Benchmade Knife Company’s succinct slogan pretty much sums up everything they build into their stellar products. Rugged, practical, capable and unstoppable, there is a story of craftsmanship behind every Benchmade pocket knife - behind every Benchmade knife - that has endeared them to those who use them and rely on them each and every day.

A knife might just be the most important tool you can put money into. There’s more than one way a knife can save your life, whether it comes in the form of providing you with fire in the winter or as a dive knife to cut you from an underwater snare. Simple but unbelievably practical, it is your most important tool, and you can hardly ever have just one. Here are some of the reasons that, if you are looking for a new one, a Benchmade will fit the bill.

Premium Quality Material s

Benchmade knives are made only with ultra premium quality materials and are indicative of some of the highest levels of quality that you will find in knives today. They rank alongside and ahead of many knives - even custom made, hand-forged knives - in terms of the quality materials they use.

Benchmade pocket knives and other lines are made with premium steels that are carefully selected for the intended purposes of the blade, representing a mix of different levels of resistance to corrosion, of edge retention and of general durability. With many years of experience in knife making and ironworking, they understand the ins and outs of what suits a steel to a specific purpose. There is a delicate balance between hardness and brittleness, strength and softness and resistance to corrosion that will make any given steel suitable to use in a design, and they are no stranger to this. In their lines of knives, you will be apt to find blades made from super steels like S90V, S30V, CPM-M4 and many more in the mix.

In terms of their handle materials, you’ll find a similar range of high performance materials. Some of their blades come with scales of titanium that is not only light and strong, but highly resistant to corrosion. Other blades come fitted with micarta or G10 scales, both of which are known for being monstrously tough. Inert, impervious to the influences of moisture and highly tactile, composite materials like these only become more and more popular as every year goes by. They do not swell, they do not rot, they are not slippery, and when properly finished they can offer no hotspots. Some of their knives are even made with handles of materials like santoprene that are renowned for their tactical performance and lightness.

Fit and Finish

In fit and finish Benchmade knives also stand head and shoulders above the competition. This is an area in which many other knife manufacturers lose a lot of “points” because, while they may be made from high quality materials, they cut costs in quality control of the finished product. This results in knives that are poorly machined, terribly ground and honed, rough around the edges, or worse.

You will not find a Benchmade knife with poorly fit scales, you will not find one with a discrepancy between the fit of the scales and the tang. Their scales are perfectly cut and machined before being married to the tang. As for the lockup mechanisms on folding and automatic knives, you can expect them to lock up smoothly from day one, to disengage only when intentionally disengaged and to age gracefully.

As for the blades, you can expect an even heat treatment for superior toughness and edge retention as well as an even and consistent grind. Their knives are carefully honed and finished with a razor edge before being shipped out. Whereas many other knives will require a user to put his or her own edge of a blade, a Benchmade pocket knife will, so to speak, come ‘battle ready,’ if you will.

Ergonomics

On top of the fact that their knives are manufactured to the highest standards of quality and fit and finished to preclude peerage, Benchmade has created and perfected some designs in knives that are ergonomic masterpieces. This will become more apparent as we take a more in-depth look into some models later in this article, but you can expect some of the following from Benchmade knives.

Many other knives have designs that engender hot spots or rough areas that, while they are practical in concept, are sloppy in execution. To wit, a common problem with pocket knives is that they have sharp edges and corners that catch on clothing or pockets as they are being drawn or returned to their places. Benchmade laboriously tests its designs before producing them to ensure that they do not offer any such setbacks as these. Another common problem with some fixed blades is that the forward part of the tang, or the guard (if there is one) is machined poorly and does not fit flush to the scales. Oftentimes this produces an undesirable edge that digs into the users hands.

You will find none of these problems in the designs of Benchmade knives as they are all extensively tested and improved during design. In fact, as will be illustrated further on in this article, Benchmade not only capitalizes on proven designs and patterns but also paves the way for others to take center stage through their innovative processes and designs.

Backed for Life

Yours, for life. It’s a simple slogan but Benchmade says it all in just three words. Their warranty is simple as well. The company warrants that all Benchmade knives will be free from defects in workmanship as long as the original purchaser owns the knife; which, as you look at it, is for life. Although the warranty does not cover abuse (very few do) it practically guarantees the knife for life for the original owner. That’s a guarantee that very few offer these days, and it’s one you’ll be glad you had when you realize how much you come to rely on your tools when you need them.

Multiplicity of Uses

Finally there is the fact that Benchmade is not just good for a Benchmade pocket knife. In fact, they design and produce knives for a multiplicity of different uses and for different purposes. They learned that although one knife can fill a lot of different roles, there are many ways in which a knife can be improved to make its owner’s life a lot easier and to suit it better to a specific task.

If you’re a hunter, you can take advantage of the many knives that Benchmade produces modeled after skinners, boners and filet knives. If you are a bushcrafted, you will appreciate any of their sturdy drop pointed and spear pointed knives that are ideal for splitting, batoning, carving and drilling. If you need a knife for utility, you will be amazed at some of the ergonomic and insightful designs of some of their folders. Benchcraft has taken designs and elevated them to the next level, weighing practical uses and the input of customers alike. Whatever your needs are in a knife, you will find plenty of options from Benchmade in the following categories.

Everyday Carry

It’s somewhat hard to define what it means to be a knife that is designed specifically for everyday carry, since there isn’t a lot of specificity built into everyday carry. In fact, EDC is defined by generality. That being said, here are some highlights from our Benchmade collection that make fine additions to any EDC rotation.

If you want to get an impression of what makes a Benchmade pocket knife great for EDC, check out a model like the Benchmade Griptilian Axis Folder with an S30V blade. This knife is very nearly the epitome of EDC, with a number of features that make it as utilitarian as possible.

This knife comes with a 3.45 inch drop point blade in S30V steel which can be heat treated to a hardness of 58-60 on the Rockwell Hardness Scale; not only is this an impressive hardness, but the steel itself is extremely resistant to abrasion and will hold an edge for a remarkably long time. This means that while it can be a bit tough to bring the edge back up to speed, it will hold for quite a long time. It comes with a tan polymer handle that is resistant to wear, abrasion and will not absorb liquids so that it is suitable for hard use in a lot of different environments. It offers a great grip, and the drop point blade is suitable for a number of cutting or piercing tasks. Also, the Axis lock is strong and reliable, and the pocket clip allows for convenient tip up carry.

General Utility

While knives like the Griptilian above are specifically designed to offer a lot of all around utilitarian function for EDC, Benchmade has also designed a number of knives that are perfectly well suited for general utility or for use as a shop knife.

Consider a knife like the Benchmade 602 Tengu Tool Knife with a contoured G10 handle and a plain 20C blade with a tanto profile. A knife like this is just built to offer the maximum utility as a shop tool.

This very popular Benchmade pocket knife is loaded with features that make it desirable and practical for users. For one, the very short blade enables users to exert a lot of force and pressure while still maintaining great control over the blade. In addition, the tanto point, though it lacks belly, is very strong and can be used as a chisel or even a plane, with a little practice. This suits the knife will for shaving wood, chiseling, slicing, and even stripping wire in a pinch. It’s also easy to open, locks securely and contains a flathead screwdriver and bottle opener as well. As a practical shop tool, it can be hard to beat.

Fixed Blades

In addition to its famous pocket knives, Benchmade also manufactures a number of fixed blades that are highly esteemed for their use as tools in the backcountry. Strong, ergonomic and extremely practical, their fixed blade knives are revered by hunters, campers, backpackers and bushcrafters alike.

Consider a knife like their Benchmade Bushcraft 162 Knife with G10 scales. This thing is an immensely capable knife that can make a huge difference when you carry something like it in the field. With adequate and comfortable G10 scales that offer the benefits already enumerated in this article, it is a very comfortable and ergonomic tool that can be held in a number of different grips very comfortably.

The drop pointed tip is almost a spear point in profile and is extremely sturdy which is a bonus when you will be likely to put this knife through the wringer because it will minimize the risk of break offs. In addition the S30V steel does a pretty decent job of bucking corrosion while at the same time holding an edge for a phenomenally long time. Whether you need to strike a fire from the spine, baton up some shingles and planks or use the knife to drill a hole through a board while constructing a shelter, it won’t let you down.

As you can see, there are a number of Benchmade knives that are suitable for a wide variety of tasks, and the purpose of exposing some of them was not to suggest purchases, but to illustrate the features that they build into their knives to make them more suitable to their jobs. As they say, the best knife for a task is the one you have, but that doesn’t mean that a knife can’t be wisely designed.

Check out catalog of Benchmade Knives here at White Mountain Knives, and if you need help finding anything, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team at whitemountainknives@gmail.com. We’d be happy to help you find your next EDC or bushcraft knife, and as always, all orders in the U.S. ship free.