Since my post on the newly announced Spydercos went SO well, I figure I might as well do a post about the new Benchmades that have just been announced!

Little known fact, I am not a huge Benchmade fan. I have owned 4 of them; which I know is a small sample, but I feel like they have some quality control issues in some of the lines. The 2 griptilians I have owned for example. The edges that came from the factory were not good. In fact, the first one I bought was nonexistent. But, after several hours spent working on profiling the blade, it is now a once-a-monther for me.

This being said, Benchmade makes one of the best production knives I have ever owned, or even held. The 940 Osborne.

For me, the 940 is a yard stick. Simple, beautifully made, fantastic materials, extreme attention to detail. It is the knife that other knives should strive to be. That brings me to the first blade I want to talk about. The Osborne Proxy (I have a feeling this blade will be known better as the 928). With a blade length of 3.87 inches, and a thickness of .15” (in CPM-20CV) this blade stands to be extremely sharp. It will also be one of the only frame lock flippers Benchmade has ever made. And of course, it will be locking on titanium, which seems to be the new standard for the industry. Although the 928 isn’t the best looking knife I have ever seen, I can guarantee it will be in the pockets of many EDCers (including me)!

Benchmade is also releasing 2 “gentleman’s folders” next year. One will be the 765 Mini Ti Monolock, which is the little brother to the 761 (by half an inch). This blade will also be a titanium frame lock, made in M390 steel at 3.24 inches. The other is the 698 Foray AXIS, which also 3.24 inches but in CPM-20CV steel. This blade is going to be lined with stainless steel, and finished with G-10. Both of these knives are gorgeous, and are sure to be in the pockets of many church goers; and business executives.

Benchmade is also joining in on the cleaver fad with the new Nestucca Fix blade. Here are the specs: S30V, 4.41 inch blade, orange g10. I want one. I have liked the idea of a cleaver style blade for a while, but I haven’t jumped on one yet. Mostly because the ones I like are out of the price range of the typical college student. However; this one might end up in the ever expanding collection.

The Nestucca is one of two knives to join the Hunt series. The other is the Crooked River AXIS. The first thing that came to mind when I saw this blade was “holy crap!” The blade is 4 inches, which is a little long for most EDCers. But this thing is so sexy that I do not care. It has gray aluminum handles, which has a G-10 overlay that looks like wood on one side. Then it is finished with an orange ring around the pivot as well as an orange back spacer! That together with the 4 inch, s30v, clip point blade, and this knife is a win, win, win! Both of these blades will bring some life to the largely ignored Hunt series that Benchmade offers.

Benchmade is also doing some upgrades to the Barrage and Griptilian series. Both will see milled G10 handles, and the griptilian will also have blue liners (which looks super cool). I have been looking at the Barrage for several years now, maybe this will make me pull the trigger.

No doubt that the #1 booth at the Blade Show in 2016 will be going harder than ever. Can’t wait to get my hands on some of these, even though my large Saddleback bi-fold will shrink into a money clip! Go check them out!