I remember my earliest deer hunting days in the early 60s. The knives I recall were Buck, Case, and Kershaw.

Many of my friends favored the Buck. I recall the steel was hard to sharpen, more so than a Case. I had one of each.

I now carry a small folding pocket knife every day. It is razor sharp and much easier to maintain the my knives of 50 years ago. Some are Case and some are Buck.

Why were our older deer skinning knives so much harder to sharpen, or was it “operator error”?

Properly hardened and drawn quality steel is very hard to sharpen, but will hold the edge a lot longer, but is not cheap. Quality suffers when cost's are reduced.

Carbon steel compared to stainless...

I carried a case mini trapper. Remember the old buck ads that showed a bolt being cut by a knife being hammered into the bolt? My cousin Ricky bought one and as I remember it was pricey. Ruined that new knife beating it on a bolt with a hammer. I got a buck stockman in my pocket tonight. Gave up on case when they quit using that grey colored steel. I bought one of the shiny blade ones and to say I was not happy is an understatement. My last mini trapper was in my pocket more than 20 years before I retired it. The bone handle is now smooth and shiny. I have not looked very hard but I find another that is new looking and not to high priced i will buy it.



I think whet stones were a lot harder than most of what is sold today. A softer stone is a bit coarser and takes the steel off faster. They don't put on as fine an edge though. I got an old stone that is light green and black I use to get a fine edge. I am lazy though. I use a work sharp a lot on kitchen knives. My wife wont steel one for some reason. If I dont go steel them every so often they get pretty dull. That work sharp puts a decent edge back on pretty quick.

I recently broke down and bought a diamond stone. What a blessing for those knives that have the harder steel. I'm a fan of of the old USA made Old Timer knives. Very easy to put a very sharp edge on those. I've quit buying new knives , I just get one ebay and buy the older ones I like. Usually cheaper and higher quality than the new knives.

I mostly only stroke my knives with an F.Dick Rapid Steel to straighten the edges.

Not 60’s ...But when I was 16 (1972) I worked at a Ski & Sports shop and bought this buck knife for my Dad...Birthday Present. And when he passed 20 years ago...I got it back.

I could get my case xx trapper sharp enough to shave my beard off with , won a few drinks doing it back in the day.
My Buck was a good knife , it was stainless , could get it sharp , but not as sharp as the CASE .
Stones are no different today than back then.
Just depends on the grit , a soap stone was what I used to finish , then used a leather belt , razor sharp.

I've got handful of hunting knives, but my go-to is a Buck model 105, inherited from my dad. Knife is 60's vintage, Dad was 30's vintage. I bought one just like it for my daughter. I agree that Buck knives are hard to sharpen, at least for me.

Sharpest factory edge knife I bought was a Helle. It is a laminated stainless steel and it takes a long time to get it sharp.

Knives I carried in the 60's were mostly Buck folders with a few barlow's tossed in. My all time favorite skinner was a Queen Steel with a carbon blade.

I wasn't born then, but generally, the harder a knife to sharpen, the better the steel. They're easier to sharpen now because they're made in China junk.

Dad and oldest brother got me a Ruger 10/22 and a Buck 110 for my 12th birthday, in 1975, I still use both. Ruger original walnut stock is in storage, wears a Houge hunter stock now. Buck just got a new leather sheath.

I had a Buck knife, I guess I lost it.

One standard type , one collectable I got while working at a Dodge dealership. Both 30+ years old.

Carried a Buck and a Green River in Vietnam.

Well considering my mom was born in 61 I don't remember knife from the 60's

I started hunting in the 1960,s I was glad for any hunting gear I had and used what ever I could get Once I was out of school and working one of my priorities was to acquire some good reliable gear I learned the hard way that good equipment was more costly And the lower priced items while they cost less where not usually the secret to success .My first goal was to purchase some good durable firearms I was able to get a Marlin 39, a Madlin 336 a Rem 870 in left handed model and a Ruger M77 bolt action .Not fancy but at that time well made and reasonable in price In the knife department I got a Buck 55 , a Buck 110 a Buck 102 and a Buck 107 A little while later I decided to add a Dunn Skinner to what was to become my collection . The 55 has had it's share of use to field dress a fair share of deer It does not take a knife with a 8 to 10 inch blade to gut a deer The Buck 110 is a good all around knife that can be used for anything that comes along The 102 is also a good size knife but it is not my go to favorite When it comes to skinning a deer the 107 is my favorite knife It fits my hand perfectly The curved blade helps to take long cuts along the rib cage of a deer .While pulling on the hide, once I get started I can skin a deer with a Buck 107 in a very short time . I was very hesitant to spend the money for the Dunn knife but I was looking for a knife that fit my hand and was compact .And even more important I wanted a knife that once it was sharp it stayed sharp Time is money is a often repeated statement Well if I start on skinning several coons and I have a good sharp Dunn knife my hands I know it will be a whole lot easier job with a good sharp knife to work with . One of my biggest regrets when it comes to knives is Buck no longer makes the 107 model If they did I would certainly buy a few more to add to my Like shoes you can cnly use one pair at a time .But you still need more than one pair It is not possible to own too many guns or too many knives .

It’s hard to get a good knife these days. No matter how much you spend! I have a newer buck, it’s good, not great.

I complained for years about pocket knives. Even the “more expensive” $30-50 dollar ones weren’t great.

Bought a Moore Maker finally. It’s good, not great. For $70 some it should be better!

Back in the early to mid 80's that was standard dress code for guys in my High School. Everyone had a chain wallet and a buck knife on their belt. These days, you would probably get arrested and charged as a terrorist, even for the chain on the wallet. Oddly, there was never a knife fight and no one was ever stabbed. It's almost like weapons don't have minds of their own..... humph! Who knew? I carried a Case too, by the way. I never did like the steel on a Buck.

My dad carried his large Buck knife in his pocket. It was deathly sharp.

I think he considered it his personal protection and deer dressing knife.

I don't know where it went after he passed.

bought my grandson and [future] granddaughter Buck Ranger folders with their names and a Bible verse laser engraved.

I'm hoping they will cherish them, when they get older.

Does this count? A Buck trapper from the early 70's. First animal I skinned with it was a deer.

Sounds like a perfect way to make a lasting impression on them .Every young child wants to feel accepted by the adults around them lt will be one more reason why they will "CherishThem "as you put it At some point they will realize you thought they where special before they where even old enough to even know who you where .

For those looking to buy knives, or sell, Bladeforums.com is a good site. Lots of info there too.

Thanks martentrapper

Buck 311 Trapper.I have the same knife.Think I bought it around 1974 or 75.My first real "skinning" knife. I still have a couple of the old "Kutmaster" Trappers also.Today my every day pocket knife is a Case Amber Bone Mini Copperlock.

I was gifted a Buck Special. I hate it. Actually snapped the tip off in a spinal joint while disjointing a moose. Still have it, never use it. The best I have used and still use is a Ruana

Never had the wood hand leather case type. I did start carrying a Buck model 311 trapper in 1974. Buddy that knew I was waiting to get one picked on up at PX while was at reserve training. Think it cost $10 back then. I lost that knife in 1984 when I changed into my wetsuit standing behind my van. I started looking around trying to replace it. But it was no longer being made. So I went a couple years with a Barlow. Then one day I was in an older hardware store. There in the display card of buck knives was one of the buck trapper knives. I ask the clerk if they had one of those in the box under the display. He looked said nope haven't for long time. But I will sell you the one in the display. So I bought it Right of the display card. Was even faded some on show side from light. Think that cost me $15 or $20 to long ago to recall. So that knife became my daily carry and I still have it now. I also carry two Gerbers one mechanical assisted one just folder..
Pretty much never leave home with out all 3 on me.
I even found another buck 311 at a flea market. Got that stashed in drawer. Just Incase I loose my daily carry again
That's my buck knife story. I do have another Buck trade blade in my hunting pack. It has clip blade gut blade and skinner. But I've still dressed more critters with the 311.




Mac

Sure have. I have had some of these since the 60's and as you can see, they have and still do get plenty of use and abuse.