I just got the Alpha Hunter Select the other day and I love the way it works on a cutting board. such a good cutter. 420hc doesnt hold an edge for very long, but it is quite tough, quite stainless, and way easy to sharpen and maintain. If I get an Elite series Alpha knife I think ill go for the Scout, which is the smallest size from the Alpha line.
I opted for the September buck of the month alpha guide. It ks also magna but the blade is coated. Here is some background. I harvest several deer a year. I have been using the Alaskan guide bobcat and mini hatchet combo in D2 with a kershaw (discontinued) zip blade knife (too many times reaching in the cavity tonsever the esophagus only to slice myself) to gut/field dress and then process my game animals. For those tasks that set excells with the draw back of small rust pitting even if I wash them immediately after arriving back at camp. The D2 holds a razor sharp edge all the way through the process and only needs a quick strop to touch up after being washed, oiled before being placed back in the sheaths and into my gut bag. I was also gifted a havalon for Christmas and while you dont have to worry about surface rust and pitting like you do with the D2, you do have to contend with canging out differnt blade styles with bloody sticky wet hands or gloves and that creates a differnet set of problems. I am a huge fan of magna and own 2 folders (spyder co cru wear, viper knives magna) as well as 2 dawson (one 9"blade rambo style and one 4" blade utility) i forget the exact names but I have used those four for over a year now and have been extremely impressed. Hence the reason I bought the alpha guide last month. I have too been impressed with that knife to this point. I did call buck when placing the knife order and paid for the leather sheath because i hate kydex sheaths for a belt knife because i continuously break them with normal wear use. One of the things that impressed me over my magna dawson knives is the buck is noticeably lighter. All 5 of the magna are more than razor sharp and stay that way even after use. I have used them in the kitchen for food prep, theough meat occasionally hitting bone as well as vegetables and russet potatoes. Nothing dulls a blade quicker then russet potatoes. My point with all this is that the magna and D2 both hold an edge very similar and will complete my tasks start to finish with out needing a touch up. The down side to the D2 is the additional maintenance of removing that surface rust and pitting. Now compare that to the $250 for all three gut knives i use vrs the $275+ for each of the buck offerings in magna. So $250 for D2 set of 3 vrs $825 ish for a magna set of 3. Thats a substantial difference. Not to mention buck doesnt offer the mini hatchet in magna yet either and i prefer that over a saw for the pelvic bone on a buck or bull and the pelvic/rib cage on a doe or cow. Will I buy the scout and the hunter to complete my set, yes over time I will. Will I use them to field dress an animal, at some point yes I will. Will I use them to process animals back at camp, absolutely unequivocally yes. That is exactly one of the tasks i will use them for. I will also edc them both hunting and in town. They will see alot of use for camp tasks, food prep, and other assorted adventures including fishing as the magna steel has a huge advantage over D2 in wet environments. I also want to add that i do see an advantage in the handle material as well as fit and finish in the magna vrs D2 i mentioned. While the handle material on the D2 set is very grippy even when caked with blood and fat, they dont have a deep pattern like the magnacut knives do. When using them i feel like you really have to constantly affirm your grip with more tension on the handle to assure you wont slip and while thats ok for 15-20 minutes of use, its not ok for an hour or two of use and definitely reaults in hand fatigue resulting in periodic brakes adding to the overall length of time to complete given tasks. I appreciate you taking the time to go over the specs and your honest opinions on the magna buck. I would like to see a Christmas set from buck that has all 3 knives coated in the buck of the month cerakoted finish as well as a single leather sheath that holds all three togeter in a staggered position. Maybe with the option of using a dangler with a quick snap attachment loop.
Just ordered mine. I was also surprised to see not much attention with the new alpha scout in magnacut steel and the kydex sheath. The previous models are popular.
Awesome! I'll be interested in your assessment of it down the road! I can only imagine that people are awaiting hunting season to really test the magnacut version properly before posting anything, but perhaps that's not accurate. Admittedly, it is a relatively expensive knife, and so perhaps people are opting for the S35V models or lower instead.
Hit up 7 rattles bushcraft for a good kydex sheath. Or you could put an o ring where the handle meets the blade. Maybe that will give you better retention
Thanks for the suggestions, and for watching! I think with the retaining lanyard, it will be ok, but I'll keep those in mind. My basic point was for a knife at this price range, the Kydex sheath's retention of the knife should be far better, and an owner shouldn't then have to turn around and pay more money for an aftermarket sheath, or make modifications to make the sheath retention work properly. If Terava in Finland can do it very, very well for a $150 (Cdn) bushcraft knife (i.e. Terävä Jääkäripuukko) including taxes and shipping that includes a first-rate Boltoron sheath, Buck should certainly be able to it properly for a knife that costs about $390 (Cdn) (taxes and shipping costs included).
@@PonderosaOutdoors-20-gauge Let’s just say that I have connections so I paid $130 for mine. I agree, though, add 1/2 more kydex that covers a small portion of the handle, and put a thumb ramp. I actually have a taco kydex sheath with an ulti-clip so it chills in my front pocket
@@PonderosaOutdoors-20-gauge I bet if you called Buck and requested a leather sheath, they would send you one. The leather sheaths for the S35vn version are really nice.
Haha! I share your pain.....I agonized over that same decision. I may well opt to get the 662 later this year. I think it might actually serve as a slightly better skinning knife than the 664.
I just got the Alpha Hunter Select the other day and I love the way it works on a cutting board. such a good cutter. 420hc doesnt hold an edge for very long, but it is quite tough, quite stainless, and way easy to sharpen and maintain. If I get an Elite series Alpha knife I think ill go for the Scout, which is the smallest size from the Alpha line.
Nice! I agree - the Scout would be a nice size. I really agonized over whether to go for the Scout vs this one!
I opted for the September buck of the month alpha guide. It ks also magna but the blade is coated. Here is some background. I harvest several deer a year. I have been using the Alaskan guide bobcat and mini hatchet combo in D2 with a kershaw (discontinued) zip blade knife (too many times reaching in the cavity tonsever the esophagus only to slice myself) to gut/field dress and then process my game animals. For those tasks that set excells with the draw back of small rust pitting even if I wash them immediately after arriving back at camp. The D2 holds a razor sharp edge all the way through the process and only needs a quick strop to touch up after being washed, oiled before being placed back in the sheaths and into my gut bag. I was also gifted a havalon for Christmas and while you dont have to worry about surface rust and pitting like you do with the D2, you do have to contend with canging out differnt blade styles with bloody sticky wet hands or gloves and that creates a differnet set of problems. I am a huge fan of magna and own 2 folders (spyder co cru wear, viper knives magna) as well as 2 dawson (one 9"blade rambo style and one 4" blade utility) i forget the exact names but I have used those four for over a year now and have been extremely impressed. Hence the reason I bought the alpha guide last month. I have too been impressed with that knife to this point. I did call buck when placing the knife order and paid for the leather sheath because i hate kydex sheaths for a belt knife because i continuously break them with normal wear use. One of the things that impressed me over my magna dawson knives is the buck is noticeably lighter. All 5 of the magna are more than razor sharp and stay that way even after use. I have used them in the kitchen for food prep, theough meat occasionally hitting bone as well as vegetables and russet potatoes. Nothing dulls a blade quicker then russet potatoes. My point with all this is that the magna and D2 both hold an edge very similar and will complete my tasks start to finish with out needing a touch up. The down side to the D2 is the additional maintenance of removing that surface rust and pitting. Now compare that to the $250 for all three gut knives i use vrs the $275+ for each of the buck offerings in magna. So $250 for D2 set of 3 vrs $825 ish for a magna set of 3. Thats a substantial difference. Not to mention buck doesnt offer the mini hatchet in magna yet either and i prefer that over a saw for the pelvic bone on a buck or bull and the pelvic/rib cage on a doe or cow. Will I buy the scout and the hunter to complete my set, yes over time I will. Will I use them to field dress an animal, at some point yes I will. Will I use them to process animals back at camp, absolutely unequivocally yes. That is exactly one of the tasks i will use them for. I will also edc them both hunting and in town. They will see alot of use for camp tasks, food prep, and other assorted adventures including fishing as the magna steel has a huge advantage over D2 in wet environments. I also want to add that i do see an advantage in the handle material as well as fit and finish in the magna vrs D2 i mentioned. While the handle material on the D2 set is very grippy even when caked with blood and fat, they dont have a deep pattern like the magnacut knives do. When using them i feel like you really have to constantly affirm your grip with more tension on the handle to assure you wont slip and while thats ok for 15-20 minutes of use, its not ok for an hour or two of use and definitely reaults in hand fatigue resulting in periodic brakes adding to the overall length of time to complete given tasks. I appreciate you taking the time to go over the specs and your honest opinions on the magna buck. I would like to see a Christmas set from buck that has all 3 knives coated in the buck of the month cerakoted finish as well as a single leather sheath that holds all three togeter in a staggered position. Maybe with the option of using a dangler with a quick snap attachment loop.
Just ordered mine. I was also surprised to see not much attention with the new alpha scout in magnacut steel and the kydex sheath. The previous models are popular.
Awesome! I'll be interested in your assessment of it down the road! I can only imagine that people are awaiting hunting season to really test the magnacut version properly before posting anything, but perhaps that's not accurate. Admittedly, it is a relatively expensive knife, and so perhaps people are opting for the S35V models or lower instead.
Hit up 7 rattles bushcraft for a good kydex sheath. Or you could put an o ring where the handle meets the blade. Maybe that will give you better retention
Thanks for the suggestions, and for watching! I think with the retaining lanyard, it will be ok, but I'll keep those in mind. My basic point was for a knife at this price range, the Kydex sheath's retention of the knife should be far better, and an owner shouldn't then have to turn around and pay more money for an aftermarket sheath, or make modifications to make the sheath retention work properly. If Terava in Finland can do it very, very well for a $150 (Cdn) bushcraft knife (i.e. Terävä Jääkäripuukko) including taxes and shipping that includes a first-rate Boltoron sheath, Buck should certainly be able to it properly for a knife that costs about $390 (Cdn) (taxes and shipping costs included).
@@PonderosaOutdoors-20-gauge Let’s just say that I have connections so I paid $130 for mine. I agree, though, add 1/2 more kydex that covers a small portion of the handle, and put a thumb ramp. I actually have a taco kydex sheath with an ulti-clip so it chills in my front pocket
@@PonderosaOutdoors-20-gauge I bet if you called Buck and requested a leather sheath, they would send you one. The leather sheaths for the S35vn version are really nice.
geez, I just can't decide whether 664 or 662 magnacut 😂
Haha! I share your pain.....I agonized over that same decision. I may well opt to get the 662 later this year. I think it might actually serve as a slightly better skinning knife than the 664.
I have the 663 alpha guide magnacut I really like it. It’s a very comfortable handle and nimble knife. Kinda reminds me of a outdoors chef knife
Nicely done! I’ll look forward to your follow up review after using in the field
@@mikemccortney Thank you! Hope to be lucky enough to harvest a Whitetail this Fall!