Knife Review: The Benchmade Outlast Rescue Folder Knife
Posted by SD on Oct 17th 2019
The Benchmade Outlast Rescue Folder Knife
For over thirty years, Benchmade has been designing and manufacturing world-class products for world-class customers.
When Benchmade was founded, the mission was to create something better; something exceptional. Today, they continue to innovate with the goal of taking performance and reliability to the next level. To exceed what is expected.
Benchmade says, “Whether you are using a Griptilian® for every day duties or taking the fight to the enemy with the Infidel®, our knives are built to perform. When you choose to purchase a Benchmade, you do so because you want the best. You demand it. And programs like our LifeSharp Lifetime Service and Warranty are the foundation of our commitment to excellence. We live it and breathe it, and we know what you mean when you say: It’s not a knife. It’s my Benchmade.”
Their ideal knives start with ideal materials. Benchmade builds knives for the most demanding customers, from special operations forces to elite backcountry hunters, and building for the best requires the best raw materials. Benchmade says this about their materials, “We select premium blade steels and pair them with aerospace-grade handle materials to create premium-grade knives and tools that provide great value for our customers.”
The next thing that makes Benchmade knives so top notch is their mechanisms. The mechanics of opening and closing a knife are essential to its function. Benchmade asks themselves questions like Is it easy to actuate? Can it be opened with one hand? Is it ambidextrous? Will it absolutely not fail when you need it the most? They ask these questions because they are critical considerations when it comes to the mechanism.
Next is how they manufacture. The Benchmade factory employs modern laser cutters and CNC machining centers that offer control and tolerances commonly found in the aerospace industry – often to tolerances half the width of a human hair. Their commitment to modern machining techniques and rigid quality control has allowed Benchmade to bridge the gap between custom and manufactured.
The last thing that makes Benchmade really unique is their LifeSharp service. Benchmade describes this, “Benchmade knives are all supported through a team of skilled technicians. Their only function is to ensure your Benchmade is in optimal working condition for your entire life. This service is called LifeSharp®. A name that speaks for itself. When you send your knife to the Benchmade LifeSharp team, the knife is completely disassembled and all worn parts are tuned or replaced. The knife is then lubricated and reassembled, a sharpener applies a factory edge to the blade and the knife is shipped back to you. All at no cost to you.”
Today we will be discussing the Benchmade Outlast Rescue folding knife which is coming soon to BladeOps. Keep your eyes peeled for when it hits the store.
The Blade:
This knife was made for those who need the exact right tool in the exact right moment if they are in a life or death situation. This knife does come with two blades, in two different steel, and two different styles. This means that you only need one knife to have double the tools. This is the perfect way to keep down on weight and size, but still being completely prepared.
The first blade is made out of CPM S30v stainless steel. This is an exceptional choice of steel for the first blade as it was designed specifically with high end pocket knives in mind. This steel is made by Crucible Industries, who are known for their high end steels that can take a serious beating.
The first thing that sets this steel apart is that it is known for having a nearly perfect balance between hardness, edge retention, and toughness. This is a complicated balance to achieve, because the harder the steel gets, the less tough it is going to be.
The second thing that really sets this steel apart is how crazy corrosion resistant it is. This is a major advantage for this tactical Benchmade, because you don’t want to have to worry about maintenance when you are in the field. While the blade does keep its edge for significant periods of time, it is a total pain to sharpen. This is because it is extremely hard. This is really the only drawback that people view this steel as having.
- CPM S30V steel has a great balance of edge retention, hardness, and toughness.
- Crazy corrosion resistant.
- Tricky to sharpen.
The second blade on the knife is made out of CPM 3V tool steel. This steel is also made by Crucible. They describe this steel by saying, “CPM 3V is a high toughness, wear-resistant tool steel made by the Crucible Particle Metallurgy process. It is designed to provide maximum resistance to breakage and chipping in a high wear-resistance steel. It offers impact resistance greater than A2, D2, Cru-Wear, or CPM M4, approaching the levels provided by S7 and other shock resistant grades. CPM 3V is intended to be used at 58/60 HRC in applications where chronic breakage and chipping are encountered in other tool steels, but where the wear properties of a high alloy steel are required.”
This means that it is going to have a higher wear resistance than the first blade. This is because it is both incredibly strong and incredibly durable. Really, this blade is there to get the tough jobs done without a second thought.
- CPM 3V steel has incredibly high wear resistance.
Both of the blades that this knife comes with are coated in blade. The coating is an advantage to the tactical knife because it is going to prolong the life of the blade. It does this by increasing both the wear and corrosion resistance of a blade. The next advantage to this black coated blade is that it is completely matte. This means that it is going to cut down significantly on glares and reflections. Unfortunately, coatings do wear or scratch off after time.
- Coating prolongs the life of the blades.
- Coating is going to cut down on maintenance.
- Coatings do scratch off.
The first blade has been carved into a classic drop point blade shape. Some of the big advantages to a drop point is that the tip is lowered, which is going to give you more control, plus it is broad, which is going to give you the strength. It is the strength of the drop point that you are most likely to need while using the Outlast. The strength of the tip is going to allow you to take on those tougher tasks without worrying about the tip snapping, rendering you without a weapon.
However, because the tip is so broad, it does mean that you are not going to have as many piercing capabilities. The knife can still stab, don’t get me wrong, but it is not going to be as precision or as accurate as a different blade shape would give you.
The last major advantage that the drop point blade shape gives the Benchmade Outlast is that it has a crazy big belly. This makes slicing a breeze.
- Strong and controlled tip.
- Not a whole lot of piercing capabilities.
- Large belly for slicing.
The second blade on this knife has been carved into a bevel style blade that is completely serrated. This one actually doesn’t have a point at all. Instead, it is a dull edge. This helps the Outlast be capable of being used as a rescue knife. This is because with the false point, you will never have to worry about accidentally stabbing someone or something. It means that in the heat of the moment, you don’t have to worry about precision quite as much as you would if you were using the drop point.
This blade has been fully serrated with large serrations. This is going to allow you to saw through even the thickest of materials, including seatbelts. Again, this is why the Outlast can be used as a rescue knife: you are completely prepared with the serrated blade as well as the drop point blade.
- False point means no accidental stabbings.
- Serrated blade allows you to saw through thicker materials.
The Handle:
The handle on the Outlast Rescue is made out of black G-10. The G-10 is going to cut down on weight, while increasing both the strength and the durability of the knife overall. G-10 is also an easier material to maintain, because it is not going to rust, corrode, or break down.
- G-10 is lightweight and easy to maintain.
- Strong and durable.
- Textured handle will give you a solid grip on this knife.
The Pocket Clip:
The pocket clip is designed for tip up carry only, but it is eligible for either a left or right hand carry option. This does mean that it is ambidextrous friendly, which is an advantage. The pocket clip is also a deep carry clip, which means that it is going to help your knife stay inside of your pocket better while you move about your day. This is a big advantage for a tactical knife because you never want to worry about losing your knife.
- Reversible and ambidextrous friendly.
- Deep carry.
The Mechanism:
This is a folding knife that has been equipped with a thumb stud, the AXIS lock, as well as an integrated O2 wrench option.
The thumb stud is going to let you easily open the knife with only one hand: perfect for the rescue missions. It is also easy to use and easy to get the hang of, although it is not the safest way to open a knife.
The AXIS lock is patented by Benchmade and has been a show stopper ever since its introduction. It is completely ambidextrous, meaning in the heat of the moment, you don’t have to worry about fumbling with the knife. Benchmade says, “AXIS® gets its function from a small, hardened steel bar that rides forward and back in a slot machined into both steel liners. The bar extends to both sides of the knife, spans the liners and is positioned over the rear of the blade. It engages a ramped tang portion of the knife blade when it is opened. Two omega-style springs, one on each liner, give the locking bar its inertia to engage the knife tang. As a result, the tang is wedged solidly between a sizable stop pin and the AXIS® bar itself.” This means that the knife is going to be easy to open no matter which situation you find yourself in.
The Specs:
The first blade on this knife measures in at 3.59 inches long, with the second one measuring in at 3.15 inches long. The handle measures in at 4.86, which means that the overall length when the knife is opened can either be 8.41 inches long or 7.96 inches long. The Outlast weighs in at 5.96 ounces, which is a little bit on the heavier side, but since you are getting two blades, the extra weight makes sense. This knife was made in the United States of America, so you can feel proud to own, carry, or use it.
- Two blades means two different lengths when open.
- This is going to be a little bit heavier than your typical go-to knife.
- Made in the USA.
Conclusion:
The Outlast was built with the oversight of today's rescue personnel whose life or death situations require the right tools when every second matters. 2 blades, 2 different steels, 2 different styles means there is no need for multiple knives. Couple that with an integrated rescue hook as well as a carbide tipped glass breaker and you have now come face to face with the new gold standard of functional performance. Each Outlast folder knife utilizes Benchmade's new OPTION® lock mechanism which is a fully ambidextrous operating system utilizing both the traditional AXIS® lock coupled with an integrated O2 wrench option. This Black Class model features black G-10 handle scales, both a drop point style and fully serrated opposing bevel style blade in a black finish and the reversible deep carry pocket clip is designed for tip up carry only but is eligible for a left or right hand carry option.