Benchmade - Nakamura Axis 484, G10 Handle, Drop Point Blade, Plain Edge Satin Finish Knife, Made in the USA

This is a nice knife. Feels sturdy and feels good in the hand. It has a good weight. There is bad weight. This doesn't have it. It's well balanced. Overall I like the knife quite a bit. Likely due to the steel liner. The Axis lock is nice. There is worse(bug out). There's probably better locks of the same. I added a small small touch of oil to the lock to make it slide smoother. Made a noted difference. Not all axis locks are created equal. The one on the bug out, feels and is flimsier compared. Vs the 484-1 the main difference is the body. Carbon fiber vs g10. Very slight weight difference. Besides that and looks. Both have steel liners. Still blue class. The Axis is the same. Literally just the handle with some blue flare. To the blade.... The 484 has a M390 blade and the 484-1 has a S90v blade. This one has me guessing. Because in every case....M390 on par with S90v (truly depends on the heat treatment though). M390 has just as good edge retention, better corrosion Resistance, will chip LESS, and is easier to sharpen. So I'm chalking this up to some bad marketing. Cheaper knife having a better(imo) blade metal is something else. Bolher M390 is aka CMP-20cv just made by Crucible. Anyways... Get the cheaper knife and enjoy the better(imo) blade steel. S90v is in no way better vs M390, it's really just splitting hairs though. Them using so many steels is just a way to confuse customers. M390=CMP-20cv=CTS-204p. Essentially the same ingredients, different companies. CMP-M4 is kind of on it's own.... It's very tough and isn't likely to chip easy. But does hold a edge better vs S90v or M390(it's harder steel), it will rust though as it's not stainless. Now to the 698 Foray(discontinued but still for sale). This is REALLY a hard one. The foray has a 20cv blade, so the same metal, different company. Both have steel liners and are very comfortable to hold. Both weigh practically the same, same thickness handle(but not width). The forays blade is slightly thicker(.114, vs .137") the handle is 1/10 of an in longer, and the blade is slightly longer 1/5 inch). They look very different. Both have great jimping. I would call this a 100% draw. Though the Nakamura is wider. For everyday carry. The foray has the edge due to the way it's jimped and the overall width. If they where both the same price($136(nak) vs $191(foray) shipped from Amazon). I would go for the foray probably. I feel it's slightly more comfortable. The pocket clip is a deep carry and far better vs the nak(but I called Benchmade and they are shipping me one for the Nakamura). But the blade width and thickness on the Nakamura, does make it a better everyday carry. It's does better with slicing opening boxes....ECT... You truly cannot go wrong with either knife. I'm keeping both. They are both truly overall great knifes. Benchmade did a great job designing them. Vs the anthem....not going to go there.

I actually tried to cancel this order, but I'm really glad it was too late. I had just ordered two other Benchmade knives and was not at all impressed by either of them (943 Osbourne, and a 586 limited edition). I didn't like the 943 because it feels very cheap and flimsy with the aluminum handle and thin blade, and I didn't like the 586 because it didn't have a good feel and I don't think spring assist is a good idea with thumb studs (especially for such a short knife). So I figured I would stick with my Spyderco and Kershaws... I really like my Spyderco Manix 2, and Southard (both a little big for EDC though). And I love my Kershaw Leeks (I have several of these). The 484 is nearly perfect. My only real complaint is that the handle is too thick. My current EDC is a Leek and it's easily half the thickness of this 484, but nearly identical in every other dimension. I don't notice it in my pocket at all, so this 484 is very chunky in comparison. It's not too heavy (3.52 oz)... just thick (0.57 in). I'm sure I'll get used to it. The opening and closing is remarkably smooth. It doesn't seem to need any time to break in at all. Pull on the Axis lock and it easily glides / flicks open and closed, or just using the thumb stud it is SO smooth, and the lockup is rock solid. Axis lock is very easy to release -- not like a spyderco that needs thumb and index finger. One finger will easily release this one. Everything about it feels like top quality. It's an extremely well made knife. In my opinion, this knife is leagues above the 943 and 586. The description doesn't say it, but this 484 does not have assisted opening, which in my opinion is a good thing. Also, the pocket clip is the open arrow type and is silver. So I guess actually two complaints... I wish the clip was black. I prefer to not have a shiny metal clip. It looks beautiful with the contrast against the black handle, but draws too much attention for an every day carry knife. I don't think anyone could be disappointed with this knife, but I suppose that depends what you are looking for. To me, it is absolutely worth the $190 I paid for it. Here are the rest of the specs that should be in the description... Overall Length: 7.03" Blade Length: 3.08" Blade Thickness: 0.114" Blade Material: M390 Super Steel (Stainless) Blade Rockwell: 60-62HRC Lock: Axis Lock Closed Length: 3.95" Handle Thickness: 0.570" Handle Material: G10 Liner(s): Stainless Steel Clip: Stainless Steel Weight: 3.52 oz. Country of Origin: USA _________________ UPDATE after one week of use: I have had a problem with the knife opening on its own when I pull it out of my pocket sometimes -- the thumb stud is catching on my pocket and coming opened. It's catching on the stud side I don't use, so if it's possible to replace the ambidextrous thumb stud with a single sided stud then it wouldn't happen. You can see in the picture, the back of the blade curves up where the thumb stud is attached, so when it's closed, the stud sticks out away from the handle quite a bit (making it easier to reach with your thumb, but also more likely to catch on your pocket). Also, because the blade opens SO easily it only has to barely contact your pocket for it to accidentally open half way. The first time it happened I was driving and took it out of my pocket to set it into the cup holder. I didn't notice until I parked the car that the blade was opened 1/3 of the way, tip up in my cup holder with my water bottle next to it in the other cup holder. That could have been bad.

Just what I was looking for. The size of the 484 fits my EDC needs exactly. I mainly use it for cutting 1/2 or 3/8 inch nylon rope, opening boxes, or that insane hard plastic new items will come packed in. Has a nice heft and weight for its size, and is nice and sharp right out of the box. And that M390 blade will hold an edge quite well. It's also nice looking. Personally, I like the shiny pocket clip. I only gave it four stars for two reasons, neither of them deal breakers. 1. The thumb stud sits a little high and can get caught and can partially open the blade while removing from clipped on pocket. It doesn't happen often, but extra care should be taken. 2. Opening the blade is really easy and smooth. But that same smoothness can work against you while closing. Keep your fingers clear because the blade can swing closed pretty easily. There's a review here with a photo of one wearing a bandaid because of that. And I closed it on my finger, but didn't get a cut. Well worth the price. The BM warranty and free sharpening make it worth it. One of my favorite EDC's Just a little follow up here, tightened just a touch the six point pivot screw. Blade no longer loose enough to swing down and potentially cut poorly placed finger. :)

I give this a 3 star rating because it needed to be deburred out of the box. One of the thumb pegs on the blade was not deburred after the machining process. Id's and od's were sharp and the face was a cut off finish. I'm I too picky? No! I spent 30 years machining in our aerospace industry as a proto type machinist and to me this part was not done yet. Don't for get a little polish goes along way to please your customer. I deburred myself, it's fine now. The knife is well engineered and thought out. Excellent materials and other than that one peg the finish was good.

Out of 7 Benchmade knives I have owned, only two of them had a straight blade (not centered) and one of them was a fixed blade (Bushcrafter). I love Benchmade knives but this might be my last one, I'm tired of the poor quality. Outside of the poor quality, it is a very cool knife!

I have been carrying this knife almost every day for the past year. The M390 steel holds a working edge longer than any other steel I have used, even under harsh use. Other steels of have used are S30V, D2, 154CM, and 1095, as well as the more common ones like 440c. As an example, I can cut up 30 double walled cardboard boxes (about 10 ft of cutting per box) and this will still be cutting smoothly with a straight push. This steel is also quite corrosion resistant and salt water that was not washed off (yes I'm ashamed of myself) only left a few small spots of corrosion between the blade and the copper bushings. As for sharpening, it takes a little more effort to get an edge that will shave, however only a few minuets more. Over all I spend much less time sharpening this knife then I did my D2 knife due to decreased frequency. I use Shapton Pro Orange and Wine stones. Personally, the handle fits my hands well, though I can see the finger grooves being annoying for someone with larger hands and fingers. I do wish it the handle was not open down the back as this lets things (like keys) in my pocket come in contact with the cutting edge and causes mild damage to the edge. As for people having the knife open while taking it out of there pocket due to the thumb stud snagging, I have not had a problem with it personally.

The fit and finish on the knife I received was totally unacceptable. There's a wobble of about 1-2mm with the blade in both the open and closed positions. Also, the axis switch has audible and tactile resistance. It kind of sounds like they used too large of a spring for the switch and it's grating on the housing. It could just be that the screws need to be tightened and the switch needs to be reassembled and oiled but that sounds out of order for a brand new knife at this price point. Considering that many others here praise the fit and finish I figure mine must be an atypical glitch. The knife is also too small for my hands and I don't understand the design behind the notches in the scales at all. Even with smaller hands I think the grooves would be uncomfortably small and not at a good angle to hold the knife assuredly. They might be okay if I was going to hold the knife with a full fist and the blade completely perpendicular to my arm but I would hardly ever have a need to hold a knife this small so bluntly. I should have taken a picture of it in my hand to post here but I already have it boxed up and in the UPS drop-off for return. On the plus side, the blade did arrive extremely sharp and I like the feel of the smooth G10 scales aside from their nonsense groove pattern. The axis switch and blade knob positioning are also very acceptable even though my hands are really too large to handle this knife comfortably.

I'm not sure how this could be any better. The fit, finish, materials, ease of flick (EOF) and feel are outstanding. It is also a beautiful design and blade shape. I have a collection of roughly 50 folders grouped into a smaller knife and larger knife drawers in my auxiliary tool cabinet. I've got some very nice smaller folders: some low cost and some fairly expensive....this one is at the top of the expense curve, but it is clearly comprised of the nicest materials, the most sturdy and probably the most durable. It's my favorite small folder....so it doesn't see much action and I cannot attest to the toughness but I'm sure it is very durable...I use an OKC Rat and various lower cost spydercos for a lot of the dirty work.