- Joined
- Dec 5, 2011
- Messages
- 1,346
I just had a chance to handle a Tilt. I only wish I'd had a chance long ago. Thomas and Kershaw, thank you for making this knife! I just wish these were more widely available. Next time I hope market and timelines allow for more. Everyone get a preorder in NOW if you can find somewhere just in case there is still some chance of getting one!
The pictures don't do the Tilt justice at all. I originally was only a bit interested in this knife as the angular shape didn't look like it would be comfortable to hold. Boy was I wrong! The Tilt is AMAZING! It is much larger than I imagined even estimating size and profile from the size specs and images. The KVT sounds all technical and...big deal.. bearings.. even watching videos of it being flipped you just don't get a sense of how awesome this thing is.. how the blade just glides open. If you haven't got a preorder in or foolishly cancelled a preorder to have money for chasing Blurs, get a new preorder in! You want one! The Tilt feels like a custom knife worth at least twice the cost. I just can't stress how great this knife is without using some non-family friendly words. I can't believe that after holding one of these and flipping that smooth KVT action open that anyone would ever let it go. The fit and finish is perfect. I don't know how Kershaw managed to get everything so exact and smooth even with the limited number produced and hold up for extra attention to detail. I've NEVER seen a knife before that I didn't quite know how to put in to words how great it is. These had to be difficult to engineer even with all of the high tech laser cutters and CNC mills over in Tualatin. There must be crates full of Tilts with the tiniest blems tossed somewhere so that only knives that pass a microscope analysis make it out the door. It's that good! And since these are so hard to obtain, I really didn't want to like it as much as I do!
The carbon fiber is nice and thick but because it is carbon and titanium the knife is very well balanced. Maybe the tiniest bit blade heavy. The carbon fiber is slick and really shows off the weave. You may think this would make for a difficult to hold knife but this is not the case. The angular shape, that from the images may make it look like it would be uncomfortable hold, put the handle right in to the pocket of your palm making for a knice firm rip with the blade extending away from the palm at a nice angle for a slicing cut. The TILT cut out as lightening in the handle we've all seen pictures of. The attention to detail on this blade is just amazing. Even the outlined lettering of the font compliments the rest of the style of this knife. The simplicity of the Skyline is what makes that knife. The Tilt went the other direction and they threw carbon fiber, titanium, KVT bearing system and so many minute engineering and design details in to this knife that it's just mind blowing in the technology all packaged in to a single knife.
Now on to what I don't like... and this is a huge stretch. The DLC coated blade. When it came out as a coated blade and it sounded like there was very little chance of ever getting one in the original run I didn't want money tied up set aside for one. Kershaw makes composite blades that have that nicely defined border and they just look so great. The DLC coating on the blade gives it a nice stealth bomber sort of look but I really want to see the contrast of the two steels. They may not have the fancy border that some of the other composite blade Kershaws have but I still would like to see it. The stonewash Tilt is going to an excellent compliment to the full black Tilt if not even better! I just hope I can get one of these Tilts as I'd love a stonewashed one! Again, if you haven't got a preorder in, get one in now and set aside some money again for a stonewash!
Now I just hope that I got a new preorder in on time to get a stonewash Tilt. If the Tilt says anything at all about what to expect with the 0777, and we know it does, the 077 is going to be even more mind blowing! I only wish I had the funds for one of those also. I've put down a full preorder payment on a pair of ZT 0560s and with the KVT the 0560/0561 will be just as smooth opening but something I won't feel guilty carrying! With some Mr. H aftermarket carbon scales the 0560 can pack some technology also.
If you can, pick up a Tilt.. and if not a Tilt, you need to at least pick up something with the new KVT bearing system and that buttery smooth flipping action. The 0560/0561s, if not all of the glamor of the Tilt or 0777, are going to be real guilt free users and have very nice stonewashed blades to flip with that KVT and will have the backup of the excellent Kershaw/ZT customer service and support we've all come to know and love! I'm excited as the 0560s sounds like will be shipping soon!
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Thomas, feel free to merge this with another Tilt thread but I felt that it's as much a review of the new KVT as it is the Tilt and worthy of a thread of it's own.
The pictures don't do the Tilt justice at all. I originally was only a bit interested in this knife as the angular shape didn't look like it would be comfortable to hold. Boy was I wrong! The Tilt is AMAZING! It is much larger than I imagined even estimating size and profile from the size specs and images. The KVT sounds all technical and...big deal.. bearings.. even watching videos of it being flipped you just don't get a sense of how awesome this thing is.. how the blade just glides open. If you haven't got a preorder in or foolishly cancelled a preorder to have money for chasing Blurs, get a new preorder in! You want one! The Tilt feels like a custom knife worth at least twice the cost. I just can't stress how great this knife is without using some non-family friendly words. I can't believe that after holding one of these and flipping that smooth KVT action open that anyone would ever let it go. The fit and finish is perfect. I don't know how Kershaw managed to get everything so exact and smooth even with the limited number produced and hold up for extra attention to detail. I've NEVER seen a knife before that I didn't quite know how to put in to words how great it is. These had to be difficult to engineer even with all of the high tech laser cutters and CNC mills over in Tualatin. There must be crates full of Tilts with the tiniest blems tossed somewhere so that only knives that pass a microscope analysis make it out the door. It's that good! And since these are so hard to obtain, I really didn't want to like it as much as I do!
The carbon fiber is nice and thick but because it is carbon and titanium the knife is very well balanced. Maybe the tiniest bit blade heavy. The carbon fiber is slick and really shows off the weave. You may think this would make for a difficult to hold knife but this is not the case. The angular shape, that from the images may make it look like it would be uncomfortable hold, put the handle right in to the pocket of your palm making for a knice firm rip with the blade extending away from the palm at a nice angle for a slicing cut. The TILT cut out as lightening in the handle we've all seen pictures of. The attention to detail on this blade is just amazing. Even the outlined lettering of the font compliments the rest of the style of this knife. The simplicity of the Skyline is what makes that knife. The Tilt went the other direction and they threw carbon fiber, titanium, KVT bearing system and so many minute engineering and design details in to this knife that it's just mind blowing in the technology all packaged in to a single knife.
Now on to what I don't like... and this is a huge stretch. The DLC coated blade. When it came out as a coated blade and it sounded like there was very little chance of ever getting one in the original run I didn't want money tied up set aside for one. Kershaw makes composite blades that have that nicely defined border and they just look so great. The DLC coating on the blade gives it a nice stealth bomber sort of look but I really want to see the contrast of the two steels. They may not have the fancy border that some of the other composite blade Kershaws have but I still would like to see it. The stonewash Tilt is going to an excellent compliment to the full black Tilt if not even better! I just hope I can get one of these Tilts as I'd love a stonewashed one! Again, if you haven't got a preorder in, get one in now and set aside some money again for a stonewash!
Now I just hope that I got a new preorder in on time to get a stonewash Tilt. If the Tilt says anything at all about what to expect with the 0777, and we know it does, the 077 is going to be even more mind blowing! I only wish I had the funds for one of those also. I've put down a full preorder payment on a pair of ZT 0560s and with the KVT the 0560/0561 will be just as smooth opening but something I won't feel guilty carrying! With some Mr. H aftermarket carbon scales the 0560 can pack some technology also.
If you can, pick up a Tilt.. and if not a Tilt, you need to at least pick up something with the new KVT bearing system and that buttery smooth flipping action. The 0560/0561s, if not all of the glamor of the Tilt or 0777, are going to be real guilt free users and have very nice stonewashed blades to flip with that KVT and will have the backup of the excellent Kershaw/ZT customer service and support we've all come to know and love! I'm excited as the 0560s sounds like will be shipping soon!
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Thomas, feel free to merge this with another Tilt thread but I felt that it's as much a review of the new KVT as it is the Tilt and worthy of a thread of it's own.
