I just bought a Dendra Deer Hunter a little over a week ago. I started a thread on General Discussion "Dendra Deer Hunter......the Italian ZT0200" or something to that effect. I felt/feel that the Deer Hunter stacks up as a direct competitor to the 0200 and I, for one, like the Dendra a little bit better. The grip feels much better to me than the 0200's, also I like the straight blade edge on the Dendra. I want to say that I have had several 0200's and have long considered it to be the epitome of what ZT stands for so for me to display a preference for the DH is quite a feat.
Of course I had to take the DH apart and in doing so I discovered that it has remarkably precise machining as everything lines up and snaps together with an audible click. The only thing's I do not like, and for the first thing it is something I've said before, and that's the teflon washers. The other thing is the lack of a deep carry pocket clip, though the one provided is not bad. I had the correct size of phospher/bronze washers (.023" thick) needed to replace the teflon washers and did so. They worked out as when completely reassembled the blade automatically centered even before tightening the pivot screw. While inside the knife I gave the liner lock a tad more bend, something I generally do for all my liner/frame locks because I like the tighter lockup that results. When completely finished, including a drop of Miltec 1 lubricant, the blade flipped open with index finger pressure only. When closed, a hard forward movement then sudden reversal failed to dislodge the blade even the smallest amount, so no worries with the blade opening in my pocket.
I have only seen pics of the fixed blades in the Dendra lineup and really like the smaller one, the Inazuma. It is listed with a 4.1" long X.180" thick blade of Niolox steel with either a black finish or a stonewash finish, and black G-10 handle scales. It comes with a very nice looking leather sheath that appears to have the ability to be worn in either a horizontally or vertically fashion. The other offering in the fb's is the Russian Bear, a little larger knife with a drop point design.
I sometimes have the tendency to "gush" over a new knife, but I'm not going to apologize because I do my research before buying and it is a rare occasion for me to be disappointed when the knife arrives. There certainly was no disappointment when the Dendra Deer Hunter arrived. I am thinking about trying out the Typhoon as it appears to have the same handle but a different blade profile with a slight recurve. Again I want to say how comfortable and ergonomic the handle is on the Deer Hunter. The machined micarta does not have as rough a feel as the machined G-10 of the ZT0200. I hope there are some more Dendra linerlocks, or some all titanium framelocks in the pipeline that will be built by LionSteel. They are off to a heck of a start so far!:thumbup:
Of course I had to take the DH apart and in doing so I discovered that it has remarkably precise machining as everything lines up and snaps together with an audible click. The only thing's I do not like, and for the first thing it is something I've said before, and that's the teflon washers. The other thing is the lack of a deep carry pocket clip, though the one provided is not bad. I had the correct size of phospher/bronze washers (.023" thick) needed to replace the teflon washers and did so. They worked out as when completely reassembled the blade automatically centered even before tightening the pivot screw. While inside the knife I gave the liner lock a tad more bend, something I generally do for all my liner/frame locks because I like the tighter lockup that results. When completely finished, including a drop of Miltec 1 lubricant, the blade flipped open with index finger pressure only. When closed, a hard forward movement then sudden reversal failed to dislodge the blade even the smallest amount, so no worries with the blade opening in my pocket.
I have only seen pics of the fixed blades in the Dendra lineup and really like the smaller one, the Inazuma. It is listed with a 4.1" long X.180" thick blade of Niolox steel with either a black finish or a stonewash finish, and black G-10 handle scales. It comes with a very nice looking leather sheath that appears to have the ability to be worn in either a horizontally or vertically fashion. The other offering in the fb's is the Russian Bear, a little larger knife with a drop point design.
I sometimes have the tendency to "gush" over a new knife, but I'm not going to apologize because I do my research before buying and it is a rare occasion for me to be disappointed when the knife arrives. There certainly was no disappointment when the Dendra Deer Hunter arrived. I am thinking about trying out the Typhoon as it appears to have the same handle but a different blade profile with a slight recurve. Again I want to say how comfortable and ergonomic the handle is on the Deer Hunter. The machined micarta does not have as rough a feel as the machined G-10 of the ZT0200. I hope there are some more Dendra linerlocks, or some all titanium framelocks in the pipeline that will be built by LionSteel. They are off to a heck of a start so far!:thumbup:
