Help me decide Benchmade 940-1 S90v vs Spyderco Native 5 S110v carbon fiber sprint.

All great suggestions. I'll add one more.
I have both, Native is s35n. I carry the 940 much more for the simple reason that I love to play with my knives and the 940 is one of the ULTIMATE flickers! It is so smooth, so fast, so much flat out fun with multiple deployment options! It flies out every time and locks up tight!!
The Native will open with one hand, but only with constant pressure.......hard to flick. The Native cuts every bit as good, if not a little better, than the BM.
I won't sell either, but if I could only choose one, it's the BM.
Only solution.......you NEED both!!
Good luck!
Joe
 
Haha thx^^^ it's one of those situations where I'm sure I will get a variation of each... just gotta pull the trigger on one and hopefully get the other down the Rd.
 
Yeah that lightweight Native is a better value.

A heads up though, the handle on the Native feels great but under heavy use with a tight grip it and be very blocky, the corners really dig in the hand.
It's something you won't notice with light use and fonding.

I wish Spyderco would chamfer the edges on the handles like there amazing Delica/Endura line.

Meanwhile the 940-1 doesn't have that blocky feel and is very comfortable, despite being small, due to its handle length, neutral shape and slight radius with no sharp corners.


Carving a pile of feather takes a tight grip and a fine touch. The 940-1 does this without undo fatigue to the hand.

Also don't be intimidated by how hard these steels are to sharpen.

They actually touch up very well on ceramic and strops.

It's just the reprofiling that takes the most patience.

They can be sharpened to as fine an edge as superblue with proper abrasives and excution.

But they are absolutely unforgiving to angle inconsistency when going for the sharpest possible edge. One bad pass can send you back to the coarse stone.

But thats being obsessive,
S110v and S90v should just be left with a coarse, perfectly apexed, hair popping edge.

The stock geometry edge geometry on the Benchmade is disappointing because it's more obtuse to cater to a wider audience that use knives for the wrong things.

With there being alot of steel behind the edge it really needs the primary bevel pulled back to juice every drop of performance out of such fancy steel.

The Spyderco's really have the best geometry in the business.
15° back bevel with a 20° mirco bevel for strength and fast touch ups.

It's also less work to make a 15 DPS and remove the microbevel.



If I wasn't so obsessed with sharpening

I'd invest in having it reproflied right away by a pro.

It seems like a waste but I strongly disagree.
It takes the laborious reprofliing work out of picture.
It then can be kept sharp on strops and ceramics for a long time which is really the fun,easy and relaxing part of sharpening.

I know Josh from Razor Edge Knives does good work
So does Jason from Chefknivestogo


Hope It helps bro.

Like Toxicbot said.

You really need to try them both to know for sure.
 
^^Thanks that was a very helpful post. I was already thinking of a reprofile for the 940 if I go that route. I bought a spyderco slysz bowie from Josh @ REK and the reprofile he did is awesome, touch ups are a breeze and it's scary sharp.
 
Another Josh vote here!
He did my 710-1401. The re curve had me hesitant. He did an absolutely phenomenal job!! Very easy touch ups to keep it screaming sharp!
He also put his mirrored edge on my Sukhoi 2.0.......that thing is too sharp!!
Most excellent pics DBH!!!
Joe
 
marcus52AR said:
^^Thanks that was a very helpful post. I was already thinking of a reprofile for the 940 if I go that route. I bought a spyderco slysz bowie from Josh @ REK and the reprofile he did is awesome, touch ups are a breeze and it's scary sharp.
Click to expand...
Thanks bro, hope you get the one ya want.
palonej said:
Another Josh vote here!
He did my 710-1401. The re curve had me hesitant. He did an absolutely phenomenal job!! Very easy touch ups to keep it screaming sharp!
He also put his mirrored edge on my Sukhoi 2.0.......that thing is too sharp!!
Most excellent pics DBH!!!
Joe
Click to expand...

Thanks Homie
 
The feather stick pic is quite impressive. It's nice to see one getting down and dirty.
 
palonej said:
All great suggestions. I'll add one more.
I have both, Native is s35n. I carry the 940 much more for the simple reason that I love to play with my knives and the 940 is one of the ULTIMATE flickers! It is so smooth, so fast, so much flat out fun with multiple deployment options! It flies out every time and locks up tight!!
The Native will open with one hand, but only with constant pressure.......hard to flick. The Native cuts every bit as good, if not a little better, than the BM.
I won't sell either, but if I could only choose one, it's the BM.
Only solution.......you NEED both!!
Good luck!
Joe
Click to expand...

Thanks, that is a strong point for the 940. I do enjoy a good flicker.
 
abbazaba said:
I sold the Native5 CF because it was worth a bunch of money and I greatly prefer the new Lightweight versions. I've been drooling over the S110v Native LW because I LOVE my Manix2 S110v LW.

I still have my 940-1 and carry it sometimes when I'm going out to dinner or to the store. Its very discrete and slim in pocket, but doesnt have the cutting utility of the Native5 ergos and design. I carry my Native5 LW (S35vn) much more because it's better tool overall.

I've been able to touch up s90v without issue, and I've successfully sharpened s110v (Manix2 LW) a couple times. Not sure I can tell the difference other than I love the finish on the Spyderco s110v.

Personally, I would go buy a Native5 LW S110v (2.5oz) and save yourself $150 (heck, buy an aluminum 940 as well!). If CF is really your thing, I still wouldnt get the heavier (3.5oz) Native CF sprint run, and rather wait for the up coming liner-less fluted CF S90V version (C41CFFP5 , non anniversary edition) for about the same price. It will likely be 2.7oz just like the anniversary edition.

That said, I'm not selling my 940-1 anytime soon because it is probably my favorite Benchmade ever made. It comes down to how you use your knives and what you like from them.

Native5 = powerful cutting tool built for my hand. Utility perfection, project companion.
940-1 = discrete and classy in a very capable package. The extra blade length is nice for food prep.
Click to expand...

Thanks for reminding me about the new fluted cf version. I like the looks of the Damascus 40th anniversary version but the price and the 40 stamped on the blade make it a tough sell. Looks like a collectors item. But I will keep the lw and non anniversary versions in mind.
 
I don't have a Native but do have a 940-1.
I'm very much a Spyderco admirer (have 19 of them now) but my pick of those 2 would be the 940-1 for these reasons:

The Axis lock is utterly awesome to use. I'm not a big back lock fan. I have them, use them, like them well enough, but I just far prefer the Axis lock.

The 940-1 is such a slim, light folder for a 3.4" blade, such an easy folder to carry.

S90V is about my favorite steel in a folder simply because of it's amazing edge holding. However I do have a WE and the patience it takes to get the edge just how I want it. And after that it's so easily maintained on the SM. S90V visits to Wicked Edge land I find to be few and far between. Also S90V corrosion resistance seems pretty good to me.

Ergonomically the 940-1 handle is slim to hold on to for extended use or harder cutting tasks so that's something to consider, though I've not found it to get uncomfortable myself, and if I'm expecting to put a knife to such use then I'm carrying something more suited to it.

I've not long had an S110V blade so not yet got too familiar with it, though i expect the average user (like myself) to be hard put to notice much difference to S90V.

Hope you enjoy whatever you get :thumbup:
 
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I have a plain Jane 940 and native. The 940 kicked the native out of my pocket. 2 main reasons. 1-The axis lock is easier to use. 2- The 940 is slimmer in the pocket.
 
Thx guys for all the replys.

A couple of questions/observations.

Is the 940-1 almost too light? When it comes to weight I don't really mind my folders to have some heft. In part I'm guessing my brain translates a heavy, solid feeling knife with durability. I guess what I'm asking is does the 940 stay solid after lots of use and flicking?

Does anyone find the blade length too long? I know sometimes when I'm using some 3.5 inch folders it seems like more blade than I need for certain tasks.
 
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The blade is heavier then the handle but it still balances behind the pivot.

If mine hasn't broke Id say your solid.

I wouldn't say it's too long it's 3.4" well within the Goldy locks zone of zone of 3.5" to 3"
The weight is also lower then the blade length at 2.4 onces which is amazing.

It there when I need it and disappears when I'm done.

I feel that the number of ounces should not exceed the blade length.

Which alot of folks seem to agree.

The Delica
Zt450
Zt770
BM 531
BM 940

Are considered some of the best edc knives that come to mind that follw this pattern
 
I have both knives. I have the 940-1 and the native 5 but with g10 handle. I have to say that they are both very comfortable to hold in their different ways. I say that the native cuts and slices better and smoother through things. I personally prefer the way my native cuts and I find the s35vn to be very very easy to put a razor edge on. However, I do find the native 5 blade to be just a hair short sometimes. In fact, the native 5 has an edge length that is the same as the victorinox pioneer I carry. (I measured the cutting edge on both to the half millimeter) I find it very difficult to put a razor edge on the s90. the s90 holds a sharp edge for a very long time, but holds it razor sharp edge equally as long as the s35. However, even though I prefer the way the native cuts, I carry the 940-1 9 times out of ten in tandem with my victorinox pioneer. The 940 just carries so much easier in the pocket and is definitely better suited for dress pants. Final opinion: Benchmade if the knife will be in the pocket a lot with occasional use. Perhaps the native though if you use the knife much more.
 
Question for the OP. Do you have any knives with the axis lock? If not you gotta try one. They are amazaballs. I love spyder co and I still do but that axis 940 has my heart. I have the pm2 and 940bk... Now I'm just one track mind axis towards the 940-1saving up. It will be my third bm. Good luck with what you decide.
 
No Axis lock Marcus????? Get the 940 my friend!! You'll be happily flicking to your hearts content!!
The 940 is a much more 'fun' knife! You won't be able to put it down!
Did you order yet??
😁😁
Joe
 
Thanks for all the great advice guys! It seems like the 940-1 is edging out the competition in the vote department.

I am leaning towards getting the Benchmade and trying out the axis lock.

I really appreciate all the replies!
 
IMHO the 940-1 is way different knife than the native . The caly 3.5 is more in that category .



The native is more comparable with the mini barrage or the 484-1 .

 
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