Benchmade 761 TITANIUM FRAMELOCK

jonnyt16 · May 31, 2015

I almost bought one of these today. My local army surplus store has a nice Benchmade selection and it was the first time I held a 761 in hand. Wow, it really is an awesome knife. The blade snaps open so effortlessly. And I've never been much of a titanium guy but this thing just felt oh so good. The price tag, of course, was the determining factor but the wheels are spinning lol.

On a side note, I can't understand why everyone gets their panties in a bunch over tip down carry. I actually prefer tip down because when you pull the knife out of your pocket your thumb is already on the thumbstud, making for a faster and more natural deployment than tip up. Especially on larger folders like the 761.

Socom Elite · Jun 6, 2015

Benchmade makes the Bradley Alias which is tip up. so Wtf.

Tip down carry blows. For one when you slide your hand in your pocket the back of your hand rubs against the thumb stub, I also hate feeling the clip when gripping the knife hard or even when I hold it lightly and just pinch the scales near the pivot with my thumb and index finger. On top of that when carried tip up the spine is against the seam of your pocket and the blade can't open.

Socom Elite · Jun 6, 2015

Oh And I've held one and there was so much slop in the pivot. Good friend of mine works in sporting goods store and most of the Benchmadeskirmish have blade play from loose pivots.

cncpro11 · Jun 6, 2015

If it were me, I would have bought every last ( how many ) skirmish in stock, no matter what the condition.

Wolverine666 · Jun 6, 2015

Socom Elite said:
Oh And I've held one and there was so much slop in the pivot. Good friend of mine works in sporting goods store and most of the Benchmadeskirmish have blade play from loose pivots.

Your friend's work still has a bunch of new Skirmishes in stock and you haven't bought them yet ? What the hell are you waiting for ?

Socom Elite · Jun 8, 2015

Wolverine666 said:
Your friend's work still has a bunch of new Skirmishes in stock and you haven't bought them yet ? What the hell are you waiting for ?

I wish. I was talking about the new frame lock model and all the new ones they get in have sloppy pivots

Wolverine666 · Jun 8, 2015

Socom Elite said:
I wish. I was talking about the new frame lock model and all the new ones they get in have sloppy pivots

Ah I see.

jkarp_53 · Jun 9, 2015

Socom Elite said:
Benchmade makes the Bradley Alias which is tip up. so Wtf.

Tip down carry blows. For one when you slide your hand in your pocket the back of your hand rubs against the thumb stub, I also hate feeling the clip when gripping the knife hard or even when I hold it lightly and just pinch the scales near the pivot with my thumb and index finger. On top of that when carried tip up the spine is against the seam of your pocket and the blade can't open.

It's all subjective; myself growing up with tip down carry knives, there's never been an issue with safety. And so came along tip up designs which took some getting used to. End result is since I love most knives, either way of opening is fine. And sloppy pivots simply need a T-10 or similar drivers. If it's hard to find the sweet spot and it frustrates, sometimes sending the knife up for adjustments can be necessary.

Socom Elite · Jun 9, 2015

jkarp_53 said:
It's all subjective; myself growing up with tip down carry knives, there's never been an issue with safety. And so came along tip up designs which took some getting used to. End result is since I love most knives, either way of opening is fine. And sloppy pivots simply need a T-10 or similar drivers. If it's hard to find the sweet spot and it frustrates, sometimes sending the knife up for adjustments can be necessary.

if you don't like tip up that's cool, but at least give it an option. Most other companies give it as an option. And BM excuse is lame as they make the Bradley Alias which is drilled for tip up carry.

BM needs to quit screwing around and offer more options. While they're at it make some cool blades. I've seen maybe 2 blades I like the last 5 years. Nothing is a must have either.

jkarp_53 · Jun 9, 2015

Too bad about the Alias, what a great knife both large and small were. The prototype (Alias I) I owned was drilled for either tip up or down. That was a nice touch that never made it into the regular version. And I'm in the same ballpark 'Socom', I bought a Volli last year and a Loco this, and have no interest in anything else. They lose money (BKC and its dealers...) when us knife nuts stop spending. Doesn't seem to bother them which is worrisome.

pbcg · Jun 10, 2015

It's all subjective I agree. Tip up or down. I can go either way. It really isn't an issue for me one way or the other. Like Joe most of my BM's and other knives I have came out in tip down and that's what I'm most used to.

Where I disagree however is I think BM did a pretty good job this year with new designs and selection. From the 2015 line up I got the:

761 MLK X 2
757 Vicar
808 Loco
665 APB Assist
615BK-1501 Mini Rukus

I haven't bought that many knives from a single year's release in a long time, usually maybe one or two so I think they did alright, at least as far as I'm concerned.

Of course I realize it's all personal preference and likes and dislikes.

razorburn · Jun 10, 2015

Socom Elite said:
Oh And I've held one and there was so much slop in the pivot. Good friend of mine works in sporting goods store and most of the Benchmadeskirmish have blade play from loose pivots.

Just cleaned my 630 last month and the pivot is still tight.Just like it was brand new and after, it was sent for a blade replacement for an unsightly hairlike grind lines.

clearkevin · Jun 11, 2015

I like the knife overall but it does need to be tip up, as mentioned above if the detent is too weak then fix it. A little frustrating. I would also say it's overpriced, this should have been priced around the same as the ZT titanium frame locks, Benchmade is not CRK I sometimes think they want to be higher end than they are. All that said I do have one coming and am glad I got it but on here not for retail.

Wolverine666 · Jun 23, 2015

I keep hearing mixed reviews and opinions on the 761. But I like titanium and I like M390 so I'm going to buy one and see for myself how I like it. I also find it to be a really good looking knife.

dazzleaj · Nov 8, 2015

Wolverine666 said:
I keep hearing mixed reviews and opinions on the 761. But I like titanium and I like M390 so I'm going to buy one and see for myself how I like it. I also find it to be a really good looking knife.

So what do you think?

I almost bought one for a light duty EDC, I use the 940 for that now.

dazzleaj · Nov 8, 2015

Oh yeah, forgot to ask; The pocket clip looks "clunky", how do you like it?

ginaz · Nov 9, 2015

at this price, it's a bargain. the materials, the quality finish, the fit, adjustable lockup, thin blade of m390, bearings. look at that lock bar. who is giving you more for less? the upcoming Reate Torrent seems to hit most of these same points and it is $375.00. made in china and it's $375.00. i'm not seeing the "overpriced" here. it's every bit as good and in some ways better than either my Tolk or Seb 21. all that said, i don't mind tip up but i am not a fan of the clip. milled titanium clips never seem to work well for me, not on the tilt or the ZT888 and not so much here. still a great knife and honestly a great value.

Dr Heelhook · Nov 9, 2015

jdm666 said:
Looks awesome

Save for the single thumbstud and the tip down clip :-(

I was gonna say, "isn't the thumb stud reversable?", but then I realized that the OP obviously isn't left handed anyway, since he didn't complain about the lack of left hand pocket clip screw holes. If you're not left handed, why would you want a thumb stud on the both sides?

P_Meticulous · Nov 11, 2015

Wolverine666 said:
I keep hearing mixed reviews and opinions on the 761. But I like titanium and I like M390 so I'm going to buy one and see for myself how I like it. I also find it to be a really good looking knife.

This :thumbup:

P_Meticulous · Dec 3, 2015

After sleeping on the idea of acquiring a 761 for over a month now, I finally gave in and purchased one yesterday. Hands down one of the best, and most underrated BMs I own.

Everyone and their mother, is upset over the tip-down only carry. That never really bothered me. I think the clip could have been designed better for a deeper carry.. I will say this, the clip is very strong, and will hold the 761 into place. I have to physically pull harder (over every other BM I own) to retrieve it from my right pocket. Some people may have an issue with that, but I like knowing that it is secure and wont slip out..

My pros:

- Its a large knife that carries like a smaller EDC. Its super light and thin. You barely recognize that its in your pocket. Huge plus.

- The thrust bearing washers make this thing a breeze to open.. It will beat ANY auto, I can assure you in that. The action is freakishly smooth...

- 3.73 of M390 & flawlessly sandblasted Ti. nuff said.

- The fit & finish is outstanding. Blade centering is perfect. Sandblasted Ti is flawlessly machined. And the CNC program was obviously super elaborate (lots of intricate angles throughout the knife). Take a look at the pics below, compared to the LFTi.. Youll see that BM has obviously upped their game since then.

- There were no issues with the detent whatsoever. I attempted to fling open the blade using abrupt downward force and it held up strong. Whatever issues there were with the detent (when they were first released) has obviously since been fixed.

I would highly recommend this knife. Im probably going to pick up one more eventually.