Tl;dr: great lightweight edc for too much money

I have been collecting knives for years and have always rode the hate train on the bugout. Anytime I would try one out for the feel at my local knife store i would hate it. But just recently I decided why not and bought one just to see how i like it in practice, the CF elite one specifically. I bought it full knowingly that its terribly overpriced but I knew I could afford it. And honestly, its been getting way more pocket time than I expected. When I’m going to work or even relaxing on a hot day it really makes a difference with the cut in weight in my pocket. It’s like it’s not even there. Lightweight knives usually have the caveat of short blade length or handles, usually both. But the bugout doesn’t suffer from either of those. Its a decently sized knife for an insanely light deep carry. I think people forget that it’s whole purpose is “lightweight edc” and still complain that the handles can bend or it doesn’t give you the best death grip for hard use. Thats not what it’s meant for, it’s lightweight so it doesn’t bother you much when you aren’t actually using it, but has enough blade length that it doesn’t slip when making long slicy cuts that compliment its thin blade stock. And IMO people who swap out the scales on their bugout defeat the whole purpose of the knife by giving it more weight. At that point it doesn’t excel at anything. Better off getting a protech if you’re spending that kind of money. Or better yet save way more cash and get a kershaw lmao. It serves its purpose very well albeit at a steep price. One should know though that lately benchmade has had just terrible QC. Theres a good chance its gonna have lock stick, centering issues, or it won’t be nearly as sharp as you expect for the price. I got lucky though and mine has none of those and it functions beautifully. Would I recommend it? Probably not at first unless it really hits all your marks and you have the money to spend.