Buck Spitfire Gets Limited Time S45VN Upgrade

In case you missed it: the March Buck of the Month was an interesting one, a renovated version of the longstanding 722 Spitfire folder. This variant comes with an all-black color scheme and, more importantly, the presence of a current generation super steel.

The Spitfire predates the Buck’s current phase, which sees the company regularly producing on trend modern folders. For a while, the Spitfire was one of current gen folding designs in the company’s lineup. Aimed at a budget price point, it had a simple all stainless steel handle, lock back mechanism, and 420HC blade steel – the same entry level stuff that appears on a wide swatch of Buck knives, including the standard model 110 Folding Hunter.

It appears to have been a fairly popular release, and did get a mini version as well as a listing in the Buck Custom Shop, but the line hasn’t grown in any other way. This Buck of the Month release is the first meaningful addition after more than a decade on the market.

The BotM Spitfire brings two changes to the table. Most notable is the blade steel, which is S45VN. Buck was an early production adopter of Crucible’s sequel to S35VN, adding it to their line in 2021 with the release of the Onset flipper. Forget about the comparison between S45 and S35; the difference between the former and 420HC, the standard steel on a Spitfire, is vast, generational. It’s also the only way to get a Spitfire with this particular steel, as even custom shop Spitfires are limited to either 420HC or S35VN.

Then there’s the black Cerakoted blade and frame, an aesthetic choice more than anything, and one that’s accented by the bright green logo etching and backspacer. The pocket clip is coated too, but remains unchanged in form or function; and the Spitfire still comes in nice and light at 3.2 oz.

This is the rare Buck of the Month knife that has stayed available beyond the day of its release – perhaps because of the 1000 piece batch size. Regardless they probably won’t last much longer!

Knife in Featured Image: Buck of the Month 722 Spitfire

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