If there’s anything I learned from the movie Rambo, it’s that if you want to be a chiseled badass, then you have to have a fixed blade knife. That whole franchise would have been ruined if he hadn’t had that fixed blade monster he carried around. While we may not need something that big, a good fixed blade knife is a key piece of gear for anyone. Keep reading to see our thoughts on the Benchmade Nimravus.
This knife and I go a ways back, in fact, I was given it when I arrived in Afghanistan in 2012. The unit we replaced ordered them, and wouldn’t you know it, they didn’t arrive until we relieved them. In this case their loss is our gain, because the Benchmade Nimravus (Amazon affiliate link) is a sweet knife.
I really like Benchmade, and I own several of their blades, but this is the only fixed blade knife I own from them. Without further adieu, let’s get into the details of the knife.
Overview
This blade is a full tang knife, with directionally cut aluminum scales for the handle. It comes in a coupe varieties. There is a tanto and a drop point configuration, as well as an option to color the scales on the handle in desert tan.
If you really want to be a big baller, you can have Benchmade laser engrave the knife. You could put your badass call sign right on that dude. It could be anything like Extortion, or Flounder, the sky is the limit!
The Blade
The Nimravus is made of 154cm steel which is an alloy you will only find in high quality knives, and is very common in other Benchmade blades. It is very fine grained, which allows it to retain and edge well. It is also very corrosion resistant.
The blade itself is coated in a proprietary coating called BK1, which further enhances the knife’s corrosion resistance, as well as providing the matte black finish on the knife. This is important for fighting knives for a couple of reasons.
First, shinny blades are reflective, and you don’t really want to be using it while flashing your position to anyone in viewing distance. Not tactical, and you loose all your cool points. Secondly the corrosion resistance cuts down on the maintenance and allows you to use it in maritime environments.
The Handle
The handle is very unique on this knife. It is constructed of 6061 aluminum which keeps the blade’s weight down, and provides a very tough grip to hold on to. You can see that it’s directionally cut which adds friction to your hand when you are pushing or sawing the tip into something.
It also has a finger relief allowing your first finger to slide onto the grip nicely. My only complaint with the handle is that it would be nice to have a bit bigger guard, integral to the blade. If you do have to stab something with this blade, you need to be careful that your hand doesn’t ride up over the cutting edge, which is a very common occurrence.
My Experiences
In the 5 years I’ve had this knife it hasn’t let me down once. I’ve used it for everything from opening MRE’s, to cutting holes in drywall. I like that it is light in hand and the drop point can piece anything I’m trying to cut.
It does come with a black molle sheath which is ok, but nothing special. I would recommend this locking sheath from benchmade (Amazon Affiliate link). Be warned the sheath will take some practice to deploy, and it is really meant to fit on large duty belts, or battle belts. If you mounted it on your walmart special it won’t work well.
Final thoughts
If you are in the market for a fixed blade knife, then you should really take a hard look at this knife. Benchmade is one of the finest knife manufacturers out there, and this is one of their most popular blades, for a good reason. It’s tough, ergonomic, and can be carried on tactical gear as well as your duty belt. You can also pick it up using our Amazon affiliate link for much cheaper than the $190 it retails for from Benchmade. I may be a Marine, but I’d take this thing over a Ka Bar any day.
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