- Joined
- Apr 3, 2011
- Messages
- 16
For those of you Benchmade fans out there who may have recently noticed the new (this year) customize-a-griptilian feature and had questions about it, it is excellent. I received my customized griptilian a couple months ago and it immediately became my favorite knife. Mine has olive drab handles, black drop-point blade in S30V, all screws, liners, etc. in black. As you can read anywhere, the griptilian is awesome. Unbelievably smooth opening/closing action, extremely sharp edge that will last, great ergonomics, surprisingly light weight, and strong, sturdy construction. The questions I had before I bought this knife were the following:
Does the black coating take away from the smoothness of opening/closing?
-No, it still opens and closes like a dream. The gripe I do have about the cerakote coating is that it has a very 'dry' high friction feel to it, making it less than ideal for slicing tasks. Although this is my favorite knife, I usually reach for a knife with a smoother finish when I need to cut cardboard etc. The cerakote is super badass for tactical, invisible-to-night-vision purposes, but for practical every day uses, I wish the coating were smoother. That is my ONLY complaint about this knife.
Will it take forever to receive the customized knife?
-No. The website says you will have it in 3-4 weeks, and mine arrived in about 3.5 weeks. The site may say "backorder" when you place the order, but I believe it says that because the knife is custom and therefore not made yet. You will have your knife in 3-4 weeks.
Will the engraved text/picture be as I see it in my head?
-Yes. I had a specific layout which I desired for my text and image engravings, and so I sent a picture of what I wanted to Benchmade and they were very helpful and made sure it was exactly what I wanted.
Is it worth the money?
-Depends. It is NOT worth the money if you "customize" one that already exists as a production knife. It IS worth the money if what you want is significantly different. For example, engravings, high-end S30V blade steel and the exact combination of colors/blade shape that you desire may be worth it if there are no similar production knives. Personally, my customized grip was worth 100% of the money.
I give this knife a 9.5/10. Easily 10/10 if the coating were a bit smoother.
Does the black coating take away from the smoothness of opening/closing?
-No, it still opens and closes like a dream. The gripe I do have about the cerakote coating is that it has a very 'dry' high friction feel to it, making it less than ideal for slicing tasks. Although this is my favorite knife, I usually reach for a knife with a smoother finish when I need to cut cardboard etc. The cerakote is super badass for tactical, invisible-to-night-vision purposes, but for practical every day uses, I wish the coating were smoother. That is my ONLY complaint about this knife.
Will it take forever to receive the customized knife?
-No. The website says you will have it in 3-4 weeks, and mine arrived in about 3.5 weeks. The site may say "backorder" when you place the order, but I believe it says that because the knife is custom and therefore not made yet. You will have your knife in 3-4 weeks.
Will the engraved text/picture be as I see it in my head?
-Yes. I had a specific layout which I desired for my text and image engravings, and so I sent a picture of what I wanted to Benchmade and they were very helpful and made sure it was exactly what I wanted.
Is it worth the money?
-Depends. It is NOT worth the money if you "customize" one that already exists as a production knife. It IS worth the money if what you want is significantly different. For example, engravings, high-end S30V blade steel and the exact combination of colors/blade shape that you desire may be worth it if there are no similar production knives. Personally, my customized grip was worth 100% of the money.
I give this knife a 9.5/10. Easily 10/10 if the coating were a bit smoother.
