A fixed blade favorite has been revived for the October 2025 Buck of the Month. The 101, the non-folding sibling to the 110 Hunter, returns with an on-season handle and upgraded blade steel.
When the 101 originally released, it was obviously a big deal. Buck has always maintained a strong connection to its legacy, and they didn’t often fiddle with the fundamentals – but when the 101 came out, it signified that the Idaho shop was ready to expand their horizons and, along with other interesting derivations of the 110, explore uncharted design territory. The 101 itself has since been discontinued, but that watershed moment continues to have implications in the Buck of 2025, with many other experiments and riffs filling out their catalog.
Last time the 101 was brought out of retirement, it was in its Hunter trim, with a drop point blade shape. But the October 2025 101 returns to the California clip profile synonymous with this family of Buck knives. The steel is S35VN, a proven powder metallurgy workhorse at this point, elevated by the usual-with-Buck, but always welcome, heat treat calibrated by Paul Bos.
A standard 101, like the 110 itself, came with slab-like wood scales. Here, El Dorado Richlite has been used instead, with a scalloped texturing that brings the different layers of color in these scales forward. It’s a handsome handle in any season, but the muted colors have a rustic quality that seems especially fitting for fall. Also rustic (and included) is a distressed leather sheath for the October 2025 101 to ride around in.
It is available now, and only 750 have been released.
Knife in Featured Image: October 2025 Buck of the Month 101
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