Alternative to Benchmade?

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Not much to add that hasn't already been said. Only maker that hasn't been mentioned is Viper from Italy. I've read good things about them.

I think Cold Steel is a great bang for the buck knife. Cheesy marketing aside, the Ultimate Hunter and Recon are great knives.

ZT. I love my 350. I like the old school offerings myself.

Don't forget to check out the knife makers here at BF. You might find something in your price range.
https://www.bladeforums.com/forums/for-sale-folders.753/
 
I had never liked the look of Spydercos before either. I also didn't love the feel of the ones I had held. But some of the newer models look real nice. Just the other day I got to play with the new Spyderco Smok and liked it so much I bought it instead of the Benchmades i was looking at getting.
 
Yeah, I decided to pull away from Benchmade myself. Hogue is definitely worth a look. You may also want to take a look at Cold Steel, Kizer, Steel Will, Giant Mouse, and LionSteel. These are a few quality manufacturers that I would put in the same league as Benchmade. If you like the axis lock, Sog offers a similar mechanism called the arc lock. The Sog Pentarc I had was equipped with the arc lock and it seemed every bit as solid as the axis lock.
 
bobobama said:
I've only skimmed through the posts on this forum regarding the so-called Benchmade fiasco/controversy, but I'm just wondering if this isn't something that's getting totally blown out of proportion. Like it's giving the keyboard jockies something to go on about, as is typical on the internet. Maybe a classic case of making a mountain out of a molehill?
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No it's not.
I appreciate this thread as I will also never purchase another Benchmade product. I love my Spyderco's but need something narrower that allows my knife and cell phone fit in the same pocket. My 943 was perfect but it is being sent back to Benchmade in two separate envelopes. It's a big market and I find the suggestions helpful.
 
gnystrom said:
No it's not.
I appreciate this thread as I will also never purchase another Benchmade product. I love my Spyderco's but need something narrower that allows my knife and cell phone fit in the same pocket. My 943 was perfect but it is being sent back to Benchmade in two separate envelopes. It's a big market and I find the suggestions helpful.
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Check out the upcoming Spyderco Ikuchi if you want narrow. Handled it at BLADE and I was impressed.
 
:) Cold Steel !

Great , functional knives at "value" prices .

Unapologetically weapons friendly and martial arts oriented company . :cool::thumbsup::thumbsup:

I'd be very surprised to ever see anything against knife / gun rights from Cold Steel . ;)
 
This is ludicrous. The essence of using a knife is self reliance. Now these folks are set adrift; "everyone told me to love brand X but now they tell me to hate brand X, tell me what to do next".

I'm telling you to make up your own mind(s).
 
Danke42 said:
This is ludicrous. The essence of using a knife is self reliance. Now these folks are set adrift; "everyone told me to love brand X but now they tell me to hate brand X, tell me what to do next".

I'm telling you to make up your own mind(s).
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No doubt.
It's pretty easy to find a new knife to buy...finding money is harder than finding things to spend it on. ;)

As to finding a reason NOT to buy a knife, that seems easy too.
I've seen people say at various times that they will not buy:
-Emerson
-Benchmade (even pre-scandal)
-Zero Tolerance
-Spydero
-Case knives
-Buck (some people didn't like the little pamphlet about God)
-Anything made in China
-Strider
-Microtech
-Bark River
-CRK (after Chris Reeve left, or before because they didn't like his attitude)
-Cold Steel (the owner, country of origin, allegation of design theft/misappropriation, advertising)

And more that I won't even bother with.
 
Lapedog said:
^This guy’s got a sweet collection. All great solid knives.

3VUsarD.jpg
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Is that an SNG with a steel insert? Never seen anything like it
 
BM lost me a long time ago with bad QC, the incident with the Spyderhole, and price gouging.

It's redundant, but I'll restate it: Spyderco is something you must try before writing off. Try one of their classic designs. There's a reason those ugly knives have such a strong presence with enthusiasts.
 
ribeyemediumrare said:
Is that an SNG with a steel insert? Never seen anything like it
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Its a high quality clone I came across in my knife journy. I kept it because the quality is actually better in many ways than the real Striders I’ve seen.

I’d rather not advertise it because I don’t condone cloning. (the knife never purports to be a strider and bears no strider logos or anything)
 
I am not buying many knives that cost over $100. I won’t ever spend that kind of money on a liner lock. BM is still ok with me.
 
Danke42 said:
This is ludicrous. The essence of using a knife is self reliance. Now these folks are set adrift; "everyone told me to love brand X but now they tell me to hate brand X, tell me what to do next".

I'm telling you to make up your own mind(s).
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stabman said:
No doubt.
It's pretty easy to find a new knife to buy...finding money is harder than finding things to spend it on. ;)

As to finding a reason NOT to buy a knife, that seems easy too.
I've seen people say at various times that they will not buy:
-Emerson
-Benchmade (even pre-scandal)
-Zero Tolerance
-Spydero
-Case knives
-Buck (some people didn't like the little pamphlet about God)
-Anything made in China
-Strider
-Microtech
-Bark River
-CRK (after Chris Reeve left, or before because they didn't like his attitude)
-Cold Steel (the owner, country of origin, allegation of design theft/misappropriation, advertising)

And more that I won't even bother with.
Click to expand...

With the internet mob mentality and confirmation bias are strong no matter which side of the fence you're on.
 
Blast it! I'm protesting the protest by carrying my one and only Benchmade today. I sold all the others when the price increased so much that I actually made a profit over what I had originally paid, but I kept the tiny Impel that I received as a gift. So I have a Benchmade to annoy the pro-gun crowd and an automatic that will fluster the earth people, all in one package.
 
I am a strong believer in taking a manufacturer's/maker's ethics/politics/etc being one of the deciding factors in buying a knife. They can be a deal breaker for me.

That said, discussion of why their particular politics would affect my decision is not a discussion to be had outside of "Political" here on BF. Not quite seeing why people aren't getting that. o_O

That said, if one is looking for an alternate to BM, for whatever reason (which seems to be the topic put forward by the OP), then I will throw out a brand whose folders often get overlooked....Fallkniven. Nice, high quality knives, albeit not overbuilt tactical folding prybars. They are cutter/slicers.

Worth a look if that suits you.
 
bobobama said:
I've only skimmed through the posts on this forum regarding the so-called Benchmade fiasco/controversy, but I'm just wondering if this isn't something that's getting totally blown out of proportion. Like it's giving the keyboard jockies something to go on about, as is typical on the internet. Maybe a classic case of making a mountain out of a molehill?
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If...if....Benchmade is contributing to anti 2nd Ammendment candidates...I am done with them. Their QC has gotten so bad they arent worth the effort. I own 12 Benchmade knives, five of those have gone back. Three for axis lock failures, one because the tip of blade sticks up above handle and cut me.

Spyderco all the way. Quality, form, fuction.
 
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