American Knife of the Year - Benchmade Narrows

Slice O Life said:
While I appreciate the innovation of the Narrows for moving away from Omega Springs, I have personally discovered that thin knives are not very comfortable for me to use. As someone with large hands, I prefer the feel of a slightly thicker knife in my hand. In fact, I believe that thicker knives offer ergonomic advantages for everyone. Thin knives tend to feel flat and lack the satisfying grip that thicker knives provide. Giggity.
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I actually got to handle a Narrows yesterday and I agree. I have large hands and it's just too thin for me. Phew.
 
Spillproof said:
I actually got to handle a Narrows yesterday and I agree. I have large hands and it's just too thin for me. Phew.
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I would have probably bought it, if it was contoured titanium with a full grip, with the same mechanism and same blade. I guess Benchmade saw the Bugout's success as a call for more thin knives. To be honest, it should still succeed, because most people do like thinner knives if the TRM Atom is anything to make guesses by.
 
John Phillips said:
I bet Benchmade was probably watching the recent secondary market sales of the Anthem (which is going for $450-$600) and thought the market could handle a $500 price tag. What they forgot is that the Anthem was priced too aggressively when they were still producing them and they were just sitting on dealer shelves so they discontinued the Anthem. Does anyone recall the original retail price of the Anthem? Was it around $400?
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It wasn’t the price tag that kept me away from the Anthem per se. It’s more that samples I handled did not have the build quality to warrant that tag.
 
Silent H said:
In 24 hours, nobody has proposed an alternative that meets the criteria. The only one that was mentioned won last year. ...
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Kershaw Launch 15. CPM-Magnacut, over 8" yet still 3.1oz, micarta inserts and backspacer.

Benchmade makes a fine knife and I have a few. All are well made.

I am sure the Narrows is all of that as well.

I just never remember people clamoring for a 2.4oz knife that is super thin.

It is a very nicely styled knife, I do like the blade and handle shape, it would just be too narrow for my fat old hands I think.

When I want a light knife for beltless shorts, I always have my Vic Waiter, a knife in the Mora price class, incidentally.

Congratulations to Benchmade on the award. I hope their improvement of the locking mechanism goes well for them.

To me that is the real story on the Narrows, how does the company that had exclusive rights to the lock technology for many years react to the proliferation of that technology once the patent expires. The Narrows was potentially the first answer?
 
Silent H said:
In 24 hours, nobody has proposed an alternative that meets the criteria. The only one that was mentioned won last year.

I think that says more about the sad state of American production knives than anything else.
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The absence of viable alternatives meeting the criteria within a 24-hour timeframe, with last year's winner being the only mention, speaks volumes about the disappointing state of American production knives. It reflects a concerning lack of innovation and progress in the industry. Maybe we are reaching a plateau in knife design.
 
Slice O Life said:
The absence of viable alternatives meeting the criteria within a 24-hour timeframe, with last year's winner being the only mention, speaks volumes about the disappointing state of American production knives. It reflects a concerning lack of innovation and progress in the industry. Maybe we are reaching a plateau in knife design.
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The knife industry like many other industry is change for the sake of change. What is funny is how consumers fall for it. This is why super steel exists as the carrot and exotic materials are the stick.
 
I have zero idea how this knife scored the award. I struggle to see the innovation, and honestly, it's a production folder that's priced like a midtech. You can get much better knives for that same money, and which will have a better design, with one more conducive to actual work. Hell, many of the knives in that price range are coming with Magnacut, which I'd rather have in a knife over BM's M390 (that's through personal experience). Comparitively, the Anthem was expensive in its day, but at least it was much better at being an actual knife.
 
ricklikesknives said:
-snip- And once you cross the $450 - $500 threshold, you're into CRK, McNees, Hinderer, Les George, Spartan, etc. Idk.. compared with all of the more compelling competition, I think BM has priced this knife into being a really hard sell.

-snip-
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Accurate. Virtually all of those knives will have better resale value on secondary as well.
 
Quiet said:
Accurate. Virtually all of those knives will have better resale value on secondary as well.
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On the other hand, if any of those designers/companies had released the Narrows, people wouldn’t be able to throw their money at them fast enough. It’s mind boggling that BM priced the knife the way they did without a big name attached to it or solid gold scales.
I’ll give them some credit for innovation. I was surprised at how solid the knife is considering how thin it is. I’m at the point in life where the main thing I need a knife to do is disappear in my pocket +90% of the time. Unfortunately, at the price they’re asking, there are plenty of knives that represent a far greater value.
 
ScarFoot said:
On the other hand, if any of those designers/companies had released the Narrows, people wouldn’t be able to throw their money at them fast enough. It’s mind boggling that BM priced the knife the way they did without a big name attached to it or solid gold scales.
I’ll give them some credit for innovation. I was surprised at how solid the knife is considering how thin it is. I’m at the point in life where the main thing I need a knife to do is disappear in my pocket +90% of the time. Unfortunately, at the price they’re asking, there are plenty of knives that represent a far greater value.
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Honestly, I am in a similar boat most of the time. Heh, know what I'm about to purchase? That new Kershaw Leek...in Magnacut. Slim, super steel, American made, and at a fourth of the cost of the Benchmade. It will do everything the BM could do entirely as well, and will leave me hundreds of dollars I can stack up towards my next Les George or CRK (both of which are products from some big industry names, I couldn't tell you who designed the Narrows). A win's a win.

Also, just to clarify, I'm dead serious. I would rather have a Kershaw Leek in a brand new supersteel and a big wad of cash remaining in my pocket instead of the "Narrows*", and I say this as a pretty big fan of Benchmade overall. However, these companies need to be shown that there's a realworld limit to what their products can command, and $522 is damn sure past that line.



* Ironic given how ahem, narrow the customer base is going to actually be for this knife.
 
Quiet said:
Honestly, I am in a similar boat most of the time. Heh, know what I'm about to purchase? That new Kershaw Leek...in Magnacut. Slim, super steel, American made, and at a fourth of the cost of the Benchmade. It will do everything the BM could do entirely as well, and will leave me hundreds of dollars I can stack up towards my next Les George or CRK (both of which are products from some big industry names, I couldn't tell you who designed the Narrows). A win's a win.

Also, just to clarify, I'm dead serious. I would rather have a Kershaw Leek in a brand new supersteel and a big wad of cash remaining in my pocket instead of the "Narrows*", and I say this as a pretty big fan of Benchmade overall. However, these companies need to be shown that there's a realworld limit to what their products can command, and $522 is damn sure past that line.



* Ironic given how ahem, narrow the customer base is going to actually be for this knife.
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Completely agree with you. Nothing wrong with the Leek or a big wad of cash.
 
Quiet said:
Honestly, I am in a similar boat most of the time. Heh, know what I'm about to purchase? That new Kershaw Leek...in Magnacut. Slim, super steel, American made, and at a fourth of the cost of the Benchmade. It will do everything the BM could do entirely as well, and will leave me hundreds of dollars I can stack up towards my next Les George or CRK (both of which are products from some big industry names, I couldn't tell you who designed the Narrows). A win's a win.

Also, just to clarify, I'm dead serious. I would rather have a Kershaw Leek in a brand new supersteel and a big wad of cash remaining in my pocket instead of the "Narrows*", and I say this as a pretty big fan of Benchmade overall. However, these companies need to be shown that there's a realworld limit to what their products can command, and $522 is damn sure past that line.



* Ironic given how ahem, narrow the customer base is going to actually be for this knife.
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ScarFoot said:
Completely agree with you. Nothing wrong with the Leek or a big wad of cash.
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Your “big wads of cash” are different than mine. If I have 2 $5’s a $10 and a $20…I feel like that’s a big wad of cash. Haha.
 
Sharp & Fiery said:
Your “big wads of cash” are different than mine. If I have 2 $5’s a $10 and a $20…I feel like that’s a big wad of cash. Haha.
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Nothing wrong with that! Also, I should add, I am definitely not attempting to say "Well, that knife isn't woooorth it, I'm gonna buy this cheeaaapp knife instead, it's just as gooood!" (We've all seen this weak argument a million times before.) Do I expect that a Kershaw Leak is better built than the BM? No, I know it isn't. The issue here is that we're talking about a production knife designed by an unknown maker, with an absolutely absurd price based on the materials spec sheet, and a (let's face it, other than the thinness) a non-innovative design. I definitely am someone who will spend large dollars on knives that are worth it, but anymore, if I'm spending past a certain price point, it's going to be on knives that I know have a good resale value, because let's face it: there's too many awesome knives that I expect we ALL want to own before the end, ya know? Some come in, and some will ultimately have to go. And Benchmade? Maaaannn....(rubs forehead).... Well, just look on the Exchange. If it's not an Anthem, a super rare old limited model in mint shape, or a Gold Class in a desirable classic pattern, you're looking at taking a 40-50% bath. So, I don't see the value proposition on this knife.

Full disclosure, I am typing all this with a Les George midtech in my pocket that has a hand ground Damascus blade I purchased directly from Les last year for around a hundred more than the BM cost. So, you know I don't mind spending money on knives that are objectively worth it! LOL
 
Quiet said:
Full disclosure, I am typing all this with a Les George midtech in my pocket that has a hand ground Damascus blade I purchased directly from Les last year for around a hundred more than the BM cost. So, you know I don't mind spending money on knives that are objectively worth it! LOL
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I‘d buy a 4th VECP before I gave the same money for a narrows.
 
Quiet said:
I have zero idea how this knife scored the award. I struggle to see the innovation, and honestly, it's a production folder that's priced like a midtech. You can get much better knives for that same money, and which will have a better design, with one more conducive to actual work. Hell, many of the knives in that price range are coming with Magnacut, which I'd rather have in a knife over BM's M390 (that's through personal experience). Comparitively, the Anthem was expensive in its day, but at least it was much better at being an actual knife.
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With the avalanche of new knives and variations now available in Magnacut, this is certainly going to be a factor for all the people who have been biding their time to get their first or third or however many they have.
 
Ffs I keep seeing the narrows popping up in marketing emails and the thing just keeps getting uglier every time I look at it.

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