cb51
Active Member
In 1970, the year after I got out of high school, I bought a Buck 301 stockman. That pocket knife rode in my pocket for the next 25 years, including service in the U.S. Army, and travels abroad, camping, fishing, and exploring from southwest deserts to many trips on the Appellation trail from Springers Mountain and northwards.
It took 25 years to wear it out, and I ended up carrying a mix of Swiss Army knives, a Gerber LST, a couple pod Opinels. But a month ago I started to carry a used 301 Buck stockman again. I saw it sitting in a antique/junk shop for a price that was half what one was new. Aside from being filthy, it was in very good shape with the original edge still on the blades and almost no wear. Taking it home and giving it a warm bath with some Dawn dish detergent and a old tooth brush, I found a pretty nice pocket knife.
It was erie to have a Buck stockman in my pocket again. It seems like an omen, since I had been on a kick about going back to my roots. I've sold off many of my guns and other stuff that I wasn't using, and the guns that I've been shooting the oct is my old Ruger standard model and Marlin 39 from the year I graduated high school.
I realized how much I missed having three blades to choose form in one pocket size package. I like choices in a tool, and having three different blade shapes and edges is nice. Almost as nice as shooting a gun I got 47 years ago and finding that it shoots better than some of the guns that were much newer and higher priced.
Who said you can't go back?
It took 25 years to wear it out, and I ended up carrying a mix of Swiss Army knives, a Gerber LST, a couple pod Opinels. But a month ago I started to carry a used 301 Buck stockman again. I saw it sitting in a antique/junk shop for a price that was half what one was new. Aside from being filthy, it was in very good shape with the original edge still on the blades and almost no wear. Taking it home and giving it a warm bath with some Dawn dish detergent and a old tooth brush, I found a pretty nice pocket knife.
It was erie to have a Buck stockman in my pocket again. It seems like an omen, since I had been on a kick about going back to my roots. I've sold off many of my guns and other stuff that I wasn't using, and the guns that I've been shooting the oct is my old Ruger standard model and Marlin 39 from the year I graduated high school.
I realized how much I missed having three blades to choose form in one pocket size package. I like choices in a tool, and having three different blade shapes and edges is nice. Almost as nice as shooting a gun I got 47 years ago and finding that it shoots better than some of the guns that were much newer and higher priced.
Who said you can't go back?
