Don't know why the Benchmade 583 barrage is underrated?

C

Craig083

Joined
Jul 27, 2014
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I haveno idea why the benchmade 583 is so underrated. I find so little on it on YouTube and as far as I know people like nutnfancy never made a video on it. I just picked up a 583 barrage with tanto and serrated. I absolutely love this blade. I thought maybe it was the assist that people don't like? The knife really has no jimping and most people don't like the handle, I guess it's all personaltaste, but this is one of my fav Benchmades that I have.
 
I have a 585 mini-barrage (orange handles, black D2 blade) and I love it. It has the smoothest assist I've ever used, and I hate A/O knives. I used to like them, but am more of a spydie hole fan now. I've had Kershaw/ZT and SOG assists, and BM did a great job IMO.
 
I have a 581 and it is not a bad knife. It plainly screams class with the design... until you open it. It rockets open like an auto on steroids. First time I opened it I damn near dropped it! Not a knife you let a cutlery impair person handle. I like the knife, but a few design choices hurt it in my eyes, like the super strong assist and covered pivot screw (would drilling one bloody hole bankrupt them?), along with a complete absence of jimping. Weaken the assist a little, expose the pivot screw, and add some jimping to the bolsters (or just have liner jimping stick over the aluminium) and it will go from good to great.
 
I've never handled a 583, but I've heard that the plastic that the 580/585 use for handle material is pretty crappy.

The bolstered aluminum and G10 581/586 are super classy, as mentioned. M390 steel is incredible, in my experience.

IMO the Axis Assist fixes the known weakness of the Axis system - the frail Omega springs. If an Omega spring breaks on an Axis Assist knife, the blade is held open by the assist mechanism, and the safety lock can be used to hold the axis bar shut even if the springs are broken. I think it's brilliant.
 
Assisted axis lock and injection molded plastic handles on a $100 knife are the drawbacks. I don't think its under or over rated.
 
I love my new 583 sbk barrage! Kinda funny no one says the plastic handled spydies feel cheap
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I think it's generally overshadowed by the 553 in popularity and price. Paying an extra $20-$30 for an assist mechanism doesn't float many people's boats.

If they gave it the 581 treatment (584? 582? Neither model number is used) and gave it a bolster and M390 steel, it might make more sense.

The 581 is a seriously underrated knife. $150-$180 for a well-sized classy M390 EDC knife with a good warranty. Take the assist out, and it's buttery smooth.
 
I have the 581 and freaking love it! Feels great in hand and that blade is screaming cool!
Dropped mine recently and put a huge chip in the blade. Sent it in for a blade swap. Tried a black blade this time and put a note in the box explaining a couple of issues. Original blade was leaning towards clip side and it was sharp, but not screaming sharp. Well, for $40 they hooked that bitch right up!! Perfectly centered with a sweet even grind and stupid sharp!!
They also replaced O springs and tuned it up. Now it fires hard, but not as hard as it did.
I loved it originally and it's even better now! Black blade looks sick!
Will post pics later.
 
I'm not too keen on molded handles, no matter what brand, and I really like my 581 Barrage for just a little more money.
 
Yup 581 has M390......excellent blade....but not when you drop it on concrete!!
 
I have the larger model 580 Barrage. Love the blade profile and the overall aesthetics. I've been a fan of 154CM steel for years and have been pleased with it's performance. The handle is comfortable, and the blade flies open like a rocket. I've been tempted to deassist it, but the assisted opening feature is what makes the knife unique among Benchmades. The only downside for me is that you can't easily close it with one hand.

It's a really good knife, but I think what a lot of people don't like are the Valox (plastic) scales. Let's face it. You either like them or you don't. Like the Griptilian, the scales give off a certain feel that some people consider cheap. I would have preferred sculpted G-10 scales, but the plastic scales are okay with me and certainly wasn't a deal breaker when I bought the knife. I like Warren Osborne's designs and the Barrage is one of my favourite EDC knives.

 
I had a 583 and I loved it for a little bit but started to dislike the tanto. I can deal with the serrations but not both. I held the g10/m390 and will never get the 154cm version again.
 
I love the 580. Of coarse I have purchased other knives since the 580 and it found its way out of my pocket. Then, we had some G10 scales made for the 580 and it found its way back in my pocket fairly often.
 
I have a barrage same as the black blade serrations variety shown above^ and I hate it. When it comes to Osborne designs I tend to love them such as the 940, kulgera, Contego but the 583 is a tactical looking knife that is so slippery it would be a better paper weight then to actually use in the field. The lock on the back irritates my thumb and the plastic handles feel terrible.
 
I found a 587 Warn not long ago, I'm absolutely stoked.

This is the best assisted opener I have ever laid my horrible paws on, and I think I do appreciate the double-lock on it.

The Barrage family won me over the second the Warn fell into my hands!
 
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