Queen or Benchmade skinner

[jethrob]

Hi All
I'm new to the knife hobby, and new to the board.

I'm torn between two knives. I've had a hard time finding info for a comparison between the benchmark and Queen D2 tool steel skinner knives.

It's a forum, so I guess yall like pictures!
The benchmade is this one
http://www.gpknives.com/benchmade-201-activator.html


The queen (which is what I am leaning towards) is this one:
http://www.gpknives.com/queenskinnerhunter.html

I like the price and looks of the queen better.

Anyone had experience with both of these?

Mainly wanting a knife that gets scary sharp, that I can show off to my hunting buds, and clean a deer or two on occasion.

I also really like the Anza line, but have no idea if it's as good as the others. http://www.anzaknives.com/

 

[RetiredGuns]

Welcome to BF. If I were given the choice of the 2 I'd go for the Queen. Has that "classic" skinner look and that Maple is beautiful! Performance wise they are both good sheath knives and if properly cared for the D2 will serve well and certainly skin a few bucks!

 

[whetrock]

The queen Would be my pick due mostly nostalgia and the excellent blade profile however with that being said like all queen knives it will need a serious sharpening/reprofiling out of the box.

 

[jethrob]

You think it would be a matter of pride for a knife company to have their knives sharp before sending them out.

I spent $60 on a small, 3" lockblade pocketknife for my Dad for Christmas. I was embarrassed when the thing was dull out of the box. Actually they only sharpended one edge on the blade!

I'm not an expert at sharpening......I tried to sharpen it up some for him......it still wasn't very sharp when he left. I really liked that queen skinner but don't know if I will buy another one of their high priced knives.

 

[2manyknives]

I have both the Benchmade and Queen models you refer to and have reviewed them here on Bladeforums quite some time back though not in a back to back comparison. I like both knives and don't have a clear favourite. The Queen will probably need a good sharpening job to get the edge sorted out. The D2 steel on both of the knives is good stuff when it comes to edge holding. Neither has a particularly great sheath but the Benchmade is the better of the two. I had some bad corrosion under the scales of the Benchmade and would recommend that you remove the scales and check under them periodically. The scales on the Queen are not removable. The level of fit and finish is better on the Benchmade. I would be happy with either knife.

 

[DrSpeed]

I do not know the Benchmade and Gueen knives, but I do own an Anza skinner and consider it to be one of my favourite knives.
Handmade with a convex edge it is very functional and sturdy. I use it as a general purpose outdoor knife.
The file steel of which they are made is not stainless however, so it takes a little attention and maintenance. For me that's easily worth it.

 

[LG&M]

I think I would get the Queen. It might be a better value. I agree it should be a matter of pride to have a knife sharp when it ships but this would not stop me from getting it. sooner or later they all need to be sharpened.

 

[middleagedmutan]

Take a look at knives of Alaska good D2 steel razor sharp and made in the USA I prefer them over Buck and the knives you listed but just got a Scott Gossman WTk
knife and its the best knife I have ever used.

 

[knarfeng]

Either Queen or Benchmade will get sharp and hold a good edge.
The Benchmade will be sharp out of the box. The Queen you will likely have to work at.

The Anzas are made from files. They will rust more easily than the D2 blades of the others. I don't have one, but the posts I've read from those that do show a lot of very satisfied Anza owners.

 

[Bob W]

Mainly wanting a knife that gets scary sharp, that I can show off to my hunting buds, and clean a deer or two on occasion.

It's unfortunate that Queen has such a poor reputation for being delivered unsharpened. Otherwise, I'd consider buying one of these. Prettier than the wood, and same D2 steel.

Did you consider Canal Street Cutlery? They make a heckuva nice knife in the same price range:

Sorry I don't recall offhand what steel this version is, but the ones I've seen advertised lately are 440C.

I also really like the Anza line, but have no idea if it's as good as the others. http://www.anzaknives.com/

My favorite thing about Anza, they'll create a design to your specs or customize one of their standard models to suit your needs. Build quality is very good, but getting game cleaning 'goo' out of all those file grooves... They can grind the grooves flat by request, as I recall reading.

 

[jethrob]

wow, that canal street one is a nice looking knife

I'm new to knife collecting and hadn't heard of them. The only thing I really care about is that the knife is made in the USA. I was only able to find about five companies that make them here.

Well I ordered a different sharpener so hopefully I can get my sharpening technique down and fix my Dad's knife. He doesn't know anything about knives and probably thinks it was a cheapo. I ordered the American made worksharp tool and knife sharpener from Amazon, http://www.amazon.com/Work-Sharp-WS...5F14/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1324961718&sr=8-1

I'm tight on space so I opted for this small unit.

I was able to put an edge with my ezelap sharpening kit, but just not getting things quite as sharp as they should be.

 

[jethrob]

well I shouldn't have said that's all I care about....that they are made in the USA......I want it to be able to get scary sharp and hold an edge too.

 

[SOLEIL]

I have both the Benchmade and various Queen fixed blades. Queen is really a great value and will sharpen up easily using the Work Sharp system. The Queen sheath also retains the knife better.

 

[Noctis3880]

wow, that canal street one is a nice looking knife

I'm new to knife collecting and hadn't heard of them. The only thing I really care about is that the knife is made in the USA. I was only able to find about five companies that make them here.

Well I ordered a different sharpener so hopefully I can get my sharpening technique down and fix my Dad's knife. He doesn't know anything about knives and probably thinks it was a cheapo. I ordered the American made worksharp tool and knife sharpener from Amazon, http://www.amazon.com/Work-Sharp-WS...5F14/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1324961718&sr=8-1

I'm tight on space so I opted for this small unit.

I was able to put an edge with my ezelap sharpening kit, but just not getting things quite as sharp as they should be.

The Worksharp will do you good. One thing I would recommend is getting some aftermarket Micro-Mesh MX belts. It'll give you a wider range of finishes and speed.

Benchmade has never had a particularly good reputation with me. Mostly because a lot of the early complaints of S30V chipping seemed to have come from Benchmade, and they also have a habit of running their blades a bit on the soft side of the given range. And while Queen's knives often have complaints of dull factory edges, I also hear the blade is a real bear to sharpen, which to me means a harder heat treatment. Besides which, I sometimes wonder if the complaint of dull edges mean anything when Benchmade is brought up in the same sentence.

I myself purchased a couple of Queen Country Cousin Sodbusters to play around with on my Worksharp. The price seems pretty good($35 a pop) for some nice D2 steel. I'll have to wait until they come in and get sharpened up before I can say anything about the heat treatment.

 

[crom]

Can't comment on the Queen but I have a similar knife to the BM you posted and it's in D2. It's a discontinued 190 drop point hunter, arrived extremely sharp out of box. Never used it to hunt but it gets heavy use in the kitchen and no it hasn't rusted in 5 years of daily use. Don't let the D2 get dull, touch it up every so often and it'll stay nice and sharp.

 

[2Dead]

You should also take a look at the GEC (Great Eastern Cutlery) fixed blade hunters and skinners. Available in Bocote, Burnt Stag, Elk, and Jigged bone.
http://greateasterncutlery.net/blog/hunting-knives/new-releases/?bwbps_page_152=1

 

[jethrob]

those brands look nice but I don' tknow if I'm ready to drop a hundred on one just yet


Got the worksharp. Man that thing is the berries. Puts an edge on quick. I'm getting pretty darn sharp but not quite as sharp as a I want. I can do slicing paper cuts but not push cuts. Maybe it's the knives. I've seen vids where guys take a knife and push it through a whole sheet of paper.....