Benchmade Taggedout Carbon Fiber Review

For the higher a part of eight months, I’ve been carrying the Benchmade Taggedout Carbon Fiber as an EDC and searching knife. The Taggedout is a light-weight, mid-sized pocket-clip folder positioned as a crossover EDC/searching knife. On paper, it has the options for it, however for this Benchmade Taggedout evaluation I needed to discover out if it delivers on efficiency, too.

The Taggedout has a carbon fiber deal with and a blaze orange Cerakoted blade. I like blaze orange on a searching knife, so it instantly had my consideration. Full disclosure, I’m additionally a sucker for carbon fiber, which piqued my curiosity. Given these two options I used to be predisposed to liking this knife. Nevertheless, there must be extra than simply materials and shade intercourse attraction for this relationship to work. Fortunate for me, it’s not only a fairly face.

• Motion: Handbook-opening
• Lock: Axis
• Blade Metal: CPM-Magnacut
• Blade Size: 3.48 inches 
• Blade Thickness: 0.9 inches 
• Open Size: 8.15 inches 
• Closed Size: 4.69 inches 
• Deal with Thickness: 0.48 inches
• Deal with Materials: Carbon Fiber 
• Weight: 2.5 ounces 
• Made within the U.S.

Carbon Fiber Deal with

The Taggedout’s deal with is properly contoured somewhat than merely routed out from a flat sheet of carbon fiber. This makes it snug to carry and use. It additionally has a groove machined into the underside of the deal with to your fingertips when opening the knife. That helps you get an excellent grip for opening the blade one-handed. 

Skinny Blade Geometry 

Talking of the blade, it’s a clip level with sufficient straight edge for utility work and sufficient curve on the tip for skinning. It’s a well-thought-out blade form. It’s skinny in comparison with another searching knives. That is nice for chopping efficiency and ease of sharpening, however I believe the primary cause for that is to maintain the load off. 

Light-weight Building 

It’s one of many first stuff you discover once you decide up this knife; it’s gentle, actually gentle, weighing in at solely 2.5 ounces. That’s nice for a mid-sized folding searching knife. Between the skinny deal with and blade, it wouldn’t be improper to name it svelte. The sleek traces, gentle weight, and deep-carry, reversible pocket clip make this knife all however fade from reminiscence whereas carrying it. There even have been a couple of occasions I needed to verify to see if I had the knife with me. Rounding out the knife, the machined aluminum backspacer has a large lanyard gap and is anodized a horny burnt orange.

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Testing the Taggedout within the Area 

Whereas I didn’t escape the lab coat for scientific sharpness or edge retention testing, carrying it on and off, and searching with it over the course of eight months gave the blade an excellent exercise. Being a hunter, shooter, and suburbanite, the Taggedout carried out and excelled at quite a lot of on a regular basis duties. It broke down cardboard for recycling, lower items of targets off backer boards to point out off nice teams, sliced rope, opened letters, lower small branches and foliage from my area of view for recognizing, lower some aramid cloth for a undertaking, and luckily noticed some motion breaking down a pair blacktails. One nice shock is the blade was nonetheless fairly sharp after I eliminated the top from my blacktail with lower than stellar method, thus hitting the sting on bone a lot of the course of. 

The one time the sting acquired defeated, so to talk, is once I lower up some steak that was served on a bit of rock as a plate. Knives aren’t designed for chopping rock. Happily, it took hardly any effort to convey the blade back to factory sharpness with a ceramic rod and honing metal. The underside line is, the blade is CPM-Magnacut, one of many newest “surprise steels”. It’s an incredible metal. There simply aren’t any surprises right here. The blaze-orange blade is unconventional however useful. As designed, the Taggedout is simple to see once you set it down. I dropped the knife whereas retrieving my blacktail from a steep hillside. Even in fall-colored leaves, it was simple to search out. With out the blaze-orange blade, it will possible nonetheless be on the market.

It’s value noting you will get the Taggedout with a stonewashed blade and orange Grivory or inexperienced G10 handles too. These variations will prevent some cash, too. 

Carrying, Deploying, Stowing

The general slim profile, gentle weight, and pocket clip make it simple to hold in denims, searching pants, within the magazine pocket of capturing pants, and even a shirt pocket. As a result of it has a slot for opening the blade somewhat than a thumbstud, it by no means hung up or snagged on something once I wanted to attract the knife. The opening slot works nice, though admittedly, I didn’t strive it with gloves, however I don’t assume that shall be a problem. For closing the knife, the Axis lock is among the simpler mechanisms to function with one hand. The Taggedout is a winner on the subject of comfort for on a regular basis carry. The sleek, no-snag ergonomics are additionally nice for out within the area the place you’re continually reaching for a knife, typically in awkward positions and sporting a pack and carrying different gear.

What the Taggedout Does Greatest

As a result of Taggedout’s dimension, weight, form, and ergonomics, it may be with you always within the area. That’s essential. So far as efficiency, it is a slicing machine. The skinny blade is sharp and cuts effectively, which makes it incredible for on a regular basis slicing duties, small meals prep, and, in fact, effortlessly slicing by way of deer cover.

The place the Tagged out Can Enhance

I’ve by no means been a fan of clip factors for searching knives as a result of it will increase the chance of poking or chopping stuff you don’t need to. As a substitute of the clip level, a shallow drop level blade can be good for the Taggedout. 

The knife might additionally profit from a barely bigger opening slot. The pocket clip is a bit tight, and it requires noticeable effort to shove over a pocket hem.

The Upshot: Extra Than Only a Fairly Face

I’ve numerous knives, in all probability greater than the common bear, that withstanding, the Taggedout is now considered one of my favorites. It delivers as promised. Is it good? That is dependent upon what you’re on the lookout for. In case you’re on the lookout for one backcountry blade that may double as a survival knife, this isn’t it. It’s not that the Taggedout isn’t sturdy. It’s simply not designed to separate logs or act like a chopping crowbar. Physics issues, and the skinny blade goes to have limitations. 

However, I all the time carry a stout fastened blade in my pack, so I don’t want a pocket knife to do double responsibility as a survival instrument. What I would like is an easy-to-carry knife that cuts nicely, holds an edge, and gained’t disappear if I set it down. For me, the Taggedout is rattling close to good and simply in regards to the final crossover folder.