Ok what punk kid like me didn't want one of these in the 1980s??? It took me about 40 years but I can finally claim one as my own :) Thanks for watching!! Like, comment and subscribe!!
I bought one in1985 at Ft Hood,TX for $125. SOF Mag did a review and they really didn't like the knife. I still have mine and I will never give that bad boy up.
Unfortunately they hired Bill Bagwell who hated anything that (surprise!) he didn't make. He lost credibility when he reported he broke a Parrish, but hid the fact he needed a shop hammer and a vice to do it.
My first job (for TWO DAYS) was KFC, TOO!! 1976, $3.50 /hour!! Joined the Navy in Nov. I bought my first one in 81 or 82. Still have it, plus TWO MORE!!! I love them. The last one I got, still had the tissue paper in the box!
I've got one exactly like this one minus the button compass with both pouches. I think I got mine in 85 from Brigade Quartermasters. Lanyard definitely is removable. Love this knife.
Those knives were something else. I remember a friend in high school got one when they first came out. What a beast. Check out the Buck 639 which is the smaller and more down to earth version of this knife. Buck made them in the late 80's but had to stop due to the patent related to the Buck Master. It was a scaled down version of the blade but was close enough to get them in legal issues. Anyway, the 639 is a great knife and I have had mine since 1987. I still use it often and it has held up like new.
I got mine in 1986. I lost one of the hand guards and the compass over the years. I used it like crazy in the 80's and 90's. Still looks great. One heavy duty knife for sure.
Boy does this knife bring back memories! Yes, we were "Rambo Kids" as well! ALL us kids wanted to buy that BIG knife! My mom said HELL NO, lol! In the sporting goods shops here in the Pittsburgh area, if I can recall correctly, these Buckmasters retailed at $169.99! Mid 80's. Yours is in pristine condition. What would you sell that knife for now? I looked at some of them on eBay and they carry a high price tag. I still believe it is one of the BEST survival knives ever made. Thanxs for the review! 👍
Bought mine as a young patrol officer for my local Sheriff's Office and carried it in my cruiser. Actually used it to free the driver in a back-roads wreck where the driver was pinned in his truck by smaller trees, none larger than 3 inches. Used the blade to chop them down and the handle did not make hamburger out of my hand! Still have and treasure the knife and actually bought one of the Ramster clones to play with and it matches the Buckmaster well! Only complaint I have with my Buck Buckmaster is the back screw over the sharpening stone disappeared very quickly and Buck would not replace it. Lost a lot of respect for the company over this. Love my original and have no desire to part with it.
Long before Randall, KaBar made "match safe" handled skinners in the 40's. And that book mentions the design resulted from getting some SEALs drunk and letting them admire a pair of Liles (something I do on occasion). Neatest part of the book is how the pommel was designed to signal subs by tapping on the hull...
The military created these as predominantly an escape tool. Scaled up from the USAF survival knife. Anchor point for waterborne tactics. Lastly perhaps a weapon. Training across SOG groups would proscribe carrying a much smaller folder for camp tasks. Additionally since WW2 there is very little “campsite” protocol in US military doctrine. We hit unexpectedly. Overwhelming firepower. Immediate evac.
15 yrs old I worked all summer and spent all my money on a new Buckmaster. (My mom was pissed that I spent that much on a knife!) That thing was my prized possession, kept it in perfect condition. Frustratingly, it was stolen by a cop, of all people. Still turns my stomach thinking about how much it'd be worth today!
@@HillbillyMusings I had the Gerber mark 1 the mark 2, and the Kabar version of the USMC. Somehow managed to break the tip off the mark 2. Had a decent collection, long story but almost everything I owned was stollen from me back in the 90's.
I bought mine in the mid 80’s..For a $120 in a local pawnshop.. I always appreciated that blade. Unfortunately, early 2000, some A**hole broke into my house while I was working a 3rd shift job. I hope Karma catches up to him. Makes me sick remembering that.
You can remove that part from the pommel, but then you need an additionnal rubber washer to close properly the gap between pommel and handle. That modification makes the knife much easier to handle !
In comparison to the Buck 122 Nemo that the UDT's used 15 ish years prior, in its own right a gnarly fighter of the fairly ridiculous Seahunt inspired bowie dive knife era, the Buckmaster seems to me like a final evolution akin to a Lamborghini Diablo. Ludicrous flamboyant 80's overkill because you can and its fun. In terms of field use, I know a navy aircraft carrier guy who who retired in 92 that I asked and he said he saw a diver with one only once in the 80's. Taiwan makes an excellent copy which I have and would recommend to those who want an affordable version that theres no guilt in using.
one thing i can't figure out: with the back spikes attached, how could you use the knife as a fighting knife without stabbing yourself in the wrist? also, can you screw the spikes in from the other side, which might make it even more effective as a combat knife??
Howdy, they will not screw on the other side due to the angle of them hitting the blade. I think the spikes are to only be in place when you're using it as an anchor or grapple. Thanks for watching!!
Man don't baby that knife. Use it I've beat the hell out of mine and it can take it. Mine is from the first production run. That knife is what the army's new bayonet was pattern from
These knives are hollow on the inside so they must be pretty junky after all most people complain about the mk2 tang this knife dosent even have one! I had a rambo knife from the 80's the blade flew straight out the handle I wish I would have known better I would have just put it away as something to look at at.
