When I choose a knife to carry each day, the choice depends on what type of knife interests me the most at that time. Sometimes I prefer to carry a light, thin, relatively small knife, and other times I want a bigger, heavier knife. Most of the time, I’ll choose one knife that catches my attention and I’ll stick with it for several weeks or months. As I use it, I either grow fond of it or I realize it is just not a good fit for me. Throughout the years, I’ve carried a few knives for extended periods of time, and they’ve become part of my main “go to” collection. Right now, that collection consists of about 4 knives – my Spyderco Military in CPM-D2, my Benchmade 940 with an aluminum handle, my Benchmade 940 with a carbon fiber handle, and most recently, the Benchmade 808. I’ve spent a good amount of time with the 808, and I am very impressed with it. It is a strong, large, high-quality knife that has served me well over the past year.

With a black G10 handle that measures 4.94 inches in length, and a blade length of 3.68 inches, this model fits into what I would call the medium to large category. My particular model has a plain edge, uncoated blade, but Benchmade offers a partially serrated blade option and a black coating option. The knife weighs 6.56 ounces, and the handle is .67 inches thick. The blade is made of CPM-S30V, which is considered a high quality stainless steel. The stainless steel liners of the knife are skeletonized to help keep the overall weight down. The blade shape is called a reverse tanto, so the majority of the edge is straight, with a slight curve as it reaches the point. The deep-carry pocket clip is reversible, and it orients the knife with its tip pointing upward in the pocket. The 808 uses an oval hole as the opening mechanism, rather than a thumb stud or round hole.

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(featured image courtesy of woodsmonkey.com)