Hey guys! Just found out about a Benchmade forum after BLADE! Figured I'd join and see what's going on! I recently got a Presidio Ultra and (without going too in depth) figured I'd give a little insight as to how it's performing so far.

I love the handle so far. It gives great traction in wet, dry, or any conditions you can think of. The Axis lock is a given. It performs flawlessly and is perfectly simple, giving it awesome reliability. I'm more of a fan of open spine folders as opposed to those that use a spacer, but Benchmade remedies this in a way by leaving a large gap at one end, allowing dirt and debri to escape. It was scary sharp out of the box and had no blade play in any direction, yet was silky smooth to open. Since this is one of my first 's, I'm not used to how they treat their steel or how they perform compared to the same steel from other manufacturers. However, the 440C on the 522 is doing a great job so far! I'm anxious to see how it's corrosion resistance is since I'm around water a lot. Love the hollow grind on this model. I'm more of a flat grind fan but, on this model, I really like the way they've implemented it by carrying the grind line all the way to the tip, giving it a thin tip while leaving the spine at its full thickness. So far I love it! Also, after purchasing this knife I realized that around 4 oz. seems to be around the ideal carry weight for me most of the time. 3 oz. usually means no liners and heavier can get in the way depending on the clothing worn. 4 seems about right and this knife fits the bill

Welcome to the forum! Too bad we weren't able to see you at the Benchmade Lunch at Blade this year. Next year.

Your post reads like this isn't your first "knife rodeo". Welcome! There are many "Benchmade Brains" here. Feel free to ask any questions....and thanks for sharing your Presidio story!!!

Enjoy

Thanks man! I saw the post about the lunch and wish I could have been there! I've been a knife lover and user for as long as I could hold a knife and contribute to other forums as well and have done photography for a friend's company. I also do photography on my own of all of the knives I own but couldn't figure out how to upload pics onto here earlier.

I just enjoy knives! I'm loving my Presidio and Rant so far!

I think the 522 is a real bargain, and I particularly love the handle--

The handle is awesome. It gives great grip in any conditions. I prefer a handle with a single index finger slot and small choil but this design works pretty well for me too.

Welcome Minkeyman,

The 522 is a good knife and another quality member of the Presidio family. It's not as rough as the standard 520/525 models on pockets, and a bit lighter, but makes for an affordable utility EDC working tool.

Looking forward to seeing what else you pickup in the future.

FYI - for publishing pics on the Forum I recommend PhotoBucket. It's free to sign on, and easy to copy and paste your uploaded files. Just click on the 'IMG' file at the bottom of the selection and paste it into your next Forum post and you're in. It's that simple.

Cool! Thanks man! I may have to get a photobucket just for that. The knife is performing great. It makes a great light to medium duty tactical (or EDC since that's a fine line nowadays) and I have been impressed with Benchmade's treatment on the 440C so far. It's doing well!

A few of us like to order a 520 and put the 520 blade into the 522 handle. Then you have the better handle and the flat ground 154CM blade.

I like it Po. Like the username too. 154 is one of my favorite steels, but I'll see how easy this 440C is to sharpen because it holds an edge pretty well for most things. That solution gives the best of both worlds though. That's pretty awesome. I didn't know how well they would fit together

The Presidio family are a lot of fun because the frame and mechanics are identical inside, so blades are simple to swap.

Mine's the 520 blade in the 15020 Bone frame:



Courtesy of friend Boobar.