SHOT Day 2: Buck Turns Back to Fixed Blades for 2023

Buck is giving the fixed blade side of their catalog some love this year, releasing two new ones in spring. The Alpha Hunter and Alpha Scout are dedicated hunter’s knives, made with some of Buck’s favorite modern materials.

Although the Alpha knives differ in size and application, they’re made from the same stuff. First of all, both are full tang knives, made from a single piece of S35VN steel. Buck was among the first to adopt S35VN’s sequel, S45VN, in their production line, but in a way the presence of its predecessor here isn’t surprising: it may help reduce cost, for one, and its properties are a known quantity across the board in this particular outdoors tool role.

The handle scales, meanwhile, come in either green-black Richlite (a synthetic material that is seeing more and more play in the knife world), or walnut Dymalux, a resin/wood laminate. Either way you should be getting scales that will stand up to the rigors of the open air adventures.

Alpha Hunter

Field dressing is one of the most complex cutting chores, requiring a delicate balance of raw power, control, and toughness to see it through successfully. With a 3.6-inch drop point blade, the Alpha Hunter falls right into the sweet spot for a hunter’s field knife. The profile on this particular drop point sees that tip running low enough to do its job without risking accidental puncturing – a common bugbear for hunters – and the jimping on the middle of the spine provides a a topside indexing point for detail work.

Alpha Scout

Speaking of detail work, the Alpha Scout looks poised to function as a complementary piece to the Hunter, the blade you use when dressing smaller game or to maximize control. Its drop point blade shape is very similar to the Hunter’s, albeit significantly smaller, measuring 2.875 inches. It has the forward jimping like its bigger brother, but there’s also a dip in the spine behind that jimping. Its handle shape matches the Hunter’s exactly, combining a simple arcing shape with a generous forward finger groove.

Both the Hunter and the Scout come with a leather sheath for carry. They’re slated for release in the first quarter of 2023. These aren’t the only new for 2023 fixed blades from Buck; the company renovated their Pak Lite line this year too – stay tuned for more on that.

Knife in Featured Image: Buck Alpha Hunter

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