Stainz-
My Bucks aren't for sale, either! Too happy with them...
How long ago did you buy the Model 119 at Wally World? Are they still about $34? Was the sheath Cordura or leather? For that price, I want a spare, even if the sheath is Cordura! (I think the sheaths have plastic liners for safety.)
I read that A.G. Russell has 124's for $125, probably subject to stock on hand. Those have the two pins in the handle, like yours. And the Buckarta handles, not the laminated wood. Early 124's had handles without pins. I think they were identical to the Nemo dive knife, which was discontinued as a dive knife because some blades rusted in salt water. Probably weren't cleaned right.
My son is a diver and found that his knives stay rust-free if washed (scrubbed!) off in fresh water with a toothbrush or sponge and oiled. Most divers just rinse the knife, if that, and don't realize that salt residue has to be rubbed off while washing the knife. I suspect the average diver knows little of knives and just sees them as equipment to be used, not especially cherished or cared for. They're used to cheap knives with so much chrome in the stainless blades that they won't hold an edge well. The Nemo blade had enough carbon to take and hold a good edge, but it needed more care than Joe Blow knew to give! So, they took the Nemo off the market and named it the Frontiersman and supplied a leather sheath in lieu of the rubber or plastic dive sheath.
Blood will also rust a knife, but I guess hunters know that and clean their blades better. Also, blood is obvious, and likely to get wiped off. Salt water residue is invisible and rusted the blades because many didn't know how to get it off right.
Buck trivia: The Model 120 General has been used in quite a few movies and TV shows, best known probably being the ,"Scream" movies. You can even find plastic or rubber replicas of it (prop knives) for sale in YouTube videos. One guy showed how he copied the Model 120 to mold his prop knives. I don't know the prices of those props. You can sometimes find real 120's for $40-60 at gun shows. But teen actors playing, "Scream" scenarios want safe knives for that, I guess.
The Model 124 was featured in a Nocona boot ad some years ago. I wrote an article about that for a knife title, and got the background info from Nocona, Buck, and the artist. His knife was shown cutting off the head of a rattlesnake that a cowboy was holding under his boot sole. If you're old enough, you probably saw that ad in major magazines. Another ad in the series depicted a Gila monster about to encounter a wire cutter. The detail in those paintings is almost photographic! It was easy to ID the knife as a Buck model 124. (The image of a Randall Model 3 that once appeared on cans of smoke-flavored Spam was an actual photo; I also wrote a story on that issue.)
I like Buck knives. I have a few more expensive knives, including the splendid Fallkniven brand from Sweden, and Puma. But I think Buck gives terrific value for money, and has considerable prestige on its own. Buck and Randall are the only knives that I've seen mentioned by brand in books. (Mysteries.) Alas, some authors seem not to realize that Buck is the family name of the firm, and don't capitalize it. Try that with Kleenex, and you may hear from their law firm. Or, so my Journalism profesor warned our class...
BTW, you prob. know this, but the BR suffix to your wood laminate-handled knives just means that the guard and pommel are of brass, in lieu of the normal aluminum on the knives with phenolic resin handles. Brass is quite a bit heavier, but some like the looks, and Chuck Buck told me that they think brass looks better with the brown handles and sheaths.
