Buck 74

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rwm001

Member
Dec 18, 2007
29
Ohio
I have been looking at a Buck 74 as an insert. Does anyone have experience with Buck stoves? Any input would be appreciated.
 
Hey firestarter, I just had a Buck 74 installed. I'm actually looking forward to a cold winter to let this baby loose. I looked at a few different manufacturers, and the Buck seemed to have the look and build quality I was after. No one here seems to have a Buck.
 
Buck was one of the stoves we were thinking about. They probably were our 2nd choice but we decided on the Napoleon. They were both about the same quality and efficiency, cost became the deciding factor. They may deal more in the midwest and not so much on the coasts.
 
1993 buck 80 here. used every winter 24/7 since i got it, glass clear, 24k gold trim still looks good, fan still runs. I have it set up freestanding. As I posted earlier back wall a little warped, veary little, always wandered how long can I expect it to last before I need to replace it.
 
I have had a Buck model 74 installed in my fireplace for 2 years and we LOVE it... Heat output, firebox size, emissions output etc are all first rate... I think you will love your insert... I completely heat my 2900 sq' Cape Cod with this stove, the only time my gas furnaces ever kick on is in the early morning 5am'ish when the outside temps are in the low 30's and the stove is starting to cool down (not cold just cooling down)... As soon as I clean out the ash, rake the coals and re-load, 20 min and the furnace is off... You made a great choice... Just read the forum and follow the manufacturers instructions if you are new to burning and you should have no issues...
 
As far as price is concerned, Buck is consitently cheaper here in the Metro Atlanta area than other stove manufacturers... Usually $200 - 500 cheaper than a comparable stove by other quality manufactures... I am assuming this is because Buck is manufactured in Spruce Pine N.C just 200 miles from here... Not sure but I would assume closer proximity means cheaper shipping cost for the dealers, therefore you should assume cheaper prices to the consumer... Again, my praise to Buck...
 
I thought the price I paid was good. I got my Buck 74 w/blower & trim kit for $1800.00 out the door.
 
blujacket said:
I thought the price I paid was good. I got my Buck 74 w/blower & trim kit for $1800.00 out the door.




That sounds like a good price, I paid 1689.00 for mine 2 years ago with a blower and trim kit, add 500.00 for liner and install...
 
We're now considering a Buck as well. We have a Napoleon 1402 on order- supposedly were going to get it this week. Now it looks like it may be the end of the month. Well, it's already starting to get chilly here in Indiana at night.

I'm so glad to hear that you like your Bucks. My husband wants to buy one because they're made in the USA- he always wants to buy American when we can. (Good boy!) The price is just about the same as the Napoleon for us.

I also like the fact that it seems to have a higher square footage heating ability. Our house is 2300 sq ft. We have a finished basement but aren't sure if we can get any of the heat down there. I'd sure like to try though.

Does anyone have complaints about the fan being loud? That's about the only problem I've seen with them.
 
Hi firestarter. I do not have any experience with the Buck 74, but I do own a Buck 81 insert. I have been very pleased with the performance of the stove, very clean burning. Other pluses include the size of the firebox , the appearance of the stove and the price. Buck products have a long and well-deserved reputation for reliable performance at a very affordable price. Good luck with your selection!
 
Good to hear all the positive comments on these Bucks. It's nice to see that there are a lot of satisfied owners out there. I like that the 74 fills the middle niche between 2 and 3 cu ft stoves.

Unfortunately, they don't seem to have west coast representation so it's unlikely I'll see one soon. And, their website could use improvement, especially for docs, starting with posting the manuals online. It would help their sales. Otherwise folks will have a hard time making informed choices regarding clearances, hearth requirements etc.. I've put in a request for them to be put online.
 
BeGreen said:
Good to hear all the positive comments on these Bucks. It's nice to see that there are a lot of satisfied owners out there. I like that the 74 fills the middle niche between 2 and 3 cu ft stoves.

Unfortunately, they don't seem to have west coast representation so it's unlikely I'll see one soon. And, their website could use improvement, especially for docs, starting with posting the manuals online. It would help their sales. Otherwise folks will have a hard time making informed choices regarding clearances, hearth requirements etc.. I've put in a request for them to be put online.

They have a manuals button on the home page. I agree they site needs improvement.

http://www.buckstove.com/stovemanuals.html
 
BeGreen said:
Good to hear all the positive comments on these Bucks. It's nice to see that there are a lot of satisfied owners out there. I like that the 74 fills the middle niche between 2 and 3 cu ft stoves.

Unfortunately, they don't seem to have west coast representation so it's unlikely I'll see one soon. And, their website could use improvement, especially for docs, starting with posting the manuals online. It would help their sales. Otherwise folks will have a hard time making informed choices regarding clearances, hearth requirements etc.. I've put in a request for them to be put online.



BeGreen, as far as their website is concerned I agree it could use some updating but you have to realize this is a family owned business in the Appilachian Mountains of western North Carolina (Spruce Pine N.C to be exact) so high class award winning web sites are not as important to them as producing a good product... However thaey do have PDF manual of most of their products online, the link is about half way down the left side of their page and its called "Stove Manuals"... Here is the link
http://www.buckstove.com/stovemanuals.html
 
Double response sorry guys... When I started typing blujacket had not responded yet, then I got busy at work and hit submit before looking back at the thread...
 
ExtraHorizons said:
We're now considering a Buck as well. We have a Napoleon 1402 on order- supposedly were going to get it this week. Now it looks like it may be the end of the month. Well, it's already starting to get chilly here in Indiana at night.

I'm so glad to hear that you like your Bucks. My husband wants to buy one because they're made in the USA- he always wants to buy American when we can. (Good boy!) The price is just about the same as the Napoleon for us.

I also like the fact that it seems to have a higher square footage heating ability. Our house is 2300 sq ft. We have a finished basement but aren't sure if we can get any of the heat down there. I'd sure like to try though.

Does anyone have complaints about the fan being loud? That's about the only problem I've seen with them.


I have no complaints with the fan, you can hear it but I do not know of a fan that can't be heard... I also like it on my Model 74 because the fan is right up fromnt and very easy to get to if somethin should go wrong... I have had stoves with noisy fans and this is not one of them... When I was a kid my dad had a big Sqire freestanding stove and the fan at certain speeds buzzed like crazy.... I have never had any noises exept a fan blowing out of my Buck...
 
JHall said:
BeGreen said:
Good to hear all the positive comments on these Bucks. It's nice to see that there are a lot of satisfied owners out there. I like that the 74 fills the middle niche between 2 and 3 cu ft stoves.

Unfortunately, they don't seem to have west coast representation so it's unlikely I'll see one soon. And, their website could use improvement, especially for docs, starting with posting the manuals online. It would help their sales. Otherwise folks will have a hard time making informed choices regarding clearances, hearth requirements etc.. I've put in a request for them to be put online.

BeGreen, as far as their website is concerned I agree it could use some updating but you have to realize this is a family owned business in the Appilachian Mountains of western North Carolina (Spruce Pine N.C to be exact) so high class award winning web sites are not as important to them as producing a good product... However thaey do have PDF manual of most of their products online, the link is about half way down the left side of their page and its called "Stove Manuals"... Here is the link
http://www.buckstove.com/stovemanuals.html

Thanks! That's a big help. I was on my laptop yesterday and must have missed them in the long list of buttons. I have no problem with it being a family business, in many ways I prefer that. Good web design doesn't have to be expensive or fancy, just discoverable. If they just changed the colors of the button links to group them, it would be a great start. Right now the manuals are stuck between school tours and designer log sets.

I emailed their support folks and got a very quick response. That's always a good sign for a company. They may be small, but they're on the ball.
 
I have the Buck model 51 and it is a very good quaility stove.
 
rm said:
I have been looking at a Buck 74 as an insert. Does anyone have experience with Buck stoves? Any input would be appreciated.

Hey rm, I was going through some of my SD memory cards last night and found pictures of my Model 74 install and first fire... I posted them over in the Pictures forum if you would like to see....

https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/25207/
 
JHall,

Thanks for pictures. Really nice to see the entire process and the end result. Flames look good and the window clear.
 
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