This is all very interesting as well as being a refreshingly civil conversation given how these sorts of threads often go.
As to the QC issue, I must agree that there have clearly been issues on that front with BMK as there are plenty of solid members here who have attested to it. There are also plenty of the Chicken Little or dog-piler variety whose testimony may be discounted. For my part, I'll restate that I have generally not experienced any insurmountable issues (save one) with the 32 I've bought. I still have 26 of those and my wife 4. I'm not fussy about knives whose price points center in the $200 range, but am not in anyway satisfied by lousy F&F or QC either. I like nice stuff made well but don't mind tinkering with knives to get 'em the way I like either and have done as much with my CRKs, Shiros, and other high-enders as well.
As to the steel discussion, I'm with
BMCGear
as to the blade steel being only part of the equation regarding knives I buy, like, use, keep, or sell. As there's been sort of a running comparison between steel offerings from Spyderco and Benchmade here, I went through my knife boxes and inventoried my current Spydies and BMKs as well as those I've sold for blade steels. Note that I don't disagree that Spyderco's current or recent steel offerings have been both broader and "more modern" than Benchmade's.
What I found was that of our current 20 Spydies there are 3 in 8Cr13MoV, 4 in VG10, and 13 in S30V. The 8Cr's are Tenacious's in three colors, which I have a soft-spot for as one of those was my gateway knife. 3 of the VG10s are of the Delica/Endura variety bought for short money when KSF closed out their Spydies and because they're kinda iconic to the line, while the other is my Superleaf--a giant, short-lived, compression-lock knife that I always wanted. The S30Vs comprise 2 Milles, 2 Para2s, a Para3, all 6 Sages, and a Manix2 and XL. Those S30Vs are all favorites, though the Sages are more collectibles than carries. I could get some in "better" steels, but the knives aren't diminished in mt estimation by their blades. The four I sold were a Southard in CTS-204P, a Domino in CTS-XHP, Gayle Bradley in M4, and Manix LW in CTS-BD1, which are all superior steels save for the last. For one reason or another, the knives didn't suit me and I sold them as they had some return value despite their blade steel.
Of our current 30 Benchmades, 6 are in ATS34, 10 are 154CM, 4 D2, 1 440C, 3 S30V, 4 M390, 1 M4, and 1 20CV. Clearly the ATS34s and the 440C are old-school and long-disco'd models. 3 of the D2s are 710s and the other is an AFCK. The M390s are 2 Ritters, a 710-1401, and a 581 Barrage; the M4 is a 908-1501--all of those recently disco'd. The S30Vs and 20CV are current production models. The two sold are a 940-1 in S90V and 755MPR in M390.
So there's some interesting things to note here. I have more steel variety and more "better" steel in my Benchmades than Spydies, though, again, Spyderco has more current variety and more modern steel offerings. I also really like the old-school BMKs, which accounts for a lot of the older steels. The fact that most of my "better" steel BMKs are discontinued helps make
@Cypress 's case that Benchmade has less to offer in newer or modern steels and indeed may have cut out some of their knives with "higher end" blade-steel choices. On the other hand, the fact that all but one of the knives on my sold list had "better" steel reinforces my view about the steel being just part of the equation to me.
I would say that my ATS34, 440C, and even 154CM blades are easy to sharpen and I can get some of my keenest edges on those blades, though their edge retention is not great. Still, they get really sharp and I do cut stuff with my knives. S30V ain't bad either. I certainly have an appreciation for M390 and more modern super-steels as well as attested to by 4 of my 5 Shiros, plus a Les George, an Olamic, and a few others. I don't like my S30V Shiro any less, though. I love my half-dozen CRKs and 3 Hinderers, though it's been suggested that S35VN may be closer to being a more pedestrian steel now.
I would disagree that 8Cr should be lumped with 154CM or 440C. As much as I'm fond of my Tenasci, I can't really get a good edge on 8Cr and think it's really kind of a crap steel. My gateway combo-edged Tenacious is one of my favorite work beaters and not a great cutter by any means. I'm not very fond of VG10, either, but my Delica and Endura are two of my woods knives for their bright colors and I'm not that worried about losing or damaging knives at their price points.
Sorry for the wall of text, but as much time as I spent compiling my list I was gonna share it and my thoughts. Again, interesting and civil conversation here. BTW, where did our OP go, anyway?
(Edited out grammatical redundancy.)