Benchmade Mini Griptillian Size Comparison and Overall Thoughts

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Jan 11, 2015
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Benchmade Mini Griptillian 555HG
FRN Scales-Sheepsfoot-154CM
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I had a Griptillian and I liked it fine, but thought I might like the Mini Grip better a lot of the time, IF it will fit my XL hands. I realize there are virtually dozens of threads on the Benchmade Mini Griptillian on various forums and hundreds of photos and a few comparisons of size. Unfortunately when looking through it all I couldn't find anything that gave me an idea of particulars I was looking for. I saw specs that listed the blade length, but is that the whole blade or just the cutting edge? If I take the closed length does that mean where my hand can actually grip or do I need to subtract a little for the unusable part. I also saw comparisons to other popular knives but they would line them up at the bottom of their grips or they would line the blade up to the grip. It gives you an idea of overall size but you couldn't even compare the grip sizes. I decided to do my own little comparison as well as put in a few thoughts at the end. Hope you like it.
Knife to Knife Comparison
As you can see I lined the handles up at the front of the grip area. Cause if your pinky hangs off a little its less of a big deal than your index finger on the blade. LOL
Delica 4 vs Mini Griptillian
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Dragonfly 2 vs Mini Griptillian
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The actual grippable area is 3 3/8" (yes the butt is lined up its an optical illusion)​
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The actual blade cutting edge is 2 7/8"
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Mini Griptillian
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Delica 4
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Dragonfly 2
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Mini Grip Closed
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Thoughts:
I have XL hands, so I was very apprehensive about getting one, especially considering I had to sell another knife to buy it. I had the drop point in the full size and liked it fine but thought I'd check out the sheepsfoot. Since I was unsure I thought it safer to order the FRN.

Upon receiving it I was immediately impressed. It had weight which was surprising by just looking at it. Not heavy mind you but a solid feel. The steel liners completely fill the inside of the FRN scales which isn't the case on the full size Griptillian. This likely contributes to the weight but makes the FRN feel strong and less flexible as well.

I would have preferred S30V but the CPM154 is fine. The hollow grind on the sheepsfoot makes it extremely sharp right out of the box. I'm not new to knives but this thing will easily cut you.
One thing worth mentioning, with this knife you get a lot of blade compared the handle size, especially in comparison to a lot of other blades.

Overall I really like it and know this one isn't going anywhere. In the future I may get an S30V model with black custom scales. Next time I may get the drop point blade even though I like the sheepsfoot a lot. I did ask Benchmade for a deep carry clip.

This wasn't meant to be a review, just some measurements and my thoughts or impressions.
 
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I wear XL gloves too, but always found the Mini-Grip just a bit too short in the grip side. The Delica 4 is about the most ergonomic production folder for me.

Nice write-up
 
I wear XL gloves too, but always found the Mini-Grip just a bit too short in the grip side. The Delica 4 is about the most ergonomic production folder for me.

Nice write-up

I'll never actually give up my Delicas, but the mini Griptillian is pretty nice too. The mini is probably the smallest hand filling knife I'd want. This seems to be a tight 4 or 3.5 or if I'm spreading out its barely over 3. I have some three finger knives that are fine. The Delica seems to have more of a free ergo feel if that makes sense, while still not feeling too large.
 
Also notice when comparing the Mini Griptillian to the Delica 4 how much shorter the Mini's grip is, yet its blade is longer.
 
I bought a Mini Grip when they were first introduced but I felt it was too small for my hands. At the time, I was using large knives and the Mini felt tiny. I ended up giving it away. More recently, I tried one again and decided it wasn't as bad of a fit as I originally thought. That might be due to the fact that I've been using smaller knives for the past several years so I've gotten acclimated to the feel of a shorter handle. Also, my uses of knives have changed over time. Cutting tasks are less aggressive these days so smaller knives work fine. They are also easier to carry.
 
My old man carries a 556 I got him. He has large hands and I have XL hands. It's a 3 finger knife for me but adding a lanyard helps. As far as 154cm goes - I'll take it over Benchmade's S30v any day of the week. I love their 154cm.
 
I love my orange mini Ritter. I dismissed them for quite some time until I was actually able to get one in hand. Once that happened I immediately ordered a mini Ritter for myself. The dimensions are almost misleading. You’d think it’d be too small, but at least for me, it’s the perfect size.


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One of my favorite pictures of one of my favorite knives.
 
Love my OD Green 556, thumbstud, but its still a bit much for city/ office carry. But love it!
(Nice review-write up!)
 
The 535 bugout has made the minigrip obsolete in my opinion. Lighter weight, slightly larger blade and handle.

It doesn't have full liners like the MG and doesn't have blade shape, steel, or scales options and finishes. I actually like the weight of the MG.
Personally, I am not attracted to anything about the Bug Out except that it has a sharp edge.
 
...As far as 154cm goes - I'll take it over Benchmade's S30v any day of the week. I love their 154cm.

Yup. S30V is okay but I also much prefer 154CM.

Too many people today don't know how to sharpen their knives (and don't want to learn) so they buy knives with steel they think will never get dull and when they do get dull they want a different steel. They should just learn to sharpen their damn knives.
 
The mini was my first Benchmade and one of my least favorite knives. The blade is fine but the handle is too short for its thickness. It's not that comfortable to use; my Delica or PM3 are lightyears ahead in ergonomics for me at that blade length. When clipped to my pocket it seems to take up way more space than it actually occupies. I ended up just taking off the clip and carry it loose in my pocket when I do carry it. I like it better that way. The saving grace for mine is that it's a combo edge, one of few that I own, so I use it when I may need to saw thru things.
 
I recently bought my wife a Mini Grip in blue with a plain edge blade (thumbstuds, no hole) and I she really likes it. I prefer the Foray to it and most of the time I prefer the Bugout - although depending on my mood I sometimes like the beefier handle.

I bought my first Spyderco knives around the same time, a Salt 2 and Delica 4. The blades were basically flawless on the Spyderco knives and impressively sharp, but I have to admit that the Delica 4 feels a little cheap in my hand especially considering the price. Don't get me wrong, I really like the Delica 4 and am definitely a Spyderco convert, but I have the same impression that a lot of people have (myself included) when first handling the Bugout... it just feels a bit cheap. The Mini Grip beats the Delica 4 in terms of ergonomics, steel, and Axis lock, at least in my books. Yet I never hear about people complaining about the Delica 4 price...
 
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