Presented by: Work Sharp Knife & Tool Sharpeners
The Benchmade 375 Adamas is the KnifeNews Readers’ Choice for Best New Tactical Fixed Blade 2021! This Black Class blade came out on top of a group that also included the Civivi Tamashii, KA-BAR IFB Trail Point, and the SOG Pentagon FX.
Even compared to just five years ago, the knife industry develops so quickly, and our standards for performance, and what we look for in a design (no matter its role) change along with it. And while old favorites may not ever go completely out of style, they do sometimes fall out of step with our modern expectations – so it’s always cool when a company comes back to one of these favorites for a refresh. Sometimes these updates can be dramatic, sometimes subtle; but even subtle changes can add up to make an old knife feel new.
That’s the case with Benchmade’s 2021 Adamas fixed blade remaster. The bones of Shane Sibert‘s design were good, enduring bones; they just needed some smart tweaking to bring them up to our current sky-high standards. So they cleaned up the Adamas’ robust drop point eliding the saw-tooth spine in favor of a simple swedged look. This simplified the profile in a positive way, allowing the main cutting edge to be the star of the show.
And what a star it is, thanks in particular to the upgraded steel: CPM-CruWear. CruWear is such a resilient, hardworking steel that it was one of the performance models for Larrin Thomas when he created his MagnaCut steel. “Tactical” is a word that has been overused to the point it’s hard to say what exactly it encompasses when it comes to knife design. And while certain traits are debatable, we think one that must be included in any working definition of the term is Reliability. The implementation of CruWear on the Adamas created a fixed blade that can be counted on to hold its edge, withstand use and abuse, and, thanks to the Cerakote, even endure the elements, no matter where the user takes it.
Although Benchmade has no shortage of Readers’ Choice Awards from years past under its belt, this is the first time it has won in the Tactical Fixed Blade category – congrats to the team and to Shane Sibert!
Tune in tomorrow afternoon to see which knife won the KnifeNews Readers’ Choice Award for Best EDC Fixed Blade 2021!
AWARDS SCHEDULE
Monday, January 3rd: Best New Tactical Fixed Blade (WINNER: Benchmade 375 Adamas)
Tuesday, January 4th: Best New EDC Fixed Blade
Wednesday, January 5th: Best New Outdoors Fixed Blade
Thursday, January 6th: Best New Kitchen/Culinary Knife
Friday, January 7th: Best New Slipjoint/Non-Locking Knife
Monday, January 10th: Best New High-End Knife (MSRP of $300 or more)
Tuesday, January 11th: Best New Value Folder (MSRP of $100 or less)
Wednesday, January 12th: Best New Folder
Thursday, January 13th: Best Knife Upgrade
Friday, January 14th: Best Overall Lineup
Knife in Featured Image: Benchmade 375 Adamas Fixed Blade
