BM pinnacle = junk!

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Anyone thinking of buying a Pinnacle, think again!

What a piece of junk!

The other day I was checking out ebay only to stumble upon the Benchmade Pinnacle. I almost bought one thinking "Hey, I could carry this when I do construction" so I would'nt have to put my sebby in harms way. Then I got to thinking that this is the reason I made the plunge for the Sebby in the first place... to have a knife that I could rely on and pull through tasks that other knives could not. Needless to say, I did not get the BM.

Yesterday I found myself in the knife section of Whole Earth Provision Co. here in Austin. I checked out the Pinnacle. It was a joke! It literally seemed like something you might win in a carnival game. I checked out other BM's, including a cool (looking) Elishewitz design, and they were all crap! I could not believe it. My prev. EDC was a CRKT and it was a good knife. ($50) I also handled a friends old CQC7 and it was a really good knife. I cant believe how bad BM has gotten! I'm arch-man, and this is news to me.

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peace love arch
 
Let me just take a moment to inform you that you're full of ****....and on the wrong forum, too.
 
Be Nice
smile.gif
, People who start aquiring the taste for the finer things really do not need to trample lines that are below thier aquired tastes. We all start out somewhere and other production pieces are enjoyed by many and we do not have need to "slam" them... especially here on this forum. I might not enjoy the others as much as I once had but I really see no need to trash them ... If you really see a difference in the benchmade stuff, find the forum they have and inform them of your percieved changes, they need to know! Enjoy your sebenza and God Bless-paul

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If You Abide in Him then,"All His Promises are YES and AMEN"

[This message has been edited by tallpaul (edited 04-09-2001).]
 
T

tique

Joined
Oct 28, 2000
Messages
970
I'm with Owen on this one. BM makes a fine working knife at a much lower price point than CRK. Don't knock them, and they are not crap, they just hold costs down by keeping a slightly lower set of standards. This is not to be confused with poor quality, just lower than that exhibited by CRK. I own and use several, and have not had many problems with any of them, those that I have had were fixed quickly by an excellent service dept. The Pinnacle is even the knife that sparked my interest in the Sebenza, I like the overall design, but wanted better quality. It's still a good knife, just not as good as my Sebenza.

By the way, if you feel the need to discuss production/quality issues with Benchmade, please do it on their forum instead of here so they can at least defend their product.

James, you are absolutely correct. I hope this edit makes the post sound a bit more reasonable(at least I hope it does). I have a bad habit of just running with a topic and posting without thinking as I am often in a hurry, I should slow down and put a bit more thought into my wording, and will keep that in mind from this point forward.


[This message has been edited by tique (edited 04-09-2001).]
 
I am always amazed at how upset people get over the opinions expressed by an anonymous stranger.

If you disagree with someone’s assessment of an item that you are familiar with, a rational argument including direct observations that contradict that assessment will carry more weight than resorting to vulgarities.

Reasonable discourse has always been a strong point in this particular forum. Please have some respect for our hosts, both the administrators of BF.c and the fine folks at Chris Reeve Knives.

My own assessment of the Benchmade Pinnacle is that it is a decent knife for the price point, but hardly the pick of the litter. The one I own has good lock-up, but suffers from the typical Benchmade problem of an overly thick edge that is difficult to keep sharp. The action of the knife is not very smooth, and while the fit and finish is acceptable for a $100.00 knife it certainly lacks the attention to detail you will find on the Sebenza. That is to be expected, as you usually get what you pay for. So while the Pinnacle has a hard time measuring up to the standards set for high-end production and quality custom knives, it hardly qualifies as “junk”.

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James Segura
San Francisco, CA
 
OK OK... I read all the cussings and rants, so I went to a knife store during lunch to take a second look at some of the BM's. I will retract what I said. A lot of the BM's leave something to be desired in workmanship, fit and function. I'm talking about a knife doing it's job....well.

I think I would qualify as someone who really can't afford a Sebenza, so I post from the same viewpoint. I got mine on a trade for a gun I didd'nt need. Do you think I could afford to send off a weeks pay for a knife?

I stand firm in my belief that "YOU DON'T GET WHAT YOU DON'T PAY FOR."

It is my opinion that, for the most part, a good percentage of what Benchmade offers are not worth what they cost. Maybe I should have tried a bit more not to hurt anyones feelings. I'd like to think that we're all adults here... folks that understand that an opinion is just that. An opinion. Not the end of the world, just an opinion. Check out a CKRT. It's as good as a BM for half the cost. Maybe try SOG, Boker, Syderco, Kolizi, Emerson, even Gerber. They ALL have a good standing product. Don't get me wrong, I've seen BM's that are DARN GOOD knives. I know BM set a lot of standards, BUT they were older models. I think the QC is slipping. Sure it *works*. A go kart *works*, but I wouldnt tak it on the inerstate. The guy at the above mentioned store snickered that he didd'nt like anything not made in the US. I understand and also prefer to "keep the money at home." opinion.


The Axis Lock is a good design, and it seems that BM has devoted at least some of the cost to QC in this arena. I guess it is kind of a BM exclusive, so they seem to try a little harder to make a good product. I liked what I saw.

A Sebenza IS worth what it costs... and then some. You can argue and argue, but until you've made the plunge, you'll never know. You can tell from the moment it is in your hand, and the feeling is reinforced the longer you own and use it. YOU HAVE TO ADMIT that the BM can't compare with the Seb. I'm talking KNIFE TO KNIFE, not $100 to $300. I COMPLETELY understand that it is out of the question for many income brackets... (it costs the same as my half of a month's rent.)

Is the Sebby THREE TIMES better than the Pinnacle... hands down!

Fit, finish, action, endurance, LOCK, LOCK, LOCK, BLADE, BLADE, BLADE, Quality control, Customer Service...on and on.

As for the Pinnacle...
It may not be a funny joke, but a joke indeed.

I think that the cost of the Pinnacle is semi justified for only one reason. It has expensive parts. What good does that do?

Cooking with archieblue:
Give the finest spices and ingredients to some boob paid $7.50 /hour... see what happens. Give the same to the "Chris Reeve" of chefs... "will you marry me?" BTW, $7.50/hr is not far from what I make.

This is the CRK forum. I am in the right place. I'm not really interested in Benchmade or their forum. I'm (trying) to speak mainly of the Pinnacle, which, like it or not, resembles the most talked about knife on the CRK forum, the Sebenza. I could not help brushing upon other details I've noticed from other knives by the same maker. Benchmade.



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peace love arch
 
I'm one of the folks who thought...."WHAT ? ? $375 FOR A SEBENZA ! IZ YA CRAZY ?"

And went out and purchased a BM Pinnacle.

The knife arrived........ Was so excited ! Popped open the box, tore through the packing material, and held the knife in the palm of my hand. Paid $85 for what was in my grasp. Went through the paces.....opening.....closing.....cutting.

WOW.....Kinda disappointed. Actually, very disappointing.

The mind still wondered.....curious as to the quality of the infamous "gray turd."

Then one day.......I made the leap ! A large plain Sebenza on the secondary market.

Seriously contemplated the monetary jump to a $200+ knife (actually paid $250).

After the purchase, and while awaiting its arrival, I pondered my purchase.......... Contemplated my current buy...... HELL, did I screw this one up ?

The box arrived..... The box sat on the kitchen cabinet for 6 hours ! Again, contemplation! Actually ~ WORRIED ! !

Made the definite move.....Popped the box open, tore through the packing material, and held the knife in the palm of my hand (sound familiar ?). With a steely-eyed stare I went over every inch of my most recent purchase.

250 bucks ! For what was in my grasp ?

WOW ! Impressive !

Went through the paces.....

Opening..... ~ WOW !

Closing..... ~ WOW !

Cutting..... ~ WOW !

Super impressed with my new addition to the family !
biggrin.gif


Moral of this story...... Please don't take this as a flame ~ it's what I feel personally !

<CENTER><font size="4" color="#FF0000">Eye it, like it, buy it!

Learn from your mistakes and regrets ~

and

never forget to

"Live Life ~ Full Throttle" ! </font><CENTER>


[This message has been edited by GigOne (edited 04-09-2001).]
 
archieblue:

You are right.
The Pinnacle is a lesser knife at a lesser price.
There is a real possibility that a knife exists out there that makes the Sebbie a lesser knife at a lesser price.
Therefore; Sebbie=Junk?



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Fas est et ab hoste doceri
It is right to learn even from an enemy.
 
I am the satisified owner of three Sebenzas. I purchased a Pinnacle as a beater/user and as soon I received it, I sent it back. Blade wobble, atrocious fit and finish, etc. The Sebenza is easily three times the knife!
 
I own both knives.

To call the 750 junk is a joke. I dislike BM a lot, but the 750 is a VERY fine knife, the only thing wrong with mine is it is stiff to unlock the Ti lock bar. With use that aught to break in... I hope.

It is 90% as good as a Sebi but 1/3 the price. Not a bad deal IMHO.

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Wayne.
"To strive to seek to find and not to yield"
Tennyson
Ranger motto

A few useful details on UK laws and some nice reviews!
http://members.aol.com/knivesuk/
Certified steel snob!
 
Originally posted by GigOne:

The knife arrived........ ...
Paid $85 for what was in my grasp. Went through the paces.....opening.....closing.....cutting.

WOW.....Kinda disappointed. Actually, very disappointing.

Interesting
smile.gif
Like what, disappointing?
In particular what was disappointing?
I don't have the pinnacle, because of 2 reasons, it's a frame lock, not an axis, and it's not M2 (or BG-42), yet I like it's blade geometry more than Sebenza's.

Made the definite move.....
...
WOW ! Impressive !

Went through the paces.....

Opening..... ~ WOW !

Closing..... ~ WOW !
...

Donno, been there, done that & returned the Sebenza in 2 days. Yes it's a high quality knife, but apparently I was expecting more than arrived.

Overall I don't think that Sebie is 3 or 3.5 times better knife than Pinnacle, IMHO it's a highly questionable argument that Sebie enthusiasts bring on as usual - you don't get or you get what U paied for
smile.gif


And finally, as long as you like the knife it is fine, that doesn't make any other knife and the whole brand crap or any worse, at least to others.



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zvis.com
Have Fun,
Alligator
Click to expand...
 
Archie, You're right on the mark in two ways
First, the new BM's are JUNK!
Two, To post here. If you would post about the crappy low standards that BM has sunk to on their forum (like I did last week) you would be attacked and banned. (right tique?)
CR is the cats meow when it comes to fit and function, and on top of that, CR will listen to you. CR listens and learns. They continue to grow. While at the same time BM will go out of business,...... one more time!
I used to be a BM dealer...Dropped em'!
I did place a dealer order with CR though. Quality products at a fair price. I'm also working on Busse. Stand up companies, that stand behind their products. Buy Quality the 1st time and you won't have to pawn your junk off on your freinds later......
It may cost more on the front end, but it will pay off ten fold in the long run.
Skip the BM, step up to the bat, get a Sebenza first time round. You'll be glad you did.
 
There are probably some good Pinnacles out there... I mean, the suits have to visit the factory occasionally... All I KNOW is that the few Pinnacles I've handled were all wobbly and the lock moved around on the tang. They lterally seemed like they would give someone who dosent know better a false sense of security. It just had an all around "nobody cares about how I turned out" type of feel and look. I don't know about YOUR knife. I just KNOW what I examined. I'm not gonna say that EVERY BM is crap. There has to be SOMEONE at their factory(ies?) who cares. They leave something to be desired. Anne Reeve said something along the lines of "The best knife you have is the one you have ON YOU!" (Micra=mylifeonakeychain) that said, any knife WORKS. All I'm saying is that a Pinnacle would/could never replace my Sebenza as MY EDC.

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peace love arch
 
Leemah1

show me a WORKING folder that makes the sebenza seem like junk.

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peace love arch
 
Archieblue,
You are entitled to your opinion about the Pinnacle or any knife. Did you know that Chris Reeve pays money to have this forum to discuss HIS knives and business? Why would you come on this man's forum and discuss another company's knife? There's the Knife Review forum, the General forum, and also Benchmade's own forum. If you do a search you'll find that the question of whether the 750 is a knockoff of the Sebbie has been beaten to death. My point is let's respect the Reeve's space here and talk about their knives.
And BTW, there are some 750's that are solid as a rock, and some that are worse than $5 pakistan knives. Kinda like buying a chance at the lottery, which isn't surprising considering their company integrity.

Dave
 
Seems like a lot of excited talk here.
smile.gif


I don't own a pinnacle so I can't say a lot about it. I picked one up once, flicked it open a couple times, but that's about it. I wasn't overly impressed but the word "junk" did not leap to mind.

I own 4 BMs. All four are far from junk and I'm totally enamored with the 720 and 721. And yes, I carry a Sebenza. And I love it.

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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by lifter4Him@aol.com:
Did you know that Chris Reeve pays money to have this forum to discuss HIS knives and business? </font>
Click to expand...

I didn't know this. I'll tell you, if it's true, Chris is a wise businessman. This forum is the ONLY reason I bought my Sebenza. I'm a little frugal and it takes a lot of coaxing for me to spend $300.00 on something I've never actually held in my own hands. All the excellent posts and friendly people on this forum convinced me tht I could not continue to live without a Sebenza.
 
The Pinnacle *seems* to be a similar knife to the sebenza.

Some people buy knives on the internet.
I almost bought a Pinnacle on the internet.

I tried one out at a store.

It was a piece of crap.

*if you have a good one, good for you!*

The one I tried was junk. I would have literally gotten sick if THAT were to be delivered in exchange for my $100! Or around $150 if you choose the *luxury* of getting to hand pick from a store's inventory.

Have you *ever* tried out a bad sebby? No!

lifter4him.. I'm here to SAVE the people!

It is possible, actually VERY LIKELY, from what I've read on the BMF that if not hand selected from a batch of 20 that you will get a raw cut, poorly assembled, knife. The PINNACLE. The PINNACLE. (Can I STRESS that I'm talking about the PINNACLE any more.)

I don't want to discuss Benchmades in general! I'm not gonna go to the BM forum. If I were to go to the BM forum and try to shed light on the sebenzas' quality, I would get flooded by a hundred people who can't appreciate what the Seby is. People here APPRECIATE what it is. At least I think they do.

I AM the poor man.
I CAN'T affford 25 knives.
The Sebenza is a no brainer FOR ME.

Youre gonna pay around $300.
It does NOT sing and dance.
It does NOT make you dinner.
It IS one of the best, strongest knives on earth.

(And you said I don't belong on the CRF.)

I'm talking about a knife that *acts* (IMO, poorly) like a sebenza. That is why I'm here... For those who see the ingredients in a Pinnacle, *but want/need a good knife* and maybe stumble here and read this post.

If you think you can't afford a sebenza, what makes you think you could afford to throw away $100? A hundred dollar joke that's not too funny. Believe me, I almost fell for it. But like I said before, I guess it's possible that some people like the idea of a *disposable* knife. I can't speak for anyone but myself. Some people like the idea of a *disposable* car.

I realize that I brush upon many ideas in what I post. But read the whole thing. And don't get upset about it until you've read and *paid attention* to what I wright. It seems that folks are reading the first few lines, and MAYBE reading the rest, all the while thinking about what they will reply with concerning the first few lines.

I'm not being rude. I'm not talking about your lifestyle or your taste in whatever OR YOUR KNIFE. I'm talking about what I've seen and tried.
 
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