VINTAGE 1985 1986 BUCK BUCKMASTER184 SURVIVAL KNIFE, MINT CONDITION.RARE.

Description

HERE FOR YOUR COLLECTION IS A MINT CONDITION NEVER USED OR SHARPENED SAFE KEPT WITH SHEATH AND NO BOX (CANT FIND IT) IS A BUCKMASTER SURVIVAL KNIFEBEAUTIFUL KNIFE AND ONLY MINOR SHEATH RUBS AS CAN BE SEEN IN THE PICS.
THANKS FOR LOOKING.
Buck started production of this knife in late 1984 making 2600 that year. When Buck started production, the width of the blade was a real problem. This was before water jets and laser cutters became available so the production options were limited. Their first attempt was a die set that would blank the part from sheet stock. It lasted for only a few hundred blades then they had to abandon that idea. They had some machined out of sheet but they finally went to a forged blade. Knives from this era are stamped BUCK, 184, U.S.A. and will have a sand blasted finish. This finish differs from later versions with a shiny glass bead finish. In addition, there is a tiny dime sized compass which will be located in the pommel which was the case until approximately mid 1985. The sheath will be marked BUCK.
In 1985 it occurred to Qual-A-Tec that they should protect this knife with a patent. The stamp was changed in late 1985, to BUCK, 184, U.S.A., PAT. PEND. A new larger compass, made by Silva, was added and the tiny one was dropped. This new compass fit in the small accessory pouch on the front of the sheath. PAT. PEND. was also added to the sheath mark. In 1985 Buck made 53,000 of these knives,
Patent Pending Buckmaster
In 1986 the knives were stamped BUCK, 184<, U.S.A., PAT. PEND. This is also the time that Buck switched to forged blanks instead of conventional blanks. The only way to distinguish a forged blank from a conventional is to look at the end of the tang, which is not possible on an assembled knife.