Buck Knives 113 Ranger Skinner Fixed Blade Hunting Knife 3 1/8" Skinner Blade, Genuine Ebony Handle

When it comes to fixed blades I'd have to say Schrade USA and Buck built the foundation of hiking and hunting knives. Someone might be looking at this knife and say 'okay it's a fourty five dollar knife and it's full tang construction...what's the catch'? Glad you asked. Well no blade spine jimping or jimping of any kind. No finger grooves and that brass bolster has enough roll to ensure safety if you slip and your hands are wet. Just like the 110/112 models the handle scales are made from a material called Dymondwood. It has a lot of people fooled in it's appearance that it's made from wood because it is very convincing. Feels more like a hard resin to me but it's pretty durable stuff and I'd rank it as good or better than delrin. Buck's brass though? expect it to get vintage(tarnish) on you right quick. Had a 112 Ranger years ago and through a few hours of use hand perspiration permanently tarnished the bolsters...never could bring back the luster but it's 'instant vintage' look grew on me A few things to talk about with this Ranger Skinner...The Blade:Comes razor sharp out of the box with a very fine edge in a high satin finish. Very clean finish job and not that milky scratched up finish on their lower end knives. To tell you the truth I love this blade so much for it's balance of straight edge and curvature it's been more of an EDC to me than a hunting knife. Not that it lacks at cleaning squirrel,rabbit,or skinning deer by any means. It just feels so good to work with either cutting wisteria vines or carving wood. I know fixed blades aren't for everyone but you've a few bonuses here...*The blade size is very comfortable to work with, not too big and not too small*Well the modern knife industry is in such a mess these days as everyone is making lock designs to attempt to match the strength of a fixed blade knife. I'm not going to turn this into some forum topic but from user experience and based on engineering expertise the toughest lock was made by REKAT(Round Eye Knife and Tool).It was called the Rolling Lock and the brand went defunct in 2000/2001.Or you can just save a lot of money and avoid a lot of controversial reviews and get yourself a real fixed blade...step up to the real thing.420HC Stainless Steel:When it comes to this stainless I'd say from Leatherman it's a fair steel, regardless of their heat treating I don't consider them a professional knife manufacturer. From Buck though? they dish out the performance hardening this stainless to 58rc through their heat and cryo treatment. Don't get me wrong if this steel was so high end it would boast the BOS flame logo and there would be no need for them to offer higher end steels. But you really develop a love for this common steel offering because aside from being rust resistant it sharpens up so smoothly...very low maintenance and a pleasure to work with. In edge holding it depends on the person literally-some find it to be excellent others think it's mediocre. Digging out ramps(wild onion here in the south),cleaning small game, cutting weeds, slicing off a chunk of bark from a tree for campfire kindling yeah Buck's 420HC holds an edge for quite some time. It will never beat good old 1095 Carbon Tool Steel but it's good enough to keep a smile on my face. Using Buck's 420HC at work though it dulls too quickly on coarse materials...a trait no heat treatment can mask forever from a 420 Series stainless. Not to veer anyone from Buck's 420HC but their older stainless offering 425M(discontinued in 1993) was more dynamic at edge holding to fibrous and coarse materials from it's high molybdenum content. Overall though as an essential knife steel I really like Buck's 420HC-hike,hunt,use it on the homestead...just wish it was good enough to enjoy 24/7.Leather Sheath:Made from thick leather and well stitched like any of their other sheaths, buck never disappoints on sheath quality.Probably my only gripe about is I wish it had a button snap. The knife holds firmly in the sheath and through this design it's meant for quicker deploy I'm just used to a different sheath style. This knife is overall in total length of 7-1/4" which means two things...*Expect it to be size efficient just like the 112 Ranger is but proportionate*This knife is going to be very comfortable in belt carryConclusion:Between the 113 model and the full sized Alpha Hunter I think people will like the Alpha more for it's jimping and contoured scales to make a grippy knife...like comparing the 110/112 models between standard and finger grooved models. No offense to anyone whom likes the Alpha Hunter as I own one but find if to be cleaver-like despite it's hollow grind...serves better as a hiking knife to me.I like a blade to be good enough to clean small game on my property and offer precision at the same time as a cutting tool and the Buck 113 Ranger Skinner has it...5-stars!

I have never owned a Buck knife before, but the 113 looked like just the knife for me: fixed blade, not to large. I was so impressed when I got it. It has a great solid/heavy feel to it and is so well made with a perfect finish. And it is made in the USA too! How can you beat all this? I highly recommend this knife!

I like knives I have a lot of brands everything from super snobbbery Benchmades and those kind to my 10 dollar collection which is awsome and pawn shops , and garage sales... This 113 and the Buck Ranger 112 finger groove folding lockback. Both of em its just something classic ofcourse I remeber the 110 and every man had one it was the only locking knife in the world. But this one is just my favorite, its the weight of the brass and the solid feel of something made to last a lifetime, the balance and its commander size not too big but big enough to put to an Elk, its doesnt rattle or feel loose in anyway, the materials high end the fit and finish are befitting and actual Shellback, Plankowner and Combat Veteran with 4 tours to Iraq on the USS Ranger. This knife and its brother the 112 were made for me. So I have them. Any Rangerman or shipmate I can vouch for the quality of this knife and the 112 or 110. Topgun Bar None CV-By God 61. thanks Bucks Knives its awesome we appreciate it. I do for sure and can speak for other Rangermen on this, I know they appreciate it. I love the story of the 112 you guys did a good thing. Ill always buy another Buck I got about 10 of em... the new flippers are sweet too.

I really like this knife.

This is a beautiful knife that feels and looks sturdily made, fits my hand perfectly, and is well-balanced. The price is great value for money. I know Buck offers a custom version of this knife, and if I thought the flash of it were really worth it, that would be a lovely gift for a best friend. I plan to purchase the folding version of this, too.

This knife is surprisingly nice. Comes shaving sharp from the box. Solid build quality too. I honestly wasn't expecting much from buck but this is good. The knife has a pretty think spine for the length of the blade and the hollow grid brings it down to a fine edge.The sheath is a basic leather sheath save the plastic insert. It has a small drainage hole in the bottom and though it doesn't snap in, it does securely hold the knife in place.Lastly I think this is a excellent value. The smaller blade keeps it light on the belt while giving enough for field dressing and skinning game. It's also a good size if you wanted to carry it as a EDC I think. I love the classic build materials that will age overtime. It's gonna get a lot of use real soon.

Fit, finish..perfection. Mine came sharp enough to slice paper, and/or tomatoes with Armadillo skin!! Mine only reinforces the Buck legendary quality. Highly recommend. Note size and buy what you prefer for your needs.PS..Sheath is pretty good, with plastic liner. I prefer to remove plastic liner and wet form it. Hopefully a better fit.

I’ve carried a buck or schrade folding knife in a horizontal sheath for 50 years because I did not think about or know about a horizontal sheath for a fixed blade. Prior to that I carried a schrade golden spike in a vertical sheath. I wonderful knife, but large and often in the way when crouching down low to scan ahead or when packing out. I prefer the fixed blade for every knife job. Gutting, caping, kindling, camp setup, and riding. This knife arrived sharp and will be my main carry knife in the horizontal sheath. Thanks Cliff Gray. He is thoughtful, experienced and articulate. For touring on the bike, if the horizontal sheath was black, I’d have purchased that color. But it doesn’t really matter. It will go into the frank church wilderness with me this fall/winter. I’ll let you know then how it works out.