Review: Benchmade Monochrome and N690 steel

knarfeng

knarfeng

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So I found myself looking for a pocketknife in 440C and found the pickings slim. Came across the Benchmade Monochrome, which Benchmade said was made from steel with 440C-type performance called N690. A bit of Googling revealed that this is an alloy made by Bohler of Austria. Off to their web site. First I downloaded their catalog and confirmed that they list only one N690. (I vaguely remembered rumors of multiple alloys being identified as N690. Bohler only lists one N690 Alloy.) Then I downloaded the Bohler product data sheet for N690, looked at the composition, and got more interested. The composition was in the ballpark for what I was looking for.
_______N690______440C
C______1.07_______1.05
Si______0.4_________
Mn_____0.4_____
Cr_____17.3________17
Mo_____1.1________0.75
V_______0.1________ --
Co______1.5_________--

So we had the Carbon and Chromium content of 440C. Plus we have additional Moly, enough Vanadium to act as a grain refiner, and Cobalt, which the Spyderco web site says, "increases strength and hardness, permits quenching in higher temperatures and intensifies the individual effects of other elements in more complex steels." Bohler recommends a tempered hardness of 58-60. Sounds dinkum. The presence of the trace of Vanadium held promise of finer grain size for better strength and a keener edge. And there was likewise the promise of plentiful Chromium Carbides for edge retention. ACK! I was hooked. I GOTS to try this stuff.

I searched the forums and found some positive comments about the knife and no bad words. I bought the knife and have carried, used, and tested it for the last two weekends. (Too big to bring to work.)
So, first the knife, then the steel.
Benchmade specs (My comments in Green):
Blade Length: 3.04" Seems bigger because it is a wide blade.
Blade Thickness: 0.125" Thick too
Blade Material: N690 Stainless Steel
Blade Hardness: 58-60HRC Yes sir. Mine tested at 59.48 HRC
Blade Style: Drop-Point Utility; Reminds me of a SAK blade on steroids.
Ambidextrous Thumb-Studs Largish diameter. Very comfy to use.
Weight: 3.84oz.
Clip: Silver, Removable, Tip-Down set for right hand only
Lock Mechanism: Monolock AKA Framelock
Overall Length: 7.37"
Closed Length: 4.35"
Class: Red Made in Taiwan.

When buying a steel-handled knife, I am sometimes worried the security of the grip. In this case, I need not have worried. It is not slippery at all. Both the blade and the handle have a bead blasted finish. Also, the Benchmade photos do not show that along the dorsal and ventral edges of the handle where it swells up to keep the hand from sliding up, there are ridges in the steel. I found the grip to be very secure.

Another worry with steel handled knives is balance. Sometimes the handle outweighs the blade by too much and it becomes a bit awkward in use. In this case, the designer has really done a wonderful job and has created a knife with excellent balance. The heaviness of the blade (both width and thickness) counter-balances the weight of the handle. The result is very good. You really have to hold one to appreciate it.

I found the blade shape to be very good. Benchmade calls it a "Drop Point Utility". I call it an SAK blade on steroids. I found the tip cuts into plastic and cardboard well. It’s not an exotic looking recurve. It’s not sexy, but it definitely gets the job done. And it is a breeze to resharpen.

Lockup is completely solid. No movements up or down. The lock engages just about the first 1/3 of the blade. It is just right where it should be.
Overall, the Monochrome feels solid, and again, excellent balance. Kudos on that. Feels like you have a Tiger Tank in your hand. (I’d say Sherman tank, but the designer is German.) Very strong, very well designed, good attention to detail.

Now we come to the grind. I found it wanting in four respects. It was only reasonably sharp. The grind marks on the edge were quite noticeable to the naked eye. The first 1/16" at the base of the blade seemed mis-ground and not in line with the rest of the blade. And, as I sharpened it up on a Sharpmaker, I found that one side was sharpened at a bit less than 15°, while the other side was sharpened at a bit more than 15°. However, a couple of swipes on a carbide stone took care of that odd 1/16" and about ½ hour on the Sharpmaker fixed the other grind ills. Freaking thing took a wicked sharp edge.

I’ve EDC’d the Monochrome for a couple of weekends. I used it to open plastic blister packs. I cut cardboard and trimmed various things that needed it (Ain’t it amazing how many things seem to pop up that just gotta be trimmed when you have a new blade?) I found the blade pointy enough to force into plastic or cardboard easily in order to start a cut. The tip is not a chisel, but I think it will stand up to normal and slightly abnormal cutting chores. The grind is quite high and this allows for good cutting through cardboard.

The knife handle is thin. It carries extremely easily in my back pocket. For short term heavy cutting jobs as an EDC it will do, but I think if I were choosing a knife for a day when I KNEW I would be doing heavy cutting all day long, I would choose a knife with a thicker handle. For EDC I found it acceptable.

Speaking of carrying, it doesn’t stealth carry, but it does carry nice and deep. I liked the clip on this knife. When using the knife, I found that the clip was not noticeable in my hand. I could grip the knife hard and not have the clip dig into my hand. I have not always found that to be true with other knives. Very nice.

I found the thumb studs to be nice large and quite in fitting with the style of the knife. I did find that the knife is so thin that I had to concentrate on getting a good purchase on the edge of the handle to open it. It’s not stiff, the handle just does not stick up that much so that you can get purchase.
 
So, how ‘bout that N690 steel?

A lot of folks complain that they don’t get quite as fine an edge on 440C as they do on AUS10 or VG10. I tend to agree on that. But with the trace of Vanadium in it, the N690 seems pretty fine grained. It takes a really wicked edge. I felt it took as keen an edge as my Native III in VG10.

Edge retention?
I find it hard to differentiate edge retention of different steels when using them for EDC. It’s hard to do exactly the same amount of cutting. I wanted a test method that I could use to differentiate edge retention performance, but which I could do with very little test equipment. I also wanted a test that was not dependent on the blade shape. I find that in cutting cardboard I sometimes have trouble judging the sharpness because a thick blade will bind in the cardboard.

The test I have settled on is to sharpen the blades to be compared on a Sharpmaker at 30° inclusive, then examine the edge under a 3X-hand lens to ensure there is no visible edge (no shiny spots). I then make 20 cuts in 3/8” manila rope with each blade and examine the edges under the 3-x lens and compare the amount of shine I see. Shiny spots equate to edge damage and loss of sharpness. The type of damage I see after the 20 cuts approximates what I see after a day working the yard cutting various items or after cutting a fair amount of cardboard. I usually test three or four steels at a time. I try to test at least one steel with known excellent edge retention, several that I think are in the same range as the unknown, and one with generally poorer edge retention. This gives me a range of results to compare. The method is qualitative, not quantitative. But it does allow me to make comparisons of just steel and not blade shape plus steel.

Using this test, I have found that a Buck 110 in 440C has about level of edge retention as my Native VG10 and both are significantly better than my KaBar Large Dozier in AUS8. I find that my Benchmade Ascent in ATS34 has less shiny surface after cutting than either the VG10 or 440C. In the case of this N690 blade, I found there was less shininess after cutting than either VG10 or 440C, but more than with ATS34.

The order of what edge retention using my test technique is:
ATS34 <<N690 < VG10, 440C <<< AUS8.

Because this is a controversial result, I went back and did some cardboard cutting with my Native III and the Monochrome. The edges had no shine prior to the cutting. I cut parallel strips alternating with first one blade then the other through some double layer cardboard I had. I found two results. The first was that I noticed more increase in force needed to cut with the Native III as I made successive cuts than I did with the Monochrome. The second was that using the lens after the cutting, I saw more damage on the VG10 blade than on the N690 blade.

Having done these two test techniques, I am satisfied that the N690 has a small but measurable edge retention performance advantage over the VG10 for the types of cutting I do with an EDC. It is not sufficient for me to say that I would prefer a knife with N690 over a knife with VG10 based on the steel alone. It is enough for me to say it is there. It is also enough that I will never shy away from any knife because it has N690 as a blade steel.

So we have steel with really good edge retention, that takes a really keen edge. This is Good Boogie.

Conclusion:
Overall, I consider the Benchmade Monochrome to be a good buy at the online price of just over $30. A better grind would have been nice, but I can fix the grind. I can’t change the steel, the balance, or grippiness of the handle. And the Monochrome excels at those.

Bottom Line: Benchmade Monochrome: Worth the money.
 
I purchased one about two months ago and it is in my rotation when it is appropriate to carry a larger clip knife instead of a pocketknife. When I have to wear dockers to work a SAK or toothpick folding knife is in my pocket, when bluejeans are allowed, the Monochrome or a Remington M series folder is onboard.
I believe the Remington is an overlooked knife as well.
 
To me the 960CO is tougher than 440C for chopping ( relative as it's not a carbon steel, much less infi). It's one of the reasons Hossom selected this steel for his big knives both before Spyderco ( retribution series) , then with Spyderco where the reports on the knives are very good.

I for one wouldn't really desire a 440C blade for chopping, though it's better than nothing. Joe
 
thanx for the great review knarfeng :thumbup: the Ontario Hossom Retribution folders have this blade steel too
 
I carried a Benchmade Ambush for a week or so as a loaner, and was impressed with the steel, though its not the same as the Monochrome. The steels BM lists at the near Rockwell 60 value on the website seem to take a very sharp edge and hold it quite a while, at least that was my experience with this knife.
 
me2 said:
I carried a Benchmade Ambush for a week or so as a loaner, and was impressed with the steel, though its not the same as the Monochrome. The steels BM lists at the near Rockwell 60 value on the website seem to take a very sharp edge and hold it quite a while, at least that was my experience with this knife.
Click to expand...

+1 on BM's AUS-8. I had a mini Ambush and really liked the high hardness/edge holding of this steel. I did however, disliked the handle and lock to the point iwill not get another. (the indraft bar broke on mine after 2/3 weeks, so I returned it)

Back to topic: The N690 I had in a Monochrome was a very good steel, treated to ~60hc, held an edge nicely, and I was happy with it.
 
I've had a monochrome for going on a year and carried it for probably 3-4 months. One problem I had (sort of), I thought it was slick. I put some fine self adhesive sand paper up near the pivot pin and along the end behind the slots. I also put sandpaper on the lock side from the end of the picket clip to the lanyard hole. works really well, is not to abrasive and is easily replaceable.:thumbup: Oh, I really like this steel and bladeshape as well
 
I love the Monochrome but also thought it was too slick. I had some trouble opening it due to my hand slipping. I put a small spot of JB weld on the side for traction and that solved the problem. I agree - it's built like a tank.

Kevin
 
Haven't had any problem with slickness. The Monochrome has been my main weekend EDC pretty much since I got it. Took it camping, worked in the back yard with it. Haven't had any problem with slickness. Obviously the mileage varies on this.

I've bought a number of imported knives. Once I've carried a knife awhile and really gotten to know it, I end up asking myself a question:
If the knife were US-made and cost twice as much as what I paid for it, would I buy it or recommend it? The answer with the Monochrome is a resounding YES. I paid about $32 on the web for this Taiwan-made knife. I would recommend it or buy it if it were US-made and cost $65 (streetprice). I like it better than my Griptilian.
 
Let me expand on my earlier answer. I carried it EVERY DAY for 3-4 months and WHILE PLAYING WITH IT I thought it was slick. In actual use, this was never a problem for me and I used it to cut a variety of things, steak, hamburger, sausage and raw chicken and didn't find it slick. I LIKE THIS STEEL AND THE HEAT TREAT BM GIVES IT! I would still be carrying it but I found a new in the box cqc-7 spear point for half the MSRP price and now I carry it. Oh, I also cut up about 100 feet of water soaked carpet and it stayed reasonably sharp and then sharpened up again just as easily, but then again all I use is a diamond hone and ceramics.
 
How does it compare to D2? I'm quite new to cutlery and know next to nothing about steel.
 
knarfeng said:
Don't have any D2, but based on the reports of posters I trust, D2 is a good bit better at keeping an edge.

Welcome aboard!
To learn more about steel, you might want to read these two resources about cutlery steel:
The steel FAQ sticky here on the Maintenance and tinkering forum:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=368828

A sticky on steel performance in knives over at British Blades:
http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1190
Click to expand...

Wow, quick reply to an older thread by the starter himself. Impressive.

Thanks for the warm welcome and information :)
 
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THG said:
How does it compare to D2? I'm quite new to cutlery and know next to nothing about steel.
Click to expand...

My first BM was a Monochrome and I loved it. It began an addiction that is over 15 BMs strong. That being said, i have a few D2 BMs and I personally think the N690 is a tougher steel when it comes to cutting harder objects like wire, sheetrock, and heavy gauge cardboard. Some of my D2 knives have had edge chipping problems on hard materials. The worst damage on my N690 was some edge rolling and a lightly chipped tip ( dropped on concrete). However, I will say that the edge retention on D2 is far superior.
 
Now that you have had this knife for around 6 months, to you still carry it and like it? Also, could you tell us how thick the handle is and what the washer are between the blade and the handle? Thanks.
 
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