How do you rate Benchmade on a scale 1-10?

Compared to a Spydie and a "few" others I would rate it a solid "2" and compared to a Seb. ~~ a "O".!!
 
5. They got some great designs and the AXIS lock is appealing when in use. But the omega spring in the AXIS lock breaks very easily from everyday use which basically makes them useless to me.

Edit: You should add a poll btw.
 
peeintheshower said:
benchmades are nice. there not a bad company as some portray them. good quality knives. the problem lies in them not having a large selection. most of their folders start at 100 and up. spyderco can start at 50 and up. i give them an 8
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The Benchmade HK & HD lines (Formerly the Red Class) offer some very good values. The Pika starts around $27 and my all time favorite the Ascender can be had for about $48 or less. I recently picked up the HK Conspiracy. It's a tank of a knife with G10 handle and Ti Monolock. Best $60 I've spent on a knife in a long time....
 
I give BM an 8.
Ive owned dozens over the past decade and ive never had to send anything back for repair.
Ive beat on several axis locks and never had an omega spring break.
I've been able to get most of my money back when selling them used.
And they offer a wide variety of options and materials at many different price points.
Benchmade basically started my knife collecting addiction.
 
claycat said:
10 years ago 8-9
Today 7-8
As QC seems to be declining
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Oh god. Why is there always someone who says QC is worse for x company now compared to years back. Beside the one omega spring breaking the F&F on my 710 was great, not a tool mark on it, perfectly centered, clean finished G10, etc.
 
Hey, duro, don't worry about the Contego, it's a coated blade. Take care of it, wipe edge down after contact with anything wet.
 
On a scale of one to ten?


With a cheap dime store Chinese folder a one,

...and my Custom Dozier folder a 10,




...I give them a respectable six.





Big Mike
 
Free2game said:
Oh god. Why is there always someone who says QC is worse for x company now compared to years back. Beside the one omega spring breaking the F&F on my 710 was great, not a tool mark on it, perfectly centered, clean finished G10, etc.
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I bought my first BM only a few years back so can't comment on that, but for me it's mainly fit issues not finish issues: (off the top of my head)

--My gold class 940 has more pieces than the standard model, and they don't fit together tight at all and even have some gaps
--My M390 AFCK developed blade play very quickly (well under 100 openings, and by this I mean the axis bar hits the end of the channel when locked, so the blade moves up and down), and the axis bar is too long so that it's hard to unlock it pushing back on a single side (it uses a bar that is a single piece as opposed to others where the heads you pull on are screwed on, so it is not fixable by tightening them).
--On each of my M390 710's, the back spacer isn't flat against the spine (that is nit picky, but you'd think after 10+ years in production a simple part like that would be better than it is now)
--940's backspacer is higher in the front than the back (the holes drilled for the screws aren't close to centered--again this is a nit pick but how many 940s have they made by now, and it's not a cheap knife)
--And of course on every BM the threading on the pivot is horrible, making teflon tape or loctite a necessity.

That's not to say BM is horrendous, just that I wish they'd work a little harder. Sometimes it seems like what they consider in spec, or at least what I've bought so I assume they consider in spec, is a little to far out from the norm, with pieces not quite as tight fitting as any Kershaw I have in the $30 range for instance. I have and have had BMs that are basically perfect (14210, Mini Bone Collector, CF/D2 746) and even perhaps better than I'd expect for their price, but I also have quite a few that aren't very good and I don't consider worth anywhere near their price.
 
Around 8 or 9. The most recent one, the 810 is a 10. It is better than some customs I have had. Super smooth and sharp. Out of the 10 or so Benchmade products I have had they have all been very good to great knives. YMMV on customer service but they have been very good to me. Not as fast as Kershaw, but faster than Buck.
 
9.5 here. Been using them since their Pacific Cutlery days. Currently own over 60 of their knives. Mostly the classics though. Their current lineup doesn't have much I want right now. So I'm back to hoarding 800/806 and Balisongs again...
 
I haven't had any issues with BM so far, and I think the fit and finish is good. My 710 is flawless. I haven't had to deal with their customer service either which I guess is a good sign. Obviously they can't compete with customs or mid-techs but for a production company I give them a solid 8.
 
Eh, if it weren't for the omegra spring issues and their refusal to sell spares, I'd give them a 7. As it stands, though, I'll give them a 6.
 
What an incredibly broad subjective question, so I guess I'll answer with the same. And the only way I know how to do that is to compare with other companies.

Comparing thier top of the line knives.

BM 10
ZT 10
Syderco 10

Each one makes a great top of the line knife and I really enjoy each one.

The one thing I do like a lot about BM over some of the other companies is that they have a much broader selection of knives. When I say broader I mean more than just black G10 sandwiched knives.
 
fitzpatric said:
What an incredibly broad subjective question, so I guess I'll answer with the same. And the only way I know how to do that is to compare with other companies.

Comparing thier top of the line knives.

BM 10
ZT 10
Syderco 10

Each one makes a great top of the line knife and I really enjoy each one.

The one thing I do like a lot about BM over some of the other companies is that they have a much broader selection of knives. When I say broader I mean more than just black G10 sandwiched knives.
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very well said!
 
I used to be a huge BM fan until they started doing much worse with quality control. It seems like some of the craftsmen, well, aren't. At least not anymore. I've also had problems with customer service.

As of right now, I would say they are a 5, maybe a 6.

I like the AXIS lock and I like some of their designs. But the prices are really high and keep going up. And the QC is a major problem for me. I went Spyderco and haven't looked back. Funny thing, I don't miss the AXIS lock either. Hmmm...
 
I have 2 585's and they are great knives.
I've never used customer service or warranty.
I'd give them a solid 8 for quality though the Valox handle material is "meh" to me.
 
In 1995 I would have given them a solid 8. In 2001 I would have given them a 3-4. It seems they have gotten back up to par judging by an early CQC7 but as other companies make better and better designs, stepping up F&F & Materials, Benchmade lags behind. The Axis is neat but IMO the #1 purpose of it is easier manufacture. A lock moving linear to the blade is brilliant but none has outdone the plain ol lockback. I've owned several and will never own another. Their most affordable knives are great but there is zero reason to buy one of their more expensive models. On a side note I have great respect for the company's newer policy of any/all knives with the Benchmade name are USA made.
For designs, I'd give them a 3, for overall quality I'd give them a 5, value to price ratio I'd give them a 6.5 & for the amount of USA made knives they offer I'd give them a 9. That averages out to 5.875.
 
For quality (materials, F&F), I'd say 8. Never had any functional problems, but have had to do minor tweaks to NIB knives to get them to open/close smooth, get rid of blade play, adjust centering, etc.

For value, I'd give them 6. They're well-made production knives, but they are on the pricey side. (eg. The mass-produced standard Mini-Griptilian is roughly the same price as the BF boutique run Skyline, and the Skyline sports G10 scales and generally more expensive blade steel.)

My experience with Benchmades are limited though... a few different model Grips and mini-Grips, mini-Barrage, and 530.
 
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