New ZT0550 Thread !!!

Number 290 was waiting for me when I got home. :thumbup:

Mine has:

-Perfect blade centering.

-Easy enough to open with the thumb stud, but it's obviously a new knife and has a little stiffness in the detent. After a handful of openings, it flicks open with the tip of my thumb no problem.

-Rock solid, wiggle-free lock-up.

-Lock bar is at about 40%. Little more travel than I'd expect to see out of the box, but it's fine.

-Edge is good and sharp, nice even grinds.

-Fit and finish seems quite good. No issues to speak of.

-No rust on my steel liner behind the G-10, in fact, the liner on mine looks to be a finished piece. Bead blasted it looks like; matches the Ti side.

I was really looking forward to the prototype design with the forward choil, and a little unsure how I'd like this finished version. However, I find it great in the hand, and am really pleased with mine.

It's a beefy piece, for sure, but whereas something like the Benchmade MPR seems almost comically thick, this seems very purpose built. I think once I accepted that this is not a production version of the XM-18, but it's own design, I really started to warm up to it. As with most knives, holding it in your own hand says way more than pictures on the web do.

Overall, I'm pleased with it. For as substantial as it is, it's really not all that huge. Big punch in a reasonably sized package.


(Reading through some other posts, I do agree that it seems unusual that the blade tang would be stonewashed AFTER being back-cut for the lock. Typically, this area of the tang is left unfinished, or cut for the lock ramp after the blade finishing has been done. Do wonder if that will have any effect on lock-up and wear, but on mine it does not seem to be an issue. Without other means such as an adjustable stop-pin to account for lock wear, I hope this doesn't become an issue over time.)
 
Hmm, hopefully I'll have mine in hand by tomorrow. I'll hold off any complaints until I've had a chance to whittle down some wood with it:thumbup:.
 
So after getting to know her a little better here's my thoughts.

Rust was a slight issue but some sandpaper cured that problem, slipping lock was also resolved by removing excess lube. I do feel that the knife needs to come apart again though for some lock bar tweeking.

Blade:
The factory grind looked good but when taken to the benchstones it revealed a slight recurve from factory over sharpening. The sharpeing choil is also a bit of a waste in design as its pretty useless. A higher cut in the sharpening choil and a blade grind that goes further back before starting to curve down and ending up behind the sharpening choil would cure all issues in sharpening the edge.

The blade grind itself is very good and geared toward performance, slicing ability is excellent for the blade thickness and it has a nice sturdy and pointy point. Thumb studs are decent and work but would love to see studs like found on the blur.

Handle:
I don't like the looks of the g10 but it is very grippy for not actually having much surface area. The feel in hand is excellent with a forward grip like the blade once had a finger choil ;) This is good IMO as it puts your hand closer to the cutting edge for more control and power in the cut.

Overall I'm pleased with my new knife even though there were some unexpected issues. It would have got a 9/10 but for excessive lube, unfinished liner, and possible weak adjustment of lock bar a point gets deducted for a 8/10.

Steel:
Looks to be a excellent HT from how it reacted during sharpening and maybe even a point harder than the 350CB, was razor sharp with a very very minimal burr from 320 grit on up.
 
Got Mine today (#126). Prompt service and proper packaging from Kershaw Guy.

I Plan to give this to my son as a gift for graduation from USMC OCS. May have it engraved with his name and Eagle, Globe and Anchor when he gets his commission in May.

First impressions:

Nice overall design, fit and finish. Feels nice in the hand. Balance point between index and middle finger.

Blade is perfectly centered.

Grind appears symmetrical and clean. Appropriately sharp, but needs fine touch up and stropping.

Can open one handed with a firm hand. Can flick open with a bit of wrist action. I expect this will become easier with use.

Solid lockup at 50%. Personally, I don't have a problem with this or a bit more. As long as it is solid and with out play or slippage.

NO blade play.

Thumb stud has some some shiny wear spots, I suppose from a tightening wrench. No big deal, but not perfect.

G-10 and Liner match up perfectly at point of lockup. Studs ride on line and frame. Not on G10 only.

Interesting Scale texture. Abrasive feel, good grip.

Have not taken scale off to visualize the liner. But will be somewhat disappointed if there is RUST. If there is Rust, I'd appreciate a stainless or Ti replacement, as this knife may see some harsh use by a Marine.

Again, overall, this is a VERY NICE KNIFE DESIGN with very good construction.
 
Tony8179 said:
I wouldn't worry too much about the lockbar being at about 75%. The large CRK knives I've had usually fall in around there, especially the Umnumzaan. Where you see the lockbar right now is where it will sit for a long time to come.

My liner has rust. Taking it apart and hitting it lightly with some sandpaper should get the job done.

Not good, but not that big of a deal.
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I am lead to believe CRKs are built a bit differently and are designed to have the lockbar at around 50-75% out of the box (correct me if I'm wrong). You will notice that they have a shallower incline on the tang where the lockbar contacts the tang compared to other knives with a steeper incline which means more grinding and wear between lockbar and tang. I think CRKs are precision made and fitted so there is minimal wear while other framelocks use steeper lockbar/tang so it can wear out more of the lockbar and last just as long. I notice this comparing my SNG and Sebenza as well as my Sage 2. The Sage 2 and SNG both have steeper inclines on the tang and also has a earlier lockup at around 30-40%. Looking at pictures I dont think the 0551's lockbar should be traveling past 40% out of the box . Not to mention all the people saying they have lockbar play with the knife open and atrocious amount of rust on the liners. I'm glad I decided to wait for the 0550 so they can work out the kinks because it does look like a phenomenal knife minor flaws and all.
 
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knifenut1013 said:
Well, I was overjoyed for a moment and then my curse kicked in.

When my knife arrived today I did the usual F&F inspection then moved straight to the sharpening stones. When I was done I noticed two things, the first being I could push the lock bar over the right after lock up and the second was rust on the liner side :eek:

At first I thought the rust may have been from using my water stones to sharpen but I dug a little deeper and found this.

Picture1654.jpg


Picture1656.jpg


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The lock issue is one that I have seen before and I figured it was probably from too much oil, from the looks of it that seems to be the issue.

Picture1659.jpg


So before I fix the issues myself I would like to hear from Thomas or Rick. I can fix it myself and really don't want to send it back but if you want it for inspection I understand. I'm also not upset by this but rather just wanted to give you the heads up on a possible problem.
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Did a blind person put that one together? :eek:

People don't buy a Benz to finish the paint job themselves.
 
I can't speak for others but my 0300 was the definition of perfection, the only other knife that ever compared too its F&F was a XM-18 and CRK.
 
Ditch_Digger said:
I decided to purchase one of these 0551’s as my first Zero Tolerance knife because I’ve heard/read nothing but wonderful things regarding ZT’s fit/finish and overall quality but WTF is up with that RUST ?!!


..have you guys forgotten that “stainless” steel is NOT supposed to rust like that?
Why wasn’t it cleaned and finished properly?
What kind of alloy did they use if it is indeed stainless??? A simple 300 series SS should not rust like that and spare me about high carbon SS tool alloys oxidizing, we're talking about a liner here!

I can’t help thinking that liner looks like it belongs on a Pakistani/Chinese knock-off sold on Canal Street, not on a high end, $200 knife!


And, to top it off, several new owners are worried about the excess lock bar travel and lock-up issues on a brand new knife. Hmmm....


Anybody else get the feeling that they rushed these out the door and threw caution to the wind???
..maybe they had the “B” team trainees putting them together? There were comments made about working this sprint run in between the “regular production” and how busy Kershaw was during this time of year. Maybe they hired some seasonal temp workers and let them have a go at being a “knifemaker” by "practicing" on our much anticipated 0551's???

How else to explain these QC issues? :confused:
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I'm thinkin' that maybe the holiday season wasn't the best time to release a new and anticipated knife:thumbdn:. Of course, Spyderco rolled out with their Para2 in S90V with flying colors, but I suspected they finished those well ahead of time before things got hectic and only had to deal with shipping them out at the last moment.
 
Gee, thanks for making me paranoid. I just took off my G10 scale to find an awful lot of rust underneath. And judging by those pics of the liners earlier, there was pretty clear rust on them to begin with.

What gives? Did they assemble these with rusty liners knowingly? Thankfully this was my second ZT, and my first (a 0300) was absolutely perfect. Otherwise I might've been turned off the brand completely by this. As it is, I would like some sort of comment from Kershaw/ZT on what exactly happened here.
 
Scott Neelan said:
I would like some sort of comment from Kershaw/ZT on what exactly happened here.
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Luckily mine is perfect minus being a little stiff, and maybe a hair off center but im fine with that. definitely curious to hear from ZT/Kai about the issues folks have been having. i figured with all the scrutiny this thing has been under since august that they would have made sure each and every one was flawless. :confused:
 
Mine should be here tomorrow. I dont think it will last long here with what I have seen. Bottom line is and I will take some blame. THESE WERE SPRINTED OUT THE DOOR! Now that doesnt mean quality control should have suffered but it appears that is what happened. If mine come rusty it will not last. I work in the water utility/fire industry I am always WET. Tuff cloth eventually wears off and then you are back to square one. The lock bar not working proper is very disturbing. Some have G10 contact issues other dont. I have ZERO TOLERANCE for a top shelf production having these issues.

I will report back tomorrow.
Zach
 
tundratrader said:
Mine should be here tomorrow. I dont think it will last long here with what I have seen. Bottom line is and I will take some blame. THESE WERE SPRINTED OUT THE DOOR! Now that doesnt mean quality control should have suffered but it appears that is what happened. If mine come rusty it will not last. I work in the water utility/fire industry I am always WET. Tuff cloth eventually wears off and then you are back to square one. The lock bar not working proper is very disturbing. Some have G10 contact issues other dont. I have ZERO TOLERANCE for a top shelf production having these issues.

I will report back tomorrow.
Zach
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And here I thought irony on the internet was impossible:D.

I'm not about to send a knife back due to surface rust unless it went deeper, as it takes all of 10 minutes on sandpaper to fix that up. However, even my cheaper knives won't come with free rust.

The lock bar issue was somewhat surprising, as I only see the lock bar so far to the right on knives that have been used for years. Still, I would want to test the knife function-wise before putting in a complaint. The usual spine whack and wood whittling...with cutting gloves of course:thumbup:.
 
Scott Neelan said:
Gee, thanks for making me paranoid. I just took off my G10 scale to find an awful lot of rust underneath. And judging by those pics of the liners earlier, there was pretty clear rust on them to begin with.
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Can you tell us how much rust? Is it comparable to Knifenut1013's knife? Thanks.

It's a bit disheartening to learn all this after the wait.
 
Oh no! I hope this one doesn't turn out to be as big of a disappointment as the Emerson HD7. Granted, its cost was north of $300 but $203 is a lot too. The HD7 never locked up consistently because minor movements to its pivot (which wouldn't stay put) caused drastic changes to its overall function. I've owned both an 0302 and an 0400ST that functioned flawlessly with impecable fit and finish. A little surface rust on the liner is no big deal but any lock-up issue is intolerable. Mine's waiting for me at the post office, so I'll know soon if it is stayin' or goin'. :(
 
Ditch_Digger said:
..you do not heat treat a simple liner unless it is used as a liner lock that needs to be spring tempered/hardened because heat treatment is expensive and adds to the cost.
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This is not true. Tons of makers heat treat liners. Try to tap a Camillus liner from any of the Cuda series.
 
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