New ZT looks pretty disappointing

stonproject

stonproject

Joined
Nov 22, 2013
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Just saw this video in my feed on YouTube. Can't find any information on this one anywhere else, but based on what I'm seeing in this, I'm not a fan. Curious what everyone else thinks.

 
I'm currently carrying a Kershaw Knockout with M390 steel and carbon fiber scales with a subframe lock that I paid under $125 shipped for and I love it! And there's a 20CV Link that you can get for about $80! Those are some very nice knives, great designs, great values. This? Well, did I mention those other two are really nice?
 
Insipid Moniker said:
I'm currently carrying a Kershaw Knockout with M390 steel and carbon fiber scales with a subframe lock that I paid under $125 shipped for and I love it! And there's a 20CV Link that you can get for about $80! Those are some very nice knives, great designs, great values. This? Well, did I mention those other two are really nice?
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ZT needs to team up with a good designer, because when they design their own we end up getting a regurgitated design with a torsion bar.
 
stonproject said:
ZT needs to team up with a good designer, because when they design their own we end up getting a regurgitated design with a torsion bar.
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Yeah, I genuinely like their Speedsafe system, but in 2020 I think it belongs on Kershaws, not ZTs. If this same knife came out with a KVT pivot and a ti framelock it still wouldn't particularly excite me, but I just wouldn't have anything to say about it. As is, I think it's directly competing with Kershaw offerings and, well, losing that competition.

If ZT wants a more budget friendly folder I think they would do better with a big, burly folder maybe with a steel framelock and CPM154 blade or similar, with that old school pivot and the thumb stud/stop pin thing going on.

That said, they're the experts, but I know I'm not going to pay a $70 premium just to get G10 instead of aluminum on a knife that says ZT instead of Kershaw.
 
I love the fact that they'll still make folders with washers, but I don't prefer Speedsafe if I've got a choice of the style of assisted opening technology (and I'd rather my knives be unassisted than assisted, if possible).

As far as the rest of the knife goes, it looks like a 20CV Link with thicker liners and G10 rather than aluminum scales. I saw them attempt to answer questions on instagram about what the difference is between this new design and the US-made Kershaw knives in 20CV, and they essentially said it was better built but wouldn't offer specifics. I'm going to want to see some examples of that because I didn't observe any notable differences between my 0350 and the Link I had in the past, seemingly confirming that the line between Kershaw and ZT really is blurred at a given price range.
 
I've got a bunch of ZT's but haven't bought one in years and honestly don't foresee another purchase pretty much ever. In their heyday they were innovative and worked with some talented designers to produce some unique products. I don't know where they're getting their ideas these days but all I see are misses or at least barely keeping up, nothing innovative or even very interesting.

Speedsafe?? Come on, that's not even funny, a good working knife doesn't need assistance. The 0566 is one of my fav's but I took the dorky lever out of it the day I got it, not the best flipper but a terrific opener with the studs which I prefer. I'll probably grind the tab off one of them one of these day to see how I like it.
 
I have a bunch of ZT knives which I am very happy with. But, their newer stuff is a joke. So much so that I was under the impression that they had gone out of business. Everywhere you look ZT has been a dry spot for nearly 2 years now. It looks like they have gone the way of Al Mar and so many other once great knife makers...and become zombie versions of their former selves.

n2s
 
I've been a fan of ZT knives since they first released, however the releases in the last couple years have left me cold. They build their reputation as a company that made knives that were overbuilt tanks and it seems as though they have moved away from that. Even with the new 0308 they made the questionable choice of putting a cut out right next to the pivot. I understand the argument that it could make it easier to clean the pivot area without disassembling the knife, but it will definitely cause the pivot to be cleaned more often. I agree with those who said that they need to work with more outside designers. The projects they have done with Hinderer, Emerson, and Strider have become classics along with the Ken Onion designs.
 
What Kershaw/ZT makes well they really make well, but there are a lot of bad misses. Good build quality and all, but there are so many moving parts and fancy showoff designs that make them more fragile or harder to use. I break every torsion bar I touch, and I don't always want that much noise or attention when I need my knife so I pretty much avoid them with very rare exceptions.

I would really love to see KAI make an affordable line of simple, lightweight, solidly built, non-flipper, non-KVT, non-speedsafe knives on phosphor bronze washers, in a good steel like CPM-154 or S30V, made in USA under the Kershaw banner. It would beat anything almost any other manufacturer had out there right now and would really make some money for them, especially if it were put in bigger retailers.

It's not been a secret for a very long time that they've completely gone away from the original purpose of the ZT brand. As cool as it is, a ZT 0230 is not an overbuilt hard use tactical knife.
 
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Just my .02. I have owned ZTs, but currently do not have any that have stuck around long-term. From my perspective (which admittedly has been more observer than purchaser) they seemed to ride the overbuilt, titanium, frame lock flipper train which really paid off for them...until the market either shifted or caught up to them.

The only ZT that interested me in recent years was the GTC designed flipper 0055.
 
stonproject said:
ZT needs to team up with a good designer, because when they design their own we end up getting a regurgitated design with a torsion bar.
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Good designer? So Sinkevich, Hinderer, Emerson, Les George, Rexford are not good designers? Cuz from what I can tell from the knife community, those are some pretty big players...and all designers that ZT has worked with.

Then again, I don’t follow social media at all so I’m probably wrong...
 
The ZT Emerson collabs were the last ones I was exited about. Even so, I didn’t buy any.
 
metsfan said:
Good designer? So Sinkevich, Hinderer, Emerson, Les George, Rexford are not good designers? Cuz from what I can tell from the knife community, those are some pretty big players...and all designers that ZT has worked with.

Then again, I don’t follow social media at all so I’m probably wrong...
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I meant permanently team up with a good designer, because their in house stuff is pretty weak. They're continually missing the mark on releases.
 
I have not handled one yet, so all I have is pictures and video, but this one looks a little larger than the 0770, and a little smaller than the unobtainable 777. It has been compared to the Bareknuckle, which I feel is a fair comparison.

I will withhold more impressions until I am able to actually handle the knife.

best

mqqn
 
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