BUCK Knives Bantam Knife Line Review and Camping Test.. (is that a thing?)

Knife addict Tom Claycomb goes camping with the BUCK Knives Bantam Knife Line.

Idaho – -(AmmoLand.com)- I guess we all get stuck in a rut after a while. Or maybe it’s not a rut. Maybe after experimenting around it’s just that we final decide on what we like. With that said, if you’ve read many of my articles then you know that I favor a 3 ½-4 inch blade on most of my knives. It’s not a right or wrong, it’s just what fits my hand. But as a knife writer I’ve got to expand what I test or else I only can converse with people exactly like me.

BUCK Knives Bantam Knife

So with the above said, today we’re going to cover the Buck Knive’s Bantam series of blades which is a line of pocket folders in which the blade length ranges from 1 7/8 – 3 ¾-inches. If you favor a smaller folder, which is thin and comfortable to carry, then this just might be the knife for you. Buck offers the Bantam series in four different models.

BUCK Knives Bantam BBW BLADE LENGTHS (Number on the left is how many handle colors are offered):

• 10 Nano Bantam 1 7/8-inch
• 8 Bantam BBW 2 ¾-inch
• 10 Bantam BLW 3 1/8-inch
• 8 Bantam BHW 3 ¾-inch

As you know, I don’t carry a little gentleman’s knife so I didn’t test the Nano Bantam, but to expand my horizons I grabbed a couple of Bantam BBW’s for me and my daughter to test on a backpacking trip that we had planned for tomorrow. But she just had a wisdom tooth pulled and has a dry socket and not feeling good so it doesn’t look too promising for her right now.

But my wife and I just got back from the mountains yesterday camping, fishing and riding horses for a few days and I had thrown them in my pack to test. After testing the Buck Bantam BBW Knife I liked it for a couple of reasons. Mainly that it is lightweight, thin and easy to carry.

The four BUCK Knives Bantam models are basically all the same, other than size, and the Buck Bantam BLW Knife model comes with a pocket clip. They all come with a lanyard hole in case you want to put on a lanyard. They recommend carrying the Buck Nano Bantam on a key chain.

They are all constructed of 440HC steel with a Rc of 58. This is hard enough to hold an edge for a good while but not so hard that I can’t sharpen it in a few minutes on my Smith’s Products fine diamond stone.

I think that it should turn out to be a popular knife. It’s lightweight and thin so it’s comfortable to carry and seems to be built stout enough to handle your daily needs. And the big deal is that it is offered in four different blade length’s which should be enough options to satisfy anyone. Also, if you look above under the Blade Length column, the number on the left of the description are how many different colors they offer in each model.

There’s only one thing that I would change in this series. Drop points are good for skinning but for everyday use I like a clip point blade. Since a drop point is a great option for skinning it’s smart to offer the Bantam BHW and maybe the Bantam BLW (for people with small hands) with a drop point but I’d make the Nano and BBW with a clip point since you’re not going to be skinning your big game animals with this small of a knife.

To end on a positive note though, if you like a pocket clip, the Bantam BLW has one. I also love the mid-lock back location. I’d have to go look for sure but I believe 99% of my folders have the lock on the tail end of the knife. It is more fluid to unlock the Bantam’s. Just slide your hand back and with a gentle push on the lock it deactivates. I like that.

As normal, we will end by listing the specs. The below specs only apply to the Bantam BBW.

BUCK Knives Bantam BBW Knife SPECS:

• Blade Shape: Drop Point
• Blade Length: 2 3/4″ (7 Cm)
• Weight: 1.5 Oz. (42.7 G)
• Handle: Injection-Molded
• Carry System: Pocket
• Origin: Made In The USA

About Tom Claycomb

Tom Claycomb has been an avid hunter/fisherman throughout his life as well as an outdoors writer with outdoor columns in the magazine Hunt Alaska, Bass Pro Shops, Bowhunter.net and freelances for numerous magazines and newspapers. “To properly skin your animal you will need a sharp knife. I have an e-article on Amazon Kindle titled Knife Sharpening for $.99 if you’re having trouble”

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