Have you seen the new Benchmade Neil Blackwood folder?

why doesn't someone patent the floding knife while we're at it. or sharpness...who patnented that? it has come to the point in the evolution of knives where something like a hole-opening blade can;t really be someone's property. it's just like a thumb-stud. let's not be silly.
 
Seems that Neil was putting the three holes on his fixed blades before he started making folders. I think the three hole thing is representative of his work. Using it on folders is a natural progression. It just so happens that you can open it with one of the holes.
 
There are lots of assumptions being made and people starting to get irritated. Wait for the finished knife rather than getting upset about what the knife might look like or features the knife might have.

Our excitement is understandable. However, our lack of patience and jumping to conclusions is the one of the main reasons knife companies don’t share information with us. I have never seen a factory prototype that exactly matched the production version. Person “A” sees the prototype and really likes particular attribute. The production version is released without the attribute. Person “A” then spends time complaining about how good the knife could have been with the attribute. The factory decides to stop showing prototypes to eliminate future complaining.

I’m sure people from Benchmade are reading your posts. Think about what you write and the implications your words may have.

I know this knife is worth the wait. ;)
 
This knife does look really nice. I am with the others, that anything over 4" is too big for most legal carry. I hope Benchmade really does have a smaller version for us. If so, I will definitely buy one.

Jon
 
great post Chuck.....

think of that model in an auto--- can you say Recoil ? ;)

I am sure whatever config it comes out in , it will be a winner.

This is the first time in many years I have been excited about a production knife....

John
 
Anybody can make an hole there is no patent this is the secret no one want to tell you.
 
oh yah forgot to mention that a revesible clip would be nice for us lefties. I can see how a reversible clip would not be very aesthetically pleasing on this particular knife but a reversible clip with 3.5" blade would probably reach a larger market?...
 
Originally posted by Chuck Bybee
However, our lack of patience and jumping to conclusions is the one of the main reasons knife companies don’t share information with us.
Click to expand...

I agree Chuck, this thread is becoming the posterchild for that point. I'm glad it is JUST like it is as a collaboration between Benchmade and Neil.
WAY TA GO NEIL and BENCHMADE!! Big time Kudos!

edited to remove sarcastic comment
 
It's called BUZZ. And I'll bet that Benchmade is soaking it up. It doesn't matter what people say as long as they are talking about it and excited to see it. Manufacturers leak just enough info so as to create the buzz. For them it is like sticking your toe in the pool before jumping right in. By doing this they can try to judge a good initial order. Think about the Spyderfly and all the buzz around it.

Jon
 
my vote for 3.5inch blade length. Although the custom Skirmish was designed to be big, making the blade length 4.3inches would alienate a huge number of knife USERS (collectors don't care).

Benchmade/Neil, pls make them in 3.5inch, perhaps a limited run in 4.3inches.

Thanks. This will be the folder I'm aiming for. If it lives up to the present buzz, I'll sell/trade my buck mayo for it - that's saying a lot because I think the buck mayo is FANTASTIC and my EDC.
 
Very interesting thread for sure!! Thanks to Dennis, Chuck Bybee and others for putting things in perspective. I agree, it's buzz! Buzz is good. I've been around the forums long enough now to see this many times before. As you all know, I've had my own knives discussed and debated more times than I can remember. People here are passionate about knives and these passionate feelings come out, good bad or indifferent. I like hearing it all, the bad is often more important than the good :) As mentioned in the recent Blade Magazine article, I credit just such immediate feedback for helping me progress as a maker. As always I also credit feedback and customer suggestions for many of my design ques and parameters, this knife included.

Just a few points I'd like to make......

First the specs are indeed, 4.3" blade, 9.7 overall. 5/32" S30V blade steel. The knife is NOT just a reduced Skirmish. At some point, I'll post a picture of a 630 prototype next to a custom Skirmish. It's similar but with an overall thinner profile. My goal was to create a knife in this size range that was easy to carry. The 630 is very light and like other knives of this construction, easy to carry. Because of the bare framelock design, close attention was paid to ergonomics. While making it thin and light, how it feels in the hand was of utmost importance. Taking ques from the the Skirmish, reverse grip was also a consideration, the thumb grip radii as I call them were kept and can be seen in the picture towards the back of the top of the frame!

Lastly, the blade. People often compliment me regarding the grinds on my folders because they CUT. With my customs, I tend to lean towards cutting ability over blade strength on many of my designs. I often hear the old saying, I have a crowbar for prying doors......... My feeling is that if I'm going to use a material like S30V, I might as well take full advantage of it's tough properties and make a thinner blade that actually CUTS!! Considering all that goes into the blade/edge geometry, I think we've hit just the right balance with the flat grind.....YES FLAT GRIND on the 630!

Thanks again for your enthusiasm, it's all very much welcomed, appreciated and considered!


Neil
 
Possible best Knife ever.

only addition i would like would be a two position clip tip up/tip down

We now require a folding henchman i think it would be a good canidate for the axis lock.
 
B.M. and Neil have hit a homerun!

The irony is I'll probably get the B.M. version delivered
before my Skirmish (on order forever)
;) is delivered.

Guess what the 2004 collab of the year will be?
 
wow! 4.3inch blade and 9.7inch oa!!!:eek: :grumpy:

that makes it unwieldy for a lot of us who have to carry within the 3.5inch limit. personally, I am not restricted to bladelengths, and the largest knife I've carried was an endura with a 4inch blade (which I found a tad bit too big). A 5.5inch handle is definitely too long for me.

Of course, I understand the philosophy behind the skirmish like knife, as the Skirmish itself is a MONSTER folder.

However, I still hope that BM/Neil will consider a smaller version, ie. a 3.5inch version. PLEASE.
 
Damn, sounds like it's going to be too big:( Scratched off the list. Well, maybe not...;)
Matt
 
too big ??

:rolleyes:

Guess you aint never handled a real Skirmish... though it looks huge it feels so right in the hand. No blade length issues for folders here in NV...so send em all here Neil !:D
 
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