Bought my first Benchmade, not sure I'll buy another.

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D4v30

Joined
Jun 24, 2021
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70
I recently purchased and just received a Mini Crooked River. Was really excited to get the knife but I gotta say, I'm rather disappointed with the quality control.

The knife has vertical blade play unless you really slam the blade open or force the lock forward. Doing this causes the lock to bind up and it takes quite a bit of force to release it again.

Another issue, perhaps a little knit picky, the wood scales sit proud of the bolsters at the top but flush at the bottom

Also, and I knew this was there so perhaps a little unfair, but the backspace is awful. It looks OK in pictures but in person it looks and feels horribly cheap, how has this not been changed?

I don't mean to rag but at this price point I don't understand how this knife got shipped. I have knives that cost a fraction of the price and had better fit and finish.

Now I have to find a way to return it which is going to be a pain all in itself. Don't know if I'll be buying Benchmade again.
 
I don't consider BM to be worth the money these days, but I wouldn't call that knife's problems representative of the brand. I don't have any Crooked Rivers to say whether the proud bolsters are the norm, but some here surely can. Assuming not and you like the design, it might be worth trying an exchange.
 
kreole said:
I don't consider BM to be worth the money these days, but I wouldn't call that knife's problems representative of the brand. I don't have any Crooked Rivers to say whether the proud bolsters are the norm, but some here surely can. Assuming not and you like the design, it might be worth trying an exchange.
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It's funny, a lot of the knife reviewers on YouTube said that BM has quality control issues but recently I seen some saying it's been getting better. I didn't want to believe it, such a big name in knives surely takes pride in their work, right? I'm sure they're not all like this but for the first one I buy to have all the issues people talk about Benchmade knives having, not a good sign.

If it wasn't for that awful backspacer I would probably consider replacing it but it's the last nal in the proverbial coffin. I thought I would like it, the orange looks good and in photos it looks good but in person it's terrible. Just feels and looks like cheap plastic and it ruins what is otherwise a rather nice knife. Not sure why they've chosen to keep it the way it is. Perhaps if I could find a replacement back spacer at a decent price but everything I've been able to find costs way too much.
 
I have yet to see a problem with any Benchmade knife I’ve ever purchased. Nobody’s perfect. Nothing is perfect. Even the best names out there have their cull knives.

lucky I guess on my purchases.

Seems Benchmade is dog piled on pretty quick if there’s a problem, not sure why.
 
Makael said:
I have yet to see a problem with any Benchmade knife I’ve ever purchased. Nobody’s perfect. Nothing is perfect. Even the best names out there have their cull knives.

lucky I guess on my purchases.

Seems Benchmade is dog piled on pretty quick if there’s a problem, not sure why.
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I'm not sure I would say it's dog-piled on, I do think they had and seemingly still have quality control issues. I've seen many comments and videos where knife guys who say they have issues with getting good knives from Benchmade. From what I've seen the issue used to be worse but, unless the knife I got has been sitting on a shelf for a couple of years, the problems are still there.

Benchmade definitely chargers a premium for that butterfly logo, which is fine, but if you're going to do that then the knives need to be perfect.

Having seen all the QC complaints about Benchmade knives I had my reservations about buying one, wish I had listened to my gut.
 
D4v30 said:
I'm not sure I would say it's dog-piled on, I do think they had and seemingly still have quality control issues. I've seen many comments and videos where knife guys who say they have issues with getting good knives from Benchmade. From what I've seen the issue used to be worse but, unless the knife I got has been sitting on a shelf for a couple of years, the problems are still there.

Benchmade definitely chargers a premium for that butterfly logo, which is fine, but if you're going to do that then the knives need to be perfect.

Having seen all the QC complaints about Benchmade knives I had my reservations about buying one, wish I had listened to my gut.
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Just don’t dismiss the knives that are well built. Problems and or unhappy customers report like 10 times more often than satisfied customers. Which is easy to forget on a knife forum full of enthusiasts. Critics etc.
I’ve been fortunate I guess, all mine I’ve purchased work perfectly. I’m have a full size version of the OPs knife shipping to me Friday. I’ll post a report and pics. I’m confident the knife will be just like the rest I’ve seen. But who knows, maybe I’ll get one not well built.
 
Makael said:
Just don’t dismiss the knives that are well built. Problems and or unhappy customers report like 10 times more often than satisfied customers. Which is easy to forget on a knife forum full of enthusiasts. Critics etc.
I’ve been fortunate I guess, all mine I’ve purchased work perfectly. I’m have a full size version of the OPs knife shipping to me Friday. I’ll post a report and pics. I’m confident the knife will be just like the rest I’ve seen. But who knows, maybe I’ll get one not well built.
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While this is true you don't hear about other brands having these issues. Benchmade quality control comes up frequently in review videos, other brands don't. So either there is a disproportionate bias to Benchmade or there is a problem. The fact that the first knife I ordered from them had all the issues people complain about leads me to believe there's an issue.
 
D4v30 said:
While this is true you don't hear about other brands having these issues. Benchmade quality control comes up frequently in review videos, other brands don't. So either there is a disproportionate bias to Benchmade or there is a problem. The fact that the first knife I ordered from them had all the issues people complain about leads me to believe there's an issue.
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not entirely true. in my 10 years here..... every brand has their issues posted and talked about. ive seen kershaw and zt issues posted so much so that the kershaw rep decided to ban himself and shut down the forum, as one example......

Benchmade used to have very bad qc issues more than a few years ago. lately they've been much better to very good. I've gotten 4 in the last few months and all are very good. I have dozens of older ones that are good to not so great. biggest issues I always ran into was blade play that couldn't be adjusted away. horrible factory edges. very obtuse ones that required serious reprofiling. also poor and inconsistent heat treats. various other complaints. to be clear not every knife was bad, don't over read it. that aside. I dont see those issues much if at all anymore nowadays.
 
MolokaiRider said:
Send it back, explain your reasons, and request a better example.

I enjoy Benchmade knives, albeit they feel like they are a bit overpriced lately.
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This being my first Benchmade I can't speak to the whole line but I do feel at almost $300 Canukbucks this knife was a bit much for what it is. For only s30 steel, a cheap plastic backspace, poor fit and finish and the knife just feels a touch on the cheap side overall. I think this should be a $150 knife.
 
D4v30 said:
This being my first Benchmade I can't speak to the whole line but I do feel at almost $300 Canukbucks this knife was a bit much for what it is. For only s30 steel, a cheap plastic backspace, poor fit and finish and the knife just feels a touch on the cheap side overall. I think this should be a $150 knife.
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before the map pricing they were cheaper than that 150 price point, but that was years ago. course now its labor costs, materials shortages, shipping issues and costs, inflation issues, supply and demand issues, etc etc.

M.R. is right. send it back and request a better one or at the minimum it fixed to a better standard. if new enough the dealer will help in that regard. no reason to hold on to something that isn't up to qc it should be. I've had okay luck with benchmade warranty in the past. I've had great luck with quality dealers help, but I usually dont use the cheapest and iffy ones for higher dollar items.
 
I own one Benchmade - a Mini Bugout. I have to say at first it struck me as overpriced, but now I feel like it is a great example of lightweight tech. It does what its supposed to and everything is as it should be. I knew the price point going into it.

Good luck to you on getting it sorted.
 
jbmonkey said:
before the map pricing they were cheaper than that 150 price point, but that was years ago. course now its labor costs, materials shortages, shipping issues and costs, inflation issues, supply and demand issues, etc etc.

M.R. is right. send it back and request a better one or at the minimum it fixed to a better standard. if new enough the dealer will help in that regard. no reason to hold on to something that isn't up to qc it should be. I've had okay luck with benchmade warranty in the past. I've had great luck with quality dealers help, but I usually dont use the cheapest and iffy ones for higher dollar items.
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I think I'm going to send it back and find something else. Not sure what yet though, looking for a modern outdoorsy knife that still has a touch of that classic feel to it. Thought this fit the bill but all around disappointed with it.

I wonder if different distributors get different bins of these knives, maybe it matters where you buy from.
 
Fire King said:
I own one Benchmade - a Mini Bugout. I have to say at first it struck me as overpriced, but now I feel like it is a great example of lightweight tech. It does what its supposed to and everything is as it should be. I knew the price point going into it.

Good luck to you on getting it sorted.
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I knew the price going into this too but I thought it would be better given the pedgree of the brand, I expected too much I guess. It's really rather mediocre in almost every regard, not worth the price unless you really like that logo.
 
D4v30 said:
I think I'm going to send it back and find something else. Not sure what yet though, looking for a modern outdoorsy knife that still has a touch of that classic feel to it. Thought this fit the bill but all around disappointed with it.

I wonder if different distributors get different bins of these knives, maybe it matters where you buy from.
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might be for the best. even a good one doesn't sound like its gonna hit the right places for you. from the way you've been describing what ya dont like and how ya feel about it.

naw theyre shipping as made to distributors and from there to dealers. some bad ones make it through...every knife maker has this issue. thats why the warranty is there.

lots of choices out there, sure you'll find the right one for you.
 
jbmonkey said:
might be for the best. even a good one doesn't sound like its gonna hit the right places for you. from the way you've been describing what ya dont like and how ya feel about it.

naw theyre shipping as made to distributors and from there to dealers. some bad ones make it through...every knife maker has this issue. thats why the warranty is there.

lots of choices out there, sure you'll find the right one for you.
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Lol yes, back to staring at knife videos and reviews till my eyes bleed again.
 
My little 3150 is a gem.
I liked it so much that I ordered a custom shop Mini-Grip.
If that one is half as good: I'll consider the money well-spent.
 
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