Review AimFront Aluminum Scales for Bugout

[kickert]

A few months ago I thought I had lost my Bugout so I requested a new one for my birthday. Wouldn't you know it, within a day of receiving the knife I found my original one. Not one for duplicity in my knife collection, I decided to look at getting some custom scales. I looked at offerings from Rockscale, Putman, and Flytanium, but none of them really offered the price/feature/look combination I was after. Then I found some custom aluminum scales from an Etsy company called AimFront. At the time, they only had some in OD Green and that didn't interest me, so I contacted the owner and he did a run exactly as a I requested: dark grey, swoosh grip pattern, and without the lanyard hole.

It took a bit for him to process them, but once they were officially ordered, I had them in two days. Fit and finish are perfect, and it totally gets rid of the flex and hollow sound when you open the knife. The lack of the lanyard hole also makes it more comfortable in the hand. For me, the real selling point is how the dark grey contrasts with the brushed metal blade and the blue standoffs/thumbstud.

I've got no skin in the game and don't know the owner of the store, but wanted to pass on my experience because it seems like a quality product and couldn't find these mentioned anywhere else.

I think they look pretty damn good, but I will let you be the judge of that:

 

[vinte77]

How much did the scales cost, if you don't mind sharing?

 

[kickert]

How much did the scales cost, if you don't mind sharing?

Cost me about $60 with free shipping. Looks like most of his stuff is in the $50-60 range. You should be able to find the shop with google from the information in my original post.

 

[Halfneck]

Thanks for posting this.

 

[kickert]

Thanks for posting this.

Glad to do it. The bugout is a great knife, but the flex in the handles and the weight distribution didn't thrill me. I get that it is made to serve a specific purpose and I will still carry my stock one when I go hiking, but metal scales really made it a better EDC.

Just to be clear, it took the shop owner several months to get one out in the specs I requested, but he has quite a few other styles and colors that he puts out. I almost pulled the trigger on some of the stock models he had. I offered to pay extra for custom but he said he was happy to give it shot to see how well the lanyard hole delete sold.

 

[colin.p]

Glad to do it. The bugout is a great knife, but the flex in the handles and the weight distribution didn't thrill me. I get that it is made to serve a specific purpose and I will still carry my stock one when I go hiking, but metal scales really made it a better EDC.

Just to be clear, it took the shop owner several months to get one out in the specs I requested, but he has quite a few other styles and colors that he puts out. I almost pulled the trigger on some of the stock models he had. I offered to pay extra for custom but he said he was happy to give it shot to see how well the lanyard hole delete sold.

Hopefully others would like the "no lanyard hole" style as that would be the one I'd buy.

 

[Halfneck]

Flex does not really bother me. You hit on something with the weight distribution though. My previous lightweight BM EDC was the 531 so I was use to how it balances with the G10 scales.

 

[kickert]

Hopefully others would like the "no lanyard hole" style as that would be the one I'd buy.

I only have one knife that I actually have a lanyard on, but several that have design compromises made to accommodate one. The Para 3 comes to mind since the clip is so low to accommodate the hole that the knife sticks out of your pocket even with an aftermarket deep carry clip.

I have heard some people complain (WranglerStar) that the hole digs into their palm when using the bugout aggressively. I haven't really noticed that, but it does feel more comfortable in hand for sure.

 

[colin.p]

I only have one knife that I actually have a lanyard on, but several that have design compromises made to accommodate one. The Para 3 comes to mind since the clip is so low to accommodate the hole that the knife sticks out of your pocket even with an aftermarket deep carry clip.

I have heard some people complain (WranglerStar) that the hole digs into their palm when using the bugout aggressively. I haven't really noticed that, but it does feel more comfortable in hand for sure.

The lanyard tube in the Para 3 (and the PM 2 for that matter) pull double duty as a lanyard tube and a stand off, so I'd imagine Spyderco did a "kill 2 birds with one stone" type of thing. Also I find that for the most part, Spyderco doesn't put a whole hell of a lot of priority for their clip placement and a lot of their knives stick out of the pocket. But then again, we all know that before we buy one anyway.

As far as someone complaining about the hot spot of the Bugout lanyard hole when it is being used aggressively, now I can't imagine why someone would use the knife in that capacity, since it is a "light duty" knife anyway, but then again, what do I know.

However, I do like the standard scales just fine and will probably never acquire aftermarket scales, but if I do, I will keep your suggestion in mind.

 

[kickert]

The lanyard tube in the Para 3 (and the PM 2 for that matter) pull double duty as a lanyard tube and a stand off, so I'd imagine Spyderco did a "kill 2 birds with one stone" type of thing. Also I find that for the most part, Spyderco doesn't put a whole hell of a lot of priority for their clip placement and a lot of their knives stick out of the pocket. But then again, we all know that before we buy one anyway.

I like my knives to serve specific purposes. The stock bugout is incredible for someone that wants a decent sized blade while being ultra light. The Para 3 is great if you want a super solid working knife and it serves that purpose well. For me, the bugout with metal scales serves a different distinct purpose. It is low profile, unintimidating, and still light weight. It is a great EDC that is slim and lite (forget you are carrying it), but still has a good sized blade when you need it. Recently I have been carrying the M390 Kershaw Dividend with a deep carry clip for that purpose because it is so unobtrusive, but the assisted opening makes it a bit more intimidating for use in the office. The Bugout with custom scales seems to solve that problem for me.

 

[Jpriscal]

I want to briefly bring up something regarding Aimfront and their desire to commitment. About 5 months ago I contacted Aimfront regarding their new coatings for their Benchmade Bugout line, specifically , the type III hard-coat anodize. At the time, I wasn’t ready to follow through and invest into this quite yet. Silly me. Now look at what they are doing. Those knives they have now?!?! Incredible!! I give credit to Aimfront because just a few months ago I didn’t see this. I didn’t see the that they they’d make this big, this fast. Great work Aimfront