Benchmade Bailout

The Bailout is Benchmade's tactical folder — a piercing tanto blade on a slim, ultralight frame, engineered for the best strength-to-weight ratio in the line. The tanto grind stacks steel behind the point, so it takes piercing and prying work that would worry a thin drop-point, and the ambidextrous AXIS lock opens and closes it one-handed from either side.

Every version shares the same 3.38" tanto blade and the same frame. What changes is the steel, the handle material and the edge — and on this model the steel choice matters more than on any other Benchmade we carry.

Choosing your Bailout

Start with the steel, not the colour. The Bailout range spans a tool steel and three different stainless steels, and they behave very differently in the field.

CPM-M4 (Woodland Green, Crater Blue, Black) is a high-speed tool steel run at 62-64 HRC — harder than anything else in Benchmade's folding range, with edge retention that outclasses stainless through abrasive material. It is not stainless. See the note below before you choose it.

CPM-MagnaCut, CPM-S90V and Bohler M390 (Burnt Copper, Taiga Green, Carbon Fiber) are modern powder stainless steels. They hold a serious edge and shrug off moisture. CPM-S30V in the Ranger Green is the lightest build in the range and the easiest of the group to bring back on an ordinary stone.

Compare the versions

Where a cell reads —, Benchmade does not publish that spec. Current pricing is on the selector above.

Shared across every Bailout

Worth knowing before you choose

• The M4 versions are not stainless. Read this first. CPM-M4 is a tool steel. It will develop surface rust if it is put away wet, left in a damp pack, or carried against sweat and forgotten. That is the material behaving normally, not a defect, and it is not covered as one. Wipe it down and keep a light oil on the blade and it will outlast you. If the knife is going to live in a fishing pack, ride through winter road salt, or get carried all summer against sweat, choose one of the stainless versions instead. LifeSharp will clean up light surface rust as part of the service.
• Serrated cuts differently. The serrated versions go through webbing, rope and seatbelt far better than a plain edge, and they are much harder to sharpen at home. Plain edge is the more versatile all-rounder.
• Taiga Green is a limited colourway. Benchmade has set a discontinue date of 31 December 2026. When these are gone there is no restocking it.
• Weight varies more than the colours suggest. The Grivory Ranger Green is 2.05 oz and the carbon fiber is 2.18 oz, where every aluminum version is 2.7 oz.

Backed for Life

Every Benchmade carries a limited lifetime warranty and free LifeSharp service — send it in dull and dirty, get it back razor sharp, for as long as you own it. Ed's Fly Shop is a Benchmade Pro Dealer, so your warranty is valid and we can help you get it handled.

Come handle one at 432 E Main St in downtown Montrose, Colorado, or order online. Free shipping on qualifying U.S. orders.