15200 Altitude

I might pay that. But the mini crooked river is retailing for $220 and seems to be going for around $187...
 
This is the only new knife from benchmade I like the look of but not for that price. A slightly larger izula in premium steel and tiny "scales" for 4 times price?

I'd buy one at around $110. Maybe I'm a tightwad.
 
I was excited about the s90v but when I saw the price....it put a little damper on my enthusiasm.

The price of knives has really seemed to go up in the last few years. I have to remember it's just something I want, not need (since I and probably everyone on this site have enough knives to last multiple lifetimes) so if it takes a little longer to buy the ones I like I'll still be ok. It's an exercise in patients. Everyone needs more of that, right? Lol
 
My reservations as well, otherwise I like the whole idea and design. The Arcane axis assist Flipper sports an S90V blade and is $220 from most dealers. The Bushcrafter is $195 street price and a lot more knife. I'd be a buyer at $130-150. I wonder what the added expense is?
 
Decent size chunk of S90V + DLC + CF/G10 micro scales = Added costs
 
Benchmade said:
Decent size chunk of S90V + DLC + CF/G10 micro scales = Added costs
Click to expand...

The most expensive processes all wrapped up into one. Certainly will last a lifetime so not a bad investment if it's everything it's cracked up to be.
 
MattWRog said:
The most expensive processes all wrapped up into one. Certainly will last a lifetime so not a bad investment if it's everything it's cracked up to be.
Click to expand...

Yep, it slices like a laser, holds an awesome edge and will be light in the pack.
 
MattWRog said:
The most expensive processes all wrapped up into one. Certainly will last a lifetime so not a bad investment if it's everything it's cracked up to be.
Click to expand...


I agree. But I also have started to view Knives like this as luxury items. Like watches , shoes and other accessories.
 
Last thing I need is a new knife right now but I like this one.
I can do without blade coatings.
 
Yeah, those CF scales surely raise the price by alot.

I think the black one is a sexy knife but over 200?
If anything I will wait for the price to go down.
 
Since there's little to no information out there on this little guy I'd like to post my initial thoughts. Let me get the negatives out of the way right off the bat...This knife is expensive. Like many of you, I was intrigued with this knife when I first saw it at shot show but I suffered a severe case of stickers shock when I saw the price. Is it worth it? That is up to the user, personally I would say no and here's why. This is a purpose built knife made from quality materials by a reputable manufacturer. One could argue any knife that costs more than a rat 2 or a mora is overpriced when at the end of the day they all cut. A $10 Casio is more durable and much better at telling time accurately than the most expensive Rolex money can buy. At some point it becomes less about functionality and more about user enjoyment/pride of ownership. This knife fortunately offers both functionality and pride of ownership.

Second con, and this could be isolated to first production run status...my sheath is STIFF. Like past the point of good retention and teetering on unusable. I will be spending some time drawing and re-sheathing in hopes it gets broken in before actually carrying this out and about. While on the subject of the sheath, more mounting options/eyelets would have been welcome. I was still able to Jerry-rig an izula clip on, but lower than I'd have liked.

Now on to the good. For me, this knife is exactly what I've been looking for. I'm of the opinion that finding a good knife is just like trying on shoes; as soon as you put the right pair on you just know. As soon as I opened up the box (and wrenched the knife out of the sheath) I knew it would be a keeper. The weight (or lack thereof) took me by surprise. I believe that is partially why you will pay a premium for this knife. It weights next to nothing and still has great ergonomics. The altitude has all the right jimping in all the right places that lock your hand into place without feeling like you're grabbing on to a cheese grater.

Next up, like the Benchmades of old the grind on this thing arrived flawless. It's literally perfect and cuts like a freaking light saber. I've never used s90v before but from what I understand it functions similarly to zdp-189 like on my dragonfly 2, meaning it will hold an edge forever but will be a mother to sharpen and more prone to chipping. Well, before purchasing I did as much research as I could and landed on born and raised outdoors YouTube channelwhere those guys processed an ENTIRE ELK with an Altitude. I would venture to say that is more than what 90% of the people who buy this knife will do with it, myself included. After processing they ran a few passes on a worksharp and it was back to popping hairs. Perfection.

I'm still well in the honeymoon phase, but overall impressions are very positive. I'm going to be keeping my ZT in my backpack for a week and use the altitude as my EDC. I'll try to update any thoughts or concerns. Thanks for taking the time to read my ramblings.

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Dear Benchmade, I have a few suggestions. Make an uncoated version in s30v, (3v???) replace the carbon fiber with g10 and keep the price around $100-$120 MSRP. Profit. You guys have a winner here but I'm afraid a lot of people will miss out due to the price.
 
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