
The 119 profile makes it well suited to general camp duties. Superb for field dressing game.
Many ppl think "survival" knives need to be baton'd through hunks of wood and chopping. That type of activity makes for good YouTube videos. The 119 profile doesn't lend itself to that.
I would not hesitate to use my 119 as a survival knife, but i really dont baton.
Agree with your comments on the 110, btw
 
Well, they don't have the G10 scales or the fancy kydex sheath. Or maybe it's the latest super steel. And everyone just has to pound a knife through a log...I'm sorry, baton a knife through a log. Funny how folks disregard the older knives, "they wouldn't hold up" they say. Yet, the knives Lewis and Clark carried really did hold up on a real journey where lives depended on a good knife, not a backyard review.
 
The classic Buck knives are a type of stick tang. That doesn't mean they are weak.

People suggest full tang knives because they are supposed to be strong. That isn't necessarily true. The strength of any knife construction comes down to how much steel is actually in the handle and what the handle does to strengthen it, or not. Some stick tang knives could be much stronger than a full tang that has screwed on handles that don't make up for the screw holes.

spydercobushcraft-p3171255.jpg
 
Basically because your average YouTube reviewer had no idea what they are talking about when it comes to knives, and have been sucked in by the whole "survival" marketing hype.

A Buck 119 is a very capable outdoors knife. (And I believe it was Les Stroud's choice in one of his series...)
 
I love more than many people but the 119 wouldn't be my choice for a survival knife, as that term is generally understood.

The 119 is a big game hunting knife. The very pointy clip point is great for cutting near bones and joints but will break easily if used for drilling. Most survival designs use a drop or spear point for this reason.

The clip point will also chew up a batton and the top edge is rounded so it won't throw sparks off of a fire steel. Most survival knives don't have a false edge and many have a "sharpened" spine for use with a fire rod.

The handle on the 119 has a finger guard to prevent the hand from sliding onto blade when covered in blood and fat. But this guard will cause hot spots when working with wood for long periods of time. Most survival knives have a less pronounced guard or none at all.

The 119 has a hollow grind which excels at cutting meat but it won't throw curls as well as s scandi, sabre or convex grind. It will also be more likely to bind in wood when battoning.

Buck makes excellent hunting knives. They are dabbling in the survival knife market. The Punk, Reaper and Selkirk would all be better picks for a survival knife.
 
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RX-79G said:
The classic Buck knives are a type of stick tang. That doesn't mean they are weak.

People suggest full tang knives because they are supposed to be strong. That isn't necessarily true. The strength of any knife construction comes down to how much steel is actually in the handle and what the handle does to strengthen it, or not. Some stick tang knives could be much stronger than a full tang that has screwed on handles that don't make up for the screw holes.

spydercobushcraft-p3171255.jpg
Click to expand...

Agree with you 100%. Never did like Spyderco knives. I don't have any of 'em. Too many holes. Just don't think they're very tough, although I'm just judging by appearances of course.

Regarding the Buck 119 tang, I'd just add that there are plenty stronger knives out there, some of which I have bought since my 119 purchase. But as long as it's not being used for heavy wood processing, it works fine. That knife was obviously not designed to be used like a Busse battle mistress.
 
So then the 119 tang differs from the 124 tang.

From what I've seen online , the 124 looks like it has a full tang with handle slabs on each side.
 
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As I understand it, a rat tail tang is one of those very narrow stringy tangs, like a rat's tail. Thanks for the link, crom, I see the 119 has a decent sized tang. It's not radius cut, though. Those are "corner cuts". I would've liked to see them radiused.
 
The rat or stick tang is of a thinner stock, less substantial than the thickness of the stock of the blade. Sometimes they are downright skinny. The 119 carries the full stock thickness to the butt. That's not to say the rat tail is weak. I have a traditional Khukri with a thin rat tail that I have been using for over 10 years.
 
See, I have heard all sorts of definitions, but I thought the only thing that made something "rat" was the taper. But if the tang starts wider than the "hidden tang", it is going to be stronger overall. I would expect this tang to be stronger than the Buck/SRK type:
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I do think these terms are so blurry and abused that they aren't very clear, though.
 
I will never baton a knife so long as I have an axe or hatchet handy. I find it painful to see so many great knives abused this way on youtube. That to me would be the very last resort.
However, having said that, in the last resort, I would feel more comfortable, or confident, batoning my Ontario Blackbird than my Buck 119, though the Buck could surely handle it. I would reserve the Buck for hunting or fighting (like Jim Bowie in the old TV series!). So I guess that I do understand. And yet, the Buck is a powerful knife. And dang if it isn't aesthetically beautiful!
 
Even a rat tail can be strong enough, especially if it's differentially heat treated to be "tougher" than the blade. So if something breaks on such a knife, it won't be the tang. In the end, it's all in how much skill the maker had and how much care he put into to it.
 
If you use knife like knife, I would not be worried about 119 breaking. It would not be my choice of knife though for it's handle and guard are indeed hunting knife oriented.
 
Coastiekevink said:
........Funny how folks disregard the older knives, "they wouldn't hold up" they say. Yet, the knives Lewis and Clark carried really did hold up on a real journey where lives depended on a good knife, not a backyard review.
Click to expand...

Well said...I often wonder how much batoning was done on that journey.
 
RX-79G said:
The classic Buck knives are a type of stick tang. That doesn't mean they are weak.

People suggest full tang knives because they are supposed to be strong. That isn't necessarily true. The strength of any knife construction comes down to how much steel is actually in the handle and what the handle does to strengthen it, or not. Some stick tang knives could be much stronger than a full tang that has screwed on handles that don't make up for the screw holes.

spydercobushcraft-p3171255.jpg
Click to expand...

How dat happen ?
 
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