Man oh man, proof the ZT 550 is an awesome knife.

@netshadex
I could have bought the 0801 after handling it yesterday, it felt so good, the way it opened was incredibly smooth and the lock up was precise.
Then I watch this and think, I want the 0550. Does the 0550 have the same feel?
 
FLYING BONES said:
@netshadex
I could have bought the 0801 after handling it yesterday, it felt so good, the way it opened was incredibly smooth and the lock up was precise.
Then I watch this and think, I want the 0550. Does the 0550 have the same feel?
Click to expand...

I have an 801 and a new 550. They are both smooth but imo the 801 is a bit more refined relative to how it opens. The 801 is on bearings and is a flipper while the 550 is thumb studs on phos/bronze washers.

Both are rock solid but just different.

0801 is like closing the door on a sports car

0550 Is like closing the door on a fully armored humve
 
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FLYING BONES said:
@netshadex
I could have bought the 0801 after handling it yesterday, it felt so good, the way it opened was incredibly smooth and the lock up was precise.
Then I watch this and think, I want the 0550. Does the 0550 have the same feel?
Click to expand...

They are very different in feel but both are high quality and won't dissappoint you.

For me personally the 550 edges out the 0801. Reasons for this being the thumbstuds/bladestops on the 550 are my prefered way of deploying a blade and that thick slab of smooth surfaced titanium. For some reason that tickles my jimmies.

However truth be told the 0801 is more comfortable/ergonomic in it's grip when opened, it feels better in hand, and it's bladeshape is more to my preference as well. Less belly than the 550 but just a more effective cutter and piercer in my experience.

There is NO measurable difference in smoothness of opening with my knives though. In fact when I first got my 550 it was so ridiculously smooth I checked if the pivot was loose, but this wasn't the case. There is no play in any direction in mine but when I hold the 550 edge down and move the lockbar the blade falls down freely, it's that smooth. That smoothness in combination with a strong detent means it positively flies open when you work those studs. Again, the 550 is my personal favorite eventhough the 0801 is probably the more effective knife overall.

If I had to describe the difference between those blades I'd say the 550 is Rambo and 0801 is James Bond. ;)

Edit: one thing I forgot to mention is the difference in pocketclips. The 550 feels noticeably better sliding in and out of my pocket. For some reason the 0801 keeps catching the fabric in the lockbar cut out to a point where I actually need both hands to get it out, very annoying.
 
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Touché, NetshadeX! Admittedly I must defer to real world experience as I do not own anything in S35VN. Still, there seem to be a lot of folks who do with various opinions one way or another. At this level the differences in blade steel may be more personal preference, or related more to the manufacturing or heat treatment and not the steel itself...this may account for the wide range of varying (and strong) opinions on the matter. I cannot say definitively, but thank you for contributing your personal experience to the body of evidence on this topic. Of course I hate you now because I have to go buy something in S35VN to compare for myself. :).

Steve


NetshadeX said:
Well, first things first because I feel I have to show I have real world experience with both steels before I start swimming against the tide here ;)

30rsap0.jpg


In my experience, S35VN (and S30V) keep a razor edge about as long as Elmax with the noticeable difference being the fact that both Crucible steels seem to keep a far better working edge once that razor edge goes. They also seem to respond better to stropping to maintain an existing edge.

Elmax in my experience goes from hairpopping to completely dull much quicker. Sharpening is a different story though. I find that Elmax sharpens more easily than S30V. S30V fights you. S35VN sharpens somewhat better and I'd rank it just under Elmax on my Sharpmaker.

To make things even more complex, out of all three steels S30V seems to handle cutting harder materials best. I can cut electrical wire with my 0301 and the edge doesn't seem to give a damn whereas my 0550 didn't feel flawless anymore when running my nail along it's edge.

All in all I prefer the longer lasting working edge on my 0550 to the Elmax on my 0801.
Elmax may be the better steel on paper but hey, on paper Spain is an ex-world champ and they're packing their bags in Brazil as we speak ;)
Click to expand...
 
I left this thread alone for awhile. I picked up a 0550 right after my first post in this thread. I have mostly carried the 0550 on days off, with my usual work carry being the 0566. I have brought the 0550 to work and used it quite a bit already.

Some thoughts:

- the detent on my (gen 1) 0550 was ridiculously strong out of box. It took some breaking in and tweaking technique to get to a point where I can snap it open quickly. The detent is still very stiff, but the action is glass smooth and it opens with authority.

- when I fondled it at the shop, it felt like a brick. Once I started using it, I fell in love with that big, hand filling grip. Hand fatigue is non existent in extended use. This thing is very comfortable to use for long periods. Today, this is my favorite blade in hand.

- S35VN vs Elmax: in my experience, they seem to be performing the same. Where S35VN wins a little is maintenance. It was quick and easy to get the 0550 back to scary sharp. Elmax took more work, but got there just fine. I happily use either.


The 0550 is very confidence inspiring. It begs to be thumped on, and laughs everything off.

I do think the 0566 would shock people in these tests :)
 
Elmax takes a surgical edge with very little effort. It doesn't hold it as well as the other two but I have been more than impressed with it in my limited experience so far.s35 can be quite a chore...
 
I wish i could afford to buy knives for the sole purpose of putting them through test like this!!! Very impressive!!
 
The ZT 0550 Gen 2 is the knife I always seem to come back to regardless of what knives I've been buying. It is the only knife that was ever able to replace the SnG (still a great knife) as my main EDC...ZT simply nailed it with the 0550. My hope is that someday that they'll come out with a stonewash Tanto version with everything else remaining the same. Since its a Hinderer collaboration I seriously doubt we'll ever see that happen, but one can hope. Great knife.
 
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