Benchmade Mini-Griptilian Review

F

Fisher of Men

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Joined
Feb 22, 2005
Messages
593
Hey all,

I just got a Benchmade Mini-Griptilian in the mail today. Thanks to boxer93! He sent it to me to check out and compare to my Spyderco Calypso Jr. I will have the Calypso Jr. tomorrow from UPS if all goes well.

First of all I have to say that that Mini-Grip is a lot smaller than I pictured it to be. I don't know why, but it just is. This is a plus for me because I need a kind of small EDC so I don't freak people out at the office. ;) It's black handled with a nice plain edge satin blade. What a nice knife.

This is my first introduction to the "Axis" lock from Benchmade. I gotta say that it's darn nice. I am really use to my modified liner lock on my 880BT and also the nice Spyder holes on my Spyderco's :) The Axis will take a bit of getting used to but I can tell you that I really like it. I'm not sure yet if I like it better than the Spyderco lock-backs. When I get my Calypso Jr's. tomorrow I'll compare both of them.

PROS:
  • Small - fits in my hand nicely (and I have large hands).
  • Very nicely put together - feels very solid and well made.
  • Beautiful
  • Opens and closes smoothly with just the right amount of effort.
  • Axis Lock.
  • Can put clip on either side of knife - great for left handed people.

CONS:
  • Tip-up carry - there is no way to mount the clip at the other end for tip down carry.
  • Can't think of any other cons!

All in all I think this is a great knife. In fact if after tomorrow I like it as much as I do now, I will try to work something out with boxer93 so I can keep it. I will pay him of course either with money or a trade of some sort. We've talked about it anyway :)

Again, Thanks boxer93 for lending this out to me to check out.

Good day,
Fisher of Men
 
Fisher,

You've made a good choice, that's a good one. BM does a good job on that 440C. When you want to branch out a little Cabelas has had a special run of those in D2...really good deal for about $10 or so more.

Then, save your bucks, the Ritter Grips are better yet...s30v.

I love watching other people spend their money!

Thomas
 
Thanks for the review, another fine contribution from you to the forum.
You are also building a fine collection of excellent knives, you will love the Cal Jr. when it arrives.
 
Stockman said:
Thanks for the review, another fine contribution from you to the forum.
You are also building a fine collection of excellent knives, you will love the Cal Jr. when it arrives.
Click to expand...

Thanks very much. I've grown to like this place a great deal in the short time (less than a month) that I've been here. Good people.

See ya all around :)

-Fisher of Men
 
Thanks for the review! I withdraw my earlier "flimsy" comments about this knife. I've never used an axis lock, and the blade "flops" when opening or closing more than I'm used to. Less friction, pressure, whatever. But it seems like a good lock and I look forward to using it.

How sharp was yours out of the box? Mine was almost there, but I had to finish it on a ceramic stone to get it as sharp as I like. I'm really looking forward to putting it through the paces. Mine is in D2, one of my favorite steels.

Enjoy!
 
A question: which blade shape do you think is more convenient, Benchmade Mini-Griptilian's one or Benchmade of Doug Ritter? And why? Use- EDC, kitchen, camping, hunting, wood carving, so everything really.
Thanks,
 
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