Two griptilians purchased - DULL.

freq18hz said:
I agree that learning to sharpen is a good thing, but seriously, why should I have to spend more money, and take the time out of my schedule to learn how to sharpen, and possibly trial and error, screw up etc?

I bought benchmade because they promise to keep them sharp.

Also, what about the serrations? Benchmade won't sharpen those, so am I just SOL on those? Because everything I've read says serrations are 10x harder to sharpen that a straight edge. And from what I can tell, lots and lots of people have trouble with a straight edge too, even with things like the sharpmaker etc.

-Freq
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Just buy a lansky or something like that, It takes most of the learning out of it and within no time you will get a good edge. I agree that for the price the knife should come with a usable edge on it. If time is a problem for you everyone needs to take a dump, instead of reading sharpen you knives in there:p J/K but I actually do most of my sharpening in the bathroom, but not while doing my business. It is the room with the best lighting for me.
It would also be wise to stay away from serrations and re-curves as well till you get the basics of sharpening down.
I own 2 benchmades, and I love them, both were reasonably sharp out of the box, but very steep edge angles and course grind marks. Fortunately I love to sharpen and find it relaxing.
 
David Lowry said:
Welcome to the new old way that Benchmade does things now. They just don't care.
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That's an odd juxtaposition with your tag line, David. And your comment is contrary to all of my dealings with Benchmade.


As for the OPs problem: send them back if you want. Then carry on with Plan A of never learning to sharpen. I don't see why you are complaining. If you aren't going to learn to sharpen, you'll have to send them back for sharpening sooner or later. Might as well be sooner.

If I were determined not to learn to sharpen, I guess I might get a disposable razor knife. I know fellas that carry those for just that reason. They don't want to fool with sharpening a knife. And it isn't a bad choice for them.
 
Frank (Knarfeng) is right. If you don't want to learn to sharpen, then don't. But it's really not that hard with all the fancy-shmancy sharpening systems out there today, and you really will get a lot more satisfaction out of your knives if you know how to keep them sharp.

Still, it's your call. Good luck to you.
 
those folding knives with the disposable razorblade are great for people who do property maintenance or cut a lot of cardboard open. they are pretty good for lots of little tasks.

no I am not saying they are amazing cutlery but they do have a good place.
 
I would return both knives and get your money back. Then go to ragweedforge.com and buy a couple of Moras. A fixed blade is almost always a better option than a folder for outdoors work. Then take the $180 dollars you have left and buy some other expensive gear you won't use and therefore need to learn to maintain.

A side benefit of the Mora is that should you ever decide to dabble in the dark arts of knife sharpening, a cheap scandi grind knife is perfect to practice on. If you can't follow the bevel on a scandi grind you probably shouldn't be handling a knife to begin with.
 
Alright...

So I went to a third local shop (not the one I bought from). They seem to carry more benchmade knives than any other retailer in my area. They also have everything else like CRKT, Spyderco, Kershaw, Cold Steel, etc etc etc.

The guy agreed with me that that mini griptilian I have is dull, and defamed the characteristics of D2 steel.

He thinks that my knife came dull, and therefore I am having trouble sharpening it.

He took it to his sharpmaker, which now makes it cut paper, albeit not as well as the other knives in his shop.


To articulate the difference:

The other benchmades, and spyderco, kershaw knives he had, cut paper more easily. Also when rubbing my thumb along the edge, they felt rougher, and more "edgy".

The mini griptilian barley cuts paper, and the blade feels very smooth. If I rub my thumb over it, it feels almost soft compared to other knives?

Does that make any sense? It doesn't feel scratchy, it feels very soft.

Here's the thing that mystifies me:

This thing cuts a firm grape, in half with almost no pressure like it was butter. I cut a piece of string cheese (still in the wrapper) with just slight/moderate downward pressure.

Yet this thing still tears at paper, barely cuts it with perfect technique. It will not shave my arm.

The full size griptilian I have however, now feels very scratchy, and with some pressure scrapes hair off my arm.


I walked out of the store with my own Spyderco Sharpmaker.


Is my mini grip with the D2 possibly "too sharp"? Is that silly to think? Perhaps was it shaped wrong from the factory? I haven't watched the DVD yet so I am sure I'll be learning more soon, but I hope to either fix this blade, or figure out that it is sharp and I just don't know what real sharp is.

Thanks to all for the help, even the flamers! I'm going to blame all of you personally for sucking me in to yet another world of forum based packrat collection. Instead of cars, watches, guitars, I will now be posting knife collection pics. =)

Cheers,

-Freq
 
I got my girlfriend a 556 mini grip for christmas. It came pretty damn sharp as is holding up well. I got a 710 in D2 today and must say that its not hair cutting sharp but it goes through paper real nice, its definitely sharp but the edge is so damn thick on this thing!! Im going to hopefully find someone on the forum near me to teach me how to reprofle the edge and take some degrees off this SOB




I think i might know what you mean by a soft edge. I get that whenever i fail at sharpening the knife and end up with a duller knife lol.
 
freq18hz said:
Alright...
I walked out of the store with my own Spyderco Sharpmaker.


Is my mini grip with the D2 possibly "too sharp"? Is that silly to think? Perhaps was it shaped wrong from the factory? I haven't watched the DVD yet so I am sure I'll be learning more soon, but I hope to either fix this blade, or figure out that it is sharp and I just don't know what real sharp is.



Cheers,

-Freq
Click to expand...

D2 takes a good working edge (what you are experiencing) but to get it hair popping sharp takes TIME! Just relax. Get a beer, watch the dvd and practice away! that is the key. practice practice practice. There are also some tips on sharpening on youtube if you do not feel like reading.

Learning to sharpen is a skills set that must be developed with time and practice much like that of using chisels to do woodwork or to hit a nail into a 2x4 with one hit using a hammer. It is rewarding but frustrating at times, not getting the edge right, hitting your finger with the hammer, breaking chisels. Never give up and keep at it.
 
freq18hz said:
I'm relaxed, just annoyed that I have to pay/spend the time to send them back.

-Freq

FYI purchased from a local retailer, cabelas doesn't exist out here.
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Really - I was under the impression that the D2 Grip was still exclusive to Cabelas. I wonder if your knives were used?
 
Smash05 said:
Really - I was under the impression that the D2 Grip was still exclusive to Cabelas. I wonder if your knives were used?
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That was my impression too, but it's wrong. There's another thread going here about this right now, and apparently BM is making D2 grips for others as well.
 
Samael said:
That was my impression too, but it's wrong. There's another thread going here about this right now, and apparently BM is making D2 grips for others as well.
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I wonder if they are offering "exclusivity" to others ;) I know Knifeworks had the fixed version in D2, but I figured that had more to do with the fixed version being discontinued than anything else. My D2 Mini-Grip has to be one off my favorites in a small folder.
 
Defamed D2? Really? I love my D2 710, I re-profiled it and its like a razor now. Shaves hair, slides though paper as if it wasn't there and holds the edge longer then any other blade I have. I hear many people here say that D2 needs a toothy edge to work its best, but I polish mine and it works great. I have never experienced any of the brittleness that I often hear about D2, yet I don't abuse that knife. It cuts and slices, never pry's or chops.
 
unky_gumbi said:
Defamed D2? Really? I love my D2 710, I re-profiled it and its like a razor now. Shaves hair, slides though paper as if it wasn't there and holds the edge longer then any other blade I have. I hear many people here say that D2 needs a toothy edge to work its best, but I polish mine and it works great. I have never experienced any of the brittleness that I often hear about D2, yet I don't abuse that knife. It cuts and slices, never pry's or chops.
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I think what the guy meant is that since it came dull it was 'defaming' how sharp d2 can be, but I could be wrong.


Anyway, congrats on getting a Sharpmaker. There are a bunch of tutorials around, but one thing that always gets mentioned is run a sharpie down the edge to show where on the blade it's hitting; if it's higher up than the edge, you have more time to go (or use a larger angle to begin with).
 
freq18hz said:
Alright...

So I went to a third local shop (not the one I bought from). They seem to carry more benchmade knives than any other retailer in my area. They also have everything else like CRKT, Spyderco, Kershaw, Cold Steel, etc etc etc.

The guy agreed with me that that mini griptilian I have is dull, and defamed the characteristics of D2 steel.

He thinks that my knife came dull, and therefore I am having trouble sharpening it.

He took it to his sharpmaker, which now makes it cut paper, albeit not as well as the other knives in his shop.


To articulate the difference:

The other benchmades, and spyderco, kershaw knives he had, cut paper more easily. Also when rubbing my thumb along the edge, they felt rougher, and more "edgy".

The mini griptilian barley cuts paper, and the blade feels very smooth. If I rub my thumb over it, it feels almost soft compared to other knives?

Does that make any sense? It doesn't feel scratchy, it feels very soft.

Here's the thing that mystifies me:

This thing cuts a firm grape, in half with almost no pressure like it was butter. I cut a piece of string cheese (still in the wrapper) with just slight/moderate downward pressure.

Yet this thing still tears at paper, barely cuts it with perfect technique. It will not shave my arm.

The full size griptilian I have however, now feels very scratchy, and with some pressure scrapes hair off my arm.


I walked out of the store with my own Spyderco Sharpmaker.


Is my mini grip with the D2 possibly "too sharp"? Is that silly to think? Perhaps was it shaped wrong from the factory? I haven't watched the DVD yet so I am sure I'll be learning more soon, but I hope to either fix this blade, or figure out that it is sharp and I just don't know what real sharp is.

Thanks to all for the help, even the flamers! I'm going to blame all of you personally for sucking me in to yet another world of forum based packrat collection. Instead of cars, watches, guitars, I will now be posting knife collection pics. =)

Cheers,

-Freq
Click to expand...

People that defame D2 usually don't know how to sharpen all that well...at least from my experience. It doesnt make sense that the knife it too sharp.

I think you made a good call about getting the sharpeners. Too much in society today, we are pressured to think we have no time and we avoid learning skills that were just common sense for peoples of our past. I think the trend should be broken. Taking the time to learn useful skills is a very rewarding and relaxing part of life.

I would be annoyed if my knives came dull as well, but such is life. I was like you in the past and didnt know how to sharpen my knives. I now love it and find it very fun to do :). Good luck, and use those knives well. You may even find you will be carrying them daily :thumbup:
 
Yeah maybe this guy doesn't know how to sharpen?
In any case, when I said he defamed D2, I mean that he said it's hard to sharpen compared to 154cm, and that when it looses it's edge, or has a poor profile on it, it takes a long time to get razor sharp.

Pretty sure the knives weren't used. They came off a shelf, were wrapped in plastic, looked new to me. Even felt knew, plastic all virgin feeling like they had never been handled.



-Freq
 
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freq18hz said:
Just purchased two Griptilians..
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:thumbup:

freq18hz said:
I walked out of the store with my own Spyderco Sharpmaker.
Click to expand...

:thumbup:

You own two of the best production knives in the world, and one of the best edge maintenance systems.

I am frustrated that Benchmade have supplied you with dull knives. I have owned over fifty Benchmades and have only ever had one or two knives that I would consider dull. Please persevere with the Sharpmaker - practise on inexpensive knives that you have at home.
Once you get the hang of it you will never look back.

A Griptilian is an excellent working knife. I have over a dozen of them in various different steels (154CM, D2, S30V, M2 High Speed and CPM M4) and carry them more often that any of my other knives.
The D2 Grip is one of my favourites. I have found that it will easily take a shave-sharp edge and hold it well.

Please don't let this unfortunate event put you off Benchmade.
 
I'm with you on this Freq18hz.

Could you sharpen these up in 10-15 minutes???--Yes.

Should you have to for $100 knives? Absolutely not.

Benchmade seems to be going after the higher end production knife segment. If they're going to be successful, they better tighten up their QC. They already lost my business after I purchased a couple of their uninspiring models.

I never write a company off completely, as they may come out with a more appealing lineup with good value.

But now the value isn't there. The do have some classic models that are still worth a look, but at prices that are out of sync with what you get in terms of steels and F&F.
 
Honestly, I have no complaints with the fit and finish of these things. They are top notch, and please without kicking me in the balls for saying so, I think they instantly feel more high quality than the spyderco and kershaw knives I've checked out.

The only thing I am worried about is screwing up the blades. I'm still debating sending them to benchmade, because even after having the guy at the knife shop throw them on the sharpmaker, this D2 mini griptilian just is not sharp enough for my tastes.

I'm not sure if i need to re-profile the blade, or if I did that already by trying the Accusharp and the benchmade field sharpening kit?

I guess I'll try the spyderco when I get home, I just hope I can get it sharp.


Also I realize this is probably the dumbest question ever, but how many times can I sharpen a blade before its time for a new blade? Should I feel slighted for having to do so right off the bat?

-Freq
 
freq18hz said:
Honestly, I have no complaints with the fit and finish of these things. They are top notch, and please without kicking me in the balls for saying so, I think they instantly feel more high quality than the spyderco and kershaw knives I've checked out.

The only thing I am worried about is screwing up the blades. I'm still debating sending them to benchmade, because even after having the guy at the knife shop throw them on the sharpmaker, this D2 mini griptilian just is not sharp enough for my tastes.

I'm not sure if i need to re-profile the blade, or if I did that already by trying the Accusharp and the benchmade field sharpening kit?

I guess I'll try the spyderco when I get home, I just hope I can get it sharp.


Also I realize this is probably the dumbest question ever, but how many times can I sharpen a blade before its time for a new blade? Should I feel slighted for having to do so right off the bat?

-Freq
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You sharpen them when they don't meet your standard of sharpness. You could just use them till they don't cut any more but that makes for a long process of getting them good again. A good knife will last a long time with proper care and maintenance, you are looking at years and years down the road, unless you really abuse them. You have 2 good knives and you made the next step in learning how to sharpen them, before you know it you will be hooked like the rest of us and have more knives then you can wear out in a life time.
As for D2, I do find its harder to sharpen, but the usable edge last longer too, so its a good trade off for me. You should be a little upset you dropped good money on quality knives, they should have come with a usable edge to start, but once you get into this knife thing chances are that you would be fine tuning the edge right off the bat any how. I had my mini grip about 2 hours before I re-profiled the edge

Not the best pictures but you can sort of see the edge is further back from the stock grind
DSC01204.jpg
 
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