Buck Hood Punk Review: A Simple Solution

Buck Knives was started by a young Kansas blacksmith’s apprentice named Hoyt Buck who was looking for a better way to temper steel so it would hold an edge longer and his unique approach produced the first Buck Hood Punk Knife in 1902.

Buck Knives History:

Hoyt made each knife by hand; using worn-out file blades as raw material and his handy work was greatly appreciated during World War II.

After the war, Hoyt and his son Al moved to San Diego and set up shop as H.H. Buck & Son in 1947. Then, in 1964, Al Buck revolutionized the knife industry by introducing the Model 110 Folding Hunter and his folding “lockblade” knife made Buck a leader in the cutlery industry.

Although Hoyt and Al Buck’s ingenuity may have put the company on the map, it is their ongoing commitment to developing innovative new products and improving what they already have by third and fourth generation Buck family members that have made Buck the successful knife maker it is today. Consequently, the Buck “Hoodlum” is an outgrowth of this tradition of innovative thinking.

The Buck “Hood/Punk” is designed to be an outdoor/survival/adventure knife that can handle even the most rugged and tough conditions. Based on Ron Hood’s design and built to Buck’s quality standards, the “Punk” helps ensure survival in extreme conditions.

Pros:

It is tough enough for any hard core task and the handle incorporates Buck’s Shock Mitigation System (SMS) to reduce shock and wasted energy during use. In addition, it is designed such that the secure and comfortable handle slabs can be easily removed so that the knife can be lashed to a stave to form a makeshift spear in the event that you find yourself threatened by predatory animals.

Also, the Punk comes with a heavy duty M.O.L.L.E. compatible nylon sheath with storage pouch. It features a 5 5/8″ clip point blade made from 5160 alloy steel with a flat ground, matte, finish that incorporates a large choil for your index finger to provide greater control over the blade when performing delicate tasks along with a raised hump on the spine of the blade to provide the user with more leverage when carving. In addition, it also features a very ergonomic full tang handle with a finger groove, a small sub-hilt, black, textured, Micarta slabs, and an exposed lanyard loop.

Although I am not personally a big fan of Buck knives, I have to admit that the Buck Hood/Punk is a well designed knife for the stated purpose of outdoor survival/adventure. At 5 5/8″, the clip point blade is long enough to perform well as a general purpose knife and the full, flat, grind on the blade allows it to obtain a very sharp (if not particularly tough) edge and the matte finish prevents corrosion.

In addition, the 5 5/8″ length is perfect for most general purpose jobs but, it is a bit too short to be truly effective as a light chopping tool and thus, I would like to see it extended to a full six inches.

Cons:

However, as with any compromise, there is a trade off. Thus, lengthening the blade to make the knife a more effective light chopping tool would also detract from its general utility because a longer blade is more difficult to control when performing precise cutting tasks with the tip. In addition, I personally do not care for the large finger choil ground into the edge of the blade because it places the back of the edge farther from the user’s hand which reduces leverage when carving with the knife. Also, the use of 5160 alloy steel has both good and bad aspects.

For instance, alloy steels exhibit higher strength, hardness, and wear resistance (toughness) than carbon steels and thus, they used in a wide range of industries. Therefore, 5160 alloy steel creates a knife with excellent edge retention that is also very tough so that it will resist chipping and breaking under hard use. However, since alloy steels contain less than 4% chromium, they are not stainless steels (requires greater than 12.5% to qualify as a stainless steel). Therefore, they do require extra care to prevent corrosion unless they coated with a non-corrosive finish.

In addition, the shape of the handle does demonstrate considerable forethought concerning the ergonomics of the knife. But, I am a bit uncertain about the efficacy of the raised hump on the spine of the blade along with the slight dip in the tang which precedes it and it seems to me that the small sub-hilt is completely unnecessary (although it does look good).

Also, although Buck does not list either the overall length of the knife or the length of the handle on their web site, the handle seems to me like it could be just a little longer to accommodate users with larger hands who would prefer to hold the knife without placing their index finger in the choil.

On the other hand, I do like the textured, black, Micarta slabs on the handle since Micarta is an extremely tough material that will not chip, split, or crack under extreme duress and not only is it is impervious to changes in temperature, it also waterproof and thus, it will not absorb moisture the way non-stabilized wood slabs will.

Also, I am of two minds concerning the fact that the handle slabs are removable. On the one hand, removable slabs do allow the knife to be lashed to a stave for use as spear but, not having the handle slabs permanently affixed to the tang means that they can come loose on their own or be lost if purposely removed from the tang.

Last, I really like the design of the M.O.L.L.E. compatible nylon sheath since nylon is also an extremely tough material that is both waterproof and impervious to moisture absorption and designing it such that it is M.O.L.L.E. compatible provides numerous different options for attaching the knife to your gear.

We are overall very pleased with the design and construction of the Buck Hood/Punk and I would certainly feel like we were well equipped if we were carrying it into the field, as long as we had a smaller blade to carry in our vest or pocket to go along with it.