New ZT0550!!!

[knivesandguns]

Curd brings up a good point and we all seem to have lost sight of the fact that Thomas decided to accomidate the folks on this board with a pre-production sprint run. Nice of him wasn't it. I'd say very unusual thing for a business to do.

When he decided to do so I would guess he had a spot on the production calender to slide the 551 into. One unplanned machine outage and the production calender's tighten up and getting a "unplanned sprint run" through will slow down. He's got to meet his regular schedule afterall.

I'm reluctant to complain about the delays since this sprint run is strictly a favor to all us knifenut. That said I'm really ready for this knife.

Good post +1.

It's not like sprint runs are easy to do--manufacturing changes need to be made throughout.

 

[beau007]

Good post +1.

It's not like sprint runs are easy to do--manufacturing changes need to be made throughout.

I certainly agree with this. I also understand the excitement, that sometimes leads to obession , that this type of knife garners. We are all knifenuts after all, and only human. But it is good to be reminded of the realities of the situation. :thumbup:

 

[Thomas W]

My time/job has taken me away from the factory, and unfortunately the forums as well. I will try to get an update on the project tomorrow for everyone. Thanks for your patience.

 

[Mr. Clean]

Thomas - the forum is not your job man! I, and I'm sure I speak for everyone, simply appreciate the fact you participate. No worries from us, we'll get the knife when we get the knife, or the updates, or whatever. You do what you have to do of course and don't worry about us.

 

[Noctis3880]

It's worth the wait:thumbup:. I thought this was obvious?

 

[wrxguyusa]

I hope I speak for a silent majority that is thankful for the chance to get to buy a special production knife for a good price and patiently waiting.:thumbup:

Does that get me off the standby list to the pre-order list? j/k, I'll take my draw fairly.

 

[myowngod]

Any updates, even ones about not having any updates, are greatly appreciated!

Thanks Thomas!

 

[Scott Neelan]

Curd brings up a good point and we all seem to have lost sight of the fact that Thomas decided to accomidate the folks on this board with a pre-production sprint run. Nice of him wasn't it. I'd say very unusual thing for a business to do.

When he decided to do so I would guess he had a spot on the production calender to slide the 551 into. One unplanned machine outage and the production calender's tighten up and getting a "unplanned sprint run" through will slow down. He's got to meet his regular schedule afterall.

I'm reluctant to complain about the delays since this sprint run is strictly a favor to all us knifenut. That said I'm really ready for this knife.

Thank you for the voice of reason. I'm just as excited and anxious for this knife as the next guy, but there's no reason to complain about the delays the way some people have been.

The reason we're getting the 0551 in the first place is ZT/Kershaw/Thomas seeing the interest in/demand for the 0550 following BLADE, followed by the reported issues with getting the Vanax steel to work with their equipment. For all they cared, they could've just made us wait the year or so until the 0550's started rolling out.

This is a gift to us, a bonus, something above and beyond. We shouldn't be getting angry over the wait, we should be excited that Thomas and co. are throwing us a bone here.

 

[Noctis3880]

Thank you for the voice of reason. I'm just as excited and anxious for this knife as the next guy, but there's no reason to complain about the delays the way some people have been.

The reason we're getting the 0551 in the first place is ZT/Kershaw/Thomas seeing the interest in/demand for the 0550 following BLADE, followed by the reported issues with getting the Vanax steel to work with their equipment. For all they cared, they could've just made us wait the year or so until the 0550's started rolling out.

This is a gift to us, a bonus, something above and beyond. We shouldn't be getting angry over the wait, we should be excited that Thomas and co. are throwing us a bone here.

A bone? More like a T-bone steak:thumbup:.

 

[RDA]

Thank you for the voice of reason. I'm just as excited and anxious for this knife as the next guy, but there's no reason to complain about the delays the way some people have been.

The reason we're getting the 0551 in the first place is ZT/Kershaw/Thomas seeing the interest in/demand for the 0550 following BLADE, followed by the reported issues with getting the Vanax steel to work with their equipment. For all they cared, they could've just made us wait the year or so until the 0550's started rolling out.

This is a gift to us, a bonus, something above and beyond. We shouldn't be getting angry over the wait, we should be excited that Thomas and co. are throwing us a bone here.

Although I generally agree with some of these posts to be patient, let's be sure to get a grip here when slobbering all over the manufacturer(s) and distributor(s) as if they are doing the buyers the biggest favor they have ever seen. Zero Tolerance, Rick Hinderer and the distributors are also running a business here and doing this sprint run is also about them making money (at least I hope they are). Their participation in this forum is appreciated but also a part of how they are running their business. There is a happy medium here folks, no need to disparage nor worship.

I hope to get a 0551 as well when they are available.

Regards,

Rich

 

[Tony8179]

Yeah... So anyway, I disagree. It is a business and business is about making the $$, but there were zero plans of a sprint run (AFAIK) before everyone started clammoring for one of these 0550's. That was all pretty much due to this thread. Are they going to make money off the sprint run? Yeah, they'll make some money, but I really think that this sprint run was more about pleasing the customer instead of flipping a quick buck.

Thomas and Rick's participation in this forum is more of a privilege to us than them just trying to drum up business. I highly doubt that Kershaw/ZT or Rick Hinderer need to be here to advertise themselves for more business. I have a feeling that they could disappear from this forum forever and that business would be just fine. It is a privilege for us because we get to find out from the sources themselves. We get to pick the brains of the makers and tell them what we want and don't want as consumers and customers. Often they listen. Obviously, we have this sprint run coming out don't we?

 

[dnuggett]

Although I generally agree with some of these posts to be patient, let's be sure to get a grip here when slobbering all over the manufacturer(s) and distributor(s) as if they are doing the buyers the biggest favor they have ever seen. Zero Tolerance, Rick Hinderer and the distributors are also running a business here and doing this sprint run is also about them making money (at least I hope they are). Their participation in this forum is appreciated but also a part of how they are running their business. There is a happy medium here folks, no need to disparage nor worship.

I hope to get a 0551 as well when they are available.

Regards,

Rich

Man, that is very well said. You should see all the drool over in the ESEE forum over the HEST/F. I mean it's one thing to like and look forward to a nice knife coming out, it's another to see that stupidity. There are customers kissing the company's ass to give them money. It's ridiculous.

 

[swimmerdude1127]

I just want a quality knife from a reputable company that has a great warranty, and all at a great price.

Is that too much to ask?

 

[cziv]

Someone say gift? Well maybe they'll drop the price by $25 for forum members....nahh...I'm sure it's going to be worth the wait!

 

[Scott Neelan]

Gift? Well maybe they'll drop the price by $25 for forum members....nahh...I'm sure it's going to be worth the wait!

I said a gift, not a miracle! They are still a business, after all.

I'm not meaning to sound like I'm worshiping (though my personal grail knife would just so happen to be an XM-24), and I am enough of a realist to know that ZT wouldn't be doing this sprint run if they didn't think they could make some money off of it. But if it wasn't for us reacting the way we did when news of the 0550 first broke, then there wouldn't be an 0551 sprint run.

It wasn't part of the original plan, thus it's a bonus. There's no sense in criticizing them for their delays of something that wasn't planned to exist in the first place. Timing the production of a special sprint run among your normal production queue isn't easy under perfect circumstances, let alone when machines go down.

 

[RDA]

Yeah... So anyway, I disagree. It is a business and business is about making the $$, but there were zero plans of a sprint run (AFAIK) before everyone started clammoring for one of these 0550's. That was all pretty much due to this thread. Are they going to make money off the sprint run? Yeah, they'll make some money, but I really think that this sprint run was more about pleasing the customer instead of flipping a quick buck.

So, you agree that businesses (at least the ones in question) are in it to make money right? And let's assume that there were no plans for the sprint run of 0551. What you seem to be saying is that their participation in this forum(s) has exposed them to a business opportunity, making money and pleasing a customer base all in one pass.

Hopefully, they will make money from doing the sprint run. If they weren't making money on the sprint run, I doubt they would do it just to please those on this thread (i.e., I doubt they would go to the trouble just to please those wanting a sprint run at their expense).

I could be wrong, Zero Tolerance and others may just be feeling terribly charitable.

Thomas and Rick's participation in this forum is more of a privilege to us than them just trying to drum up business. I highly doubt that Kershaw/ZT or Rick Hinderer need to be here to advertise themselves for more business. I have a feeling that they could disappear from this forum forever and that business would be just fine. It is a privilege for us because we get to find out from the sources themselves. We get to pick the brains of the makers and tell them what we want and don't want as consumers and customers. Often they listen. Obviously, we have this sprint run coming out don't we?

If they disappeared, they may have missed this opportunity, that would be a shame. And honestly, if you believe their participation is a privilege to you, that is fine with me and I never said they were only here to "drum up business". Personally, I see it as more of two-way street and a harmonious relationship as opposed to one-sided as you describe.

I am not trying to be disagreeable, I am simply attempting to temper what I see as some lopsided comments. ZT/Kershaw/Hinderer can clearly speak for themselves and I am not trying to speak on their behalf.

Thanks all, hopefully everyone anticipating their 0551/0550 is pleased with the end result, including the manufacturer, designer and distributors.

Regards,

Rich

 

[sab13]

Thomas - the forum is not your job man! I, and I'm sure I speak for everyone, simply appreciate the fact you participate. No worries from us, we'll get the knife when we get the knife, or the updates, or whatever. You do what you have to do of course and don't worry about us.

:thumbup:

 

[adnj]

I'm looking forward to a great knife at a VERY reasonable price. That's what I'll receive.

A few more loyal fans; another great set of reviews; a few magazine cover shots; maybe some profits in an economic downturn. That's what Kershaw gets.

I don't see anything wrong with any of that! :thumbup:

 

[Kirk_Ferentz]

Man, that is very well said. You should see all the drool over in the ESEE forum over the HEST/F. I mean it's one thing to like and look forward to a nice knife coming out, it's another to see that stupidity. There are customers kissing the company's ass to give them money. It's ridiculous.

Yeah I will save words like "gift" and "favor" for the day when Thomas emails me and says your knife is on the way, never mind the $200

I too think that they are probably managing to turn a profit on this big favor, and the promotional value of having a sprint run for loyal customers and all of the interest and publicity that follows probably far surpasses that profit in terms of the (pecuniary) benefit to the company. It is how I found myself a first-time ZT customer for example. It is a very good business decision.

Not knocking them at all, and the delay is still within the limits of my patience. Just saying that it is still business.

 

[Rhind64]

Hello everyone! Someone a few posts back asked me to show a comparison pic of the 0550 to my XM-18....here are those pics..I hope it shows well the differences and similarities....

my take on some of the other discussions....I am very excited and humbled by everyones excitement surrounding the 0550 which is my first collaboration with ZT...One thing I want everyone to know and remember...you all as customers and friends of Rick Hinderer knives are very important to me! Without all of you I would not be living my dream of designing and producing these awesome tools that we all love and use! I come on these forums because I enjoy inter acting with my customers and friends...and I learn alot in the process! In short I want to take the time to THANK all of you!!! Without you all none of this would happen!!

Rick Hinderer