Many knife brands launched their 2020 lines at the SHOT Show in Las Vegas. But Benchmade made a huge splash with just a few knives.
Benchmade leaked two knives before SHOT Show. But even longtime contacts refused to yield on the brand’s 2020 lineup, and for good reason — Benchmade’s 2020 lineup is a double-barrel shot of awesome. Let’s get right to it.
Benchmade Tengu
Jared Oeser has been the hottest custom maker on the planet for 3 years now. His unique, stunning blend of traditional designs and modern features is unlike anyone else in the knife business (though some have followed in his footsteps).
The fact that there is no production version of these scorching-hot blades is a small miracle in an age when folks with zero custom knives are getting collab deals. So when the news broke that Tengu, one of his tanto flippers, was being made by a production house, everyone in the IKC (internet knife community) was dying to find out who the producer was.
Then on Tuesday, it broke — Benchmade had landed Oeser. It’s certainly a coup in the knife world, and the design looks stunning and feels marvelous in the hand. With a modest 2.87-inch blade of 20CV, sleek handles with the classic Oeser shield, and layered G10 backspaces, the Tengu could be a smash hit for Benchmade.
If the build quality is there, knife enthusiasts might just faint. Let’s hope this is the beginning of a long collaboration between Oeser and Benchmade.
MSRP on the clipless Tengu is $220. Given that Oeser’s custom knives often go for $2,000 or more, this production knife comes in a great value to boot.
Mini Bugout
Updates on Evergreen Models
![Benchmade Bugout Benchmade Bugout](https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.gearjunkie.com/uploads/2020/01/Benchmade-Bugout-1200x627.jpg)