The Editor objects to the word “neat”. We think he’s wrong. “Neat” is good, versatile word, and the world would be bereft without it. Without “neat” you could no longer feel like Doc Holliday because you’d have to order your whiskey “plain”. Cigars and fine whiskeys are increasingly popular. While you could savagely bite off the end of a fine cigar, you’d probably like to leave the edges neat. Sometimes the knife you want isn’t an essential tool for survival. The Benchmade 381 Aller Fumee is a neat re-design of a fun knife. It’s kind of like they took the 380 Aller and combined it with their Gold Class 1500-181. It’s a pocket friendly multitool with high end materials that is street legal almost everywhere. It’s a neat little package that will also keep your cigar, well, neat. It also comes in at a less than Gold Class price of $136.00.
The 381 Aller Fumee is a friction folder with a long tang that doubles as a bottler opener. It has a 1.6” S30V satin finished sheepsfoot-shaped guillotine blade with a chisel grind that’s hardened to 58-60HRC.
The chocolate, brown, and red layered Richlite handles on the Aller Fumee have a circular 56 ring gauge cutout window to efficiently decapitate your favorite cigar while leaving the edges neat. Now, we know the handles are smooth and feel fantastic in hand. But maybe you wondered about the sturdiness of the Richlite handle material. Richlite tells us their product is, “[c]omposed of approximately 65% FSC®-certified or recycled paper content and 35% phenolic resin, Richlite’s color comes from a combination of the paper and the amber tone of the resin.” It sounds like Richlite is a tiny bit similar to paper micarta. Additionally, and much like micarta, it’s been used in just about everything from “guitar fret boards, culinary cutting surfaces, skateparks, mobile phone cases, industrial tooling molds, and router blocks.” That sounds pretty sturdy to us.
The handles on this little folder feature an anodized pivot collar and house a screwdriver with a pry bar tip and a micro bit slot. It has a lanyard hole that doubles as a key ring hole, and custom tip-up pocket clip which also functions as a money clip. It has a handle thickness of 0.38”, is 3.3” closed, and it weighs 1.6 ounces. All that means this handy little multitool will practically disappear in your pocket.
Benchmade 381 Aller Fumee Details
- CPM S30V, Satin Finish
- 1.6” Sheepsfoot
- Chisel Grind
- 0.09” Blade Thickness
- 58-60 HRC
- Friction Folder
- Richlite Handles
- 0.38” Handle Thickness
- Cigar Cutout Window
- Bottle Opener
- Screwdriver/Pry Tip
- Micro Bit Slot
- Lanyard Hole
- Tip-Up Pocket Clip/Money Clip
- 1.6 Ounces
- 3.3” Closed
- 4.48” Overall
- Made in the USA
The Benchmade 381 Aller Fumee is great looking, handy little multi-tool for just about anyone, but it’s especially for those neat niche folks who like their fine whiskey and cigars. If you’re interested in this knife, click any link in the article or simply click the button below.
All images courtesy of Smoky Mountain Knife Works – smkw.com.
