Benchmade’s Most Popular Knife Just Got One Classy Performance Upgrade

There’s a reason the Bugout has been a staple of Benchmade’s lineup since 2017 — one that’s now offered in more than a dozen variants.

Same reason it has been a consistent presence in Gear Patrol’s best pocket knives buying guide and a product we dubbed “the reigning EDC champ” in a review just last year.

Simply put, the Bugout’s combo of appearance, materials, durability, convenience and functionality is pretty dang tough to beat.

But that isn’t stopping the brand from trying. An upcoming revamp of the beloved folder will be packing significant material upgrades. Here’s what you need to know.

Benchmade

Benchmade Bugout Burnt Brass Aluminum

• $320 at Benchmade

Benchmade Bugout Burnt Brass Aluminum

Dropping early next week, the new Benchmade Bugout Burnt Brass Aluminum has much in common with the standard version but some very notable differences too. 

With regard to its similarities, a lot of the new knife’s specs are identical. It has the same blade length and thickness (3.24 inches and 0.08 inches, respectively) as well as the same open and closed lengths (7.46 inches and 4.22 inches).

It also has the same blade style (drop point) and Benchmade’s trademark AXIS Lock deployment mechanism. It’s ambidextrous, it has a lanyard hole and the clip is a mini deep carry with a tip-up orientation, all just like the original.

Benchmade

Where the differences really kick in are with regard to the handle material and the blade material. As the name suggests, the traditional grippy grivory is swapped for angularly shaped, smooth-finished burnt brass anodized 6061-T6 aluminum, accented by a turquoise anodized thumb stud and barrel spacer.

The new version’s blade, meanwhile, trades in the original’s CPM-S30V steel for M390 super premium stainless steel with a black DLC battlewash finish. While the former is popular, affordable and reliable, the latter is particularly prized for its hardness, corrosion resistance, sharpen-ability and edge retention, which together place it among the best all-around knife steels.  

Worth noting: This new knife is not the very first Bugout to sub out CPM-S30V steel. The $300 Bugout Gray Aluminum also has an M390 blade, and the only version that costs more than the latest edition, the $330 Bugout Carbon Fiber, features CPM-S90V super premium stainless steel. 

Benchmade

Another difference is the weight. Due in large part to the handle material, the Burnt Brass Aluminum knife is notably heavier, 2.5 ounces versus 1.85 ounces. And of course we can’t overlook the significant upward shift in expense. While the standard Bugout costs $180, the new one goes for nearly twice as much, $320.

Perhaps that is just the price you have to pay for a pocket knife that fits in equally well hanging from a belt around the campsite and in the vest pocket of a tuxedo, taking in the opera.

Availability and pricing

The Benchmade Bugout Burnt Brass Aluminum will be available at 11:50 a.m. EST on Tuesday, September 17. You can sign up now to be notified when it drops. The price will be $320.

Benchmade

Benchmade Bugout Burnt Brass Aluminum

• $320 at Benchmade

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